Parkinson Canada announces over $1.3 million in research competition funding

Parkinson Canada would like to congratulate applicants who have been awarded funding in 2023 and also acknowledge the hard work and dedication to Parkinson’s research of the many applicants whose applications were highly ranked but did not receive funding. We look forward to continuing to engage with the exceptional Canadian research community and encourage applicants who did not receive funding this cycle to apply in the upcoming 2024 competition.

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Amounts awarded over one year.

Dr. Edward Fon
McGill University
Project title: Biochemical and pathological characterization of synuclein aggregates from PD and RBD patient plasma
$75,000

Dr. Étienne Hébert Chatelain
Université de Moncton
Project title: A new tool to study how mitochondria are involved in Parkinson’s disease
$75,000

Dr. Philippe Huot
McGill University
Project title: A vitamin for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease
$75,000

Dr. Martin Ingelsson
University Health Network
Project title: Strain-specific alpha-synuclein immunotherapy for Parkinson’s disease
$75,000

Dr. Martin McKeown
University of British Columbia
Project title: An individualized, machine-learning approach for prediction of medication “Off” episodes in Parkinson’s disease
$72,561.80

Dr. Luka Milosevic
University Health Network
Project title: Modulation of long-term synaptic plasticity using deep brain stimulation for neurocircuit restoration in Parkinson’s disease
$71,920

Dr. Oury Monchi
University of Montreal
Project title: Characterization of the comprehensive sensory profile of patients with Parkinson’s disease with and without chronic pain.
$75,000

Dr. Abid Oueslati
Laval University
Project title: Investigation of the synergistic role of TMEM106B and alpha-synuclein in Parkinson’s disease pathogenesis
$75,000

Dr. Shady Rahayel
University of Montreal
Project title: Investigating white matter alterations to understand atrophy in prodromal Parkinson’s disease
$74,220

Dr. Ali Salahpour
University of Toronto
Project title: Cannabinoid compounds to augment L-DOPA treatment and prevent L-DOPA induced dyskinesia
$75,000

Dr. Louis-Eric Trudeau
University of Montreal
Project title: Identifying small molecules acting on mitochondrial efficiency for neuroprotection in Parkinson’s disease.
$75,000

Dr. Patrick Whelan
University of Calgary
Project title: Restoration of locomotor function following stimulation of the A13 region in Parkinson’s rat models.
$74,621

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[bootstrap-accordion heading-id=”basic-research” content-id=”basic-research-content” heading=”Basic research fellowships”]

Amounts awarded over two years.

Dr. Robin Nguyen
Columbia University
Project title: Hippocampal neuronal circuit dysfunction underlying social cognition impairments in a model of Parkinson’s Disease
$100,000

Dr. Brendan Santyr
University of Toronto
Project title: Stimulation-task-based fMRI, a practical clinical modality for personalizing therapy in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease with DBS.
$80,000

Dr. Chiara Tocco
University of Montreal
Project title: Sex differences in the innate immune response associated with Parkinson’s disease with DBS.
$80,000

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Amounts awarded over one year.

Dr. Suzie Adam
University of British Columbia
$75,000

Dr. Robin Bessemer
University of British Columbia
$75,000

Dr. Konstantin Senkevich
McGill University
$75,000

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[bootstrap-accordion heading-id=”clinical-research” content-id=”clinical-research-content” heading=”Clinical research fellowships”]

Amount awarded over two years.

Dr. Seyed-Mohammad Fereshtehnejad
University of Toronto
Project title: Global composite marker for disease progression in prodromal stage of Parkinson’s disease
$150,000

Dr. Nikolai Gil Reyes
University of Toronto
Project title: Genotype-phenotype correlations and diagnostic biomarkers of chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome-associated Parkinson’s disease
$150,000

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[bootstrap-accordion heading-id=”graduate-student” content-id=”graduate-student-content” heading=”Graduate student awards”]

Amounts awarded over two years.

Ms. Claudie Beaulieu
University of Montreal
Project title: Exploring neurotransmitter phenotype plasticity in Parkinson’s Disease
$20,000

Mr. Cyril Bolduc
McGill University
Project title: Unveiling the role of synaptic transmission and glycolysis on cell vulnerability
$20,000

Mr. William Gauthier-Naud
University of Montreal
Project title: Maturation of microRNAs targeting alpha-synuclein
$20,000

Mr. Nathan Karpilovsky
McGill University
Project title: Genetic modulators of alpha-synuclein propagation in Parkinson’s disease: a genome-wide CRISPR approach
$20,000

Dr. Beatriz Elena Lucumi Villegas
Laval University
Project title: Modelling Parkinson’s disease using human mini-brains
$20,000

Ms. Imola Mihalecz
University of Montreal
Project title: Characterization of sensorial profiles in Parkinson’s Disease
$20,000

Mr. Srdjan Sumarac
University Health Network
Project title:Cortical connectivity-driven closed-loop deep brain stimulation
$20,000

Ms. Sophie Sun
McGill University
Project title: Cognitive phenotyping of Parkinson’s Disease: parsing cognitive heterogeneity using brain-behaviour relationships
$20,000

Ms. Kira Tosefsky
University of British Columbia
Project title: Mediterranean-ketogenic dietary interventions in Parkinson’s disease
$20,000

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These funding decisions are for informational purposes only. Only a fully executed Letter of Agreement will constitute the official record. 

Learn more about our Parkinson’s research program and contact us if you have any questions.