IMHA On the Move! – June 2013

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A message from the new scientific director

As expected, it has been a busy and productive May. On May 1st, I attended my first Science Council (SC) meeting in Ottawa. SC provides scientific leadership and advice to Governing Council (GC), CIHR’s board of directors, on health research and knowledge translation (KT) priorities and strategies, and recommends investment strategies in accordance with CIHR's 5-year Strategic Plan. It is chaired by the President, and composed of all 13 Scientific Directors; the Executive Management Team; the Director of Science, Knowledge Translation and Ethics; and, two non-voting ex-officio members. I was very impressed by the overall process and by the congeniality of the group. During this meeting, two CIHR Institutes presented their strategic plan, which was timely for IMHA, since we began our strategic planning at the end of May.

On May 10, 2013, I attended the scientific meeting of the Réseau Provincial de Recherche en Adaptation-Rédaptation (REPAR) which translates into English as the Quebec Rehabilitation Network. I also called in to several teleconferences with the Arthritis Alliance of Canada (AAC), to help develop the agenda for their Inaugural Conference and Research Symposium being held in Ottawa on November 21-23, 2013.

At the end of the month, May 30-31, the IMHA Institute Advisory Board (IAB) met in London ON. We were honoured to have Dr. Alain Beaudet, president of CIHR, attend much of the first day of our meeting. Dr. Beaudet was able to meet the IAB, hear about IMHA initiatives, and share with us some of the news from the CIHR central office.

On the evening of May 30, we hosted a researcher reception. I presented a brief overview of IMHA and CIHR, and after some Q&A, the IAB were able to meet and interact with researchers and trainees from Western University.

Since our current strategic plan comes to an end in 2013, we spent a good deal of the rest of our time discussing strategic planning and our priority areas. You may have received one of our surveys in the last two years. This information, in addition to funding data and input from our partners and stakeholders, forms the basis of some of our strategic planning.

Finally, every spring, one or more advisory board members cycle off the IMHA IAB. This spring we said goodbye to Mr. Allan Stordy, who has served on the IAB since 2007. We would like to thank Allan for his outstanding contributions and dedication to the IAB. His hard work and insights have immensely benefited IMHA as well as the larger health communities under IMHA's mandate. As an engaged citizen with a chronic disease, Allan brought a unique perspective to the board room. For Allan’s reflections about his time on the IAB please see Health Research: One Canadian’s Perspective.

I hope that you will enjoy this edition of our newsletter, and I encourage you to continue to submit any questions or comments to IMHA@cihr-irsc.gc.ca.

Sincerely,

Hani El-Gabalawy MD FRCPC
Scientific Director
CIHR Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis

CIHR funding opportunities

For information on current funding opportunities, please visit IMHA's Funding Opportunities.

Spring 2013 Priority Announcement

Application Deadline: June 17, 2013

Inflammation in chronic disease update

The Team Grant : Health Challenges in Chronic Inflammation Initiative LOI decisions can now be found on the CIHR website.

Did you know?

National Sun Awareness Week was June 3-9. Sun damage can lead to skin cancers and other skin conditions. Find out more about skin health and skin care at the Canadian Dermatological Association and Suntips.

Health research: one canadian’s perspective

Patient, engaged citizen, successful entrepreneur, outgoing IAB member, Mr. Allan Stordy, reflects on his time with IMHA and his perspective of health research in Canada.

Accepting I have a chronic disease that requires careful management for the rest of my life was initially quite devastating. My immediate thoughts were - where do I go to get information and how close are “they” to the “cure”? I never gave a second thought as to who “they” were. Little did I know I would soon be exposed to a health research world many Canadians don’t realize exists.

My first exposure to the Canadian Institutes of Health Research’s (CIHR) Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis (IMHA) was through a program called Research Ambassadors, the brainchild of Dr. Cy Frank, IMHA’s first Scientific Director. Research Ambassadors are individuals with a variety of medical conditions who help others within their communities by providing an exchange of research/patient information and experiences, through IMHA. These are inspiring and motivated individuals. Dr. Juliette (Archie) Cooper, the outgoing Board Chair at the time, initially suggested my name for a position on IMHA’s Advisory Board.

I recall my first board meeting six years ago. Everyone gave me a warm welcome, especially Dr. Jane Aubin, the Scientific Director at the time. We sat around the boardroom and introduced ourselves. Dr. Richard Ellen from the University of Toronto spoke first, followed by Dr. Marc McKee from McGill … then it was my turn. What could I offer this group of world renowned researchers? This was a language and culture foreign to me. It occurred to me the one thing I could offer was my perspective. I wasn’t just a patient or what others call a “consumer”. I have plenty of experience as a board member and in business.

Over the last six years, I’ve attended 18 board meetings in 15 cities over 54 days, and numerous committee meetings. I’m not sure how much I have contributed, but I am aware of what I’ve gained. I’ve learned many things that I continue to promote to fellow Canadians:

  • Researchers are passionate, caring and interesting individuals whose commitment level rivals that of elite professional athletes (although their pay and public recognition pale significantly).
  • Research is the creation of new information. There is nothing more exciting than being associated with a process that contributes to changing the lives of Canadians for the better.
  • Peer review brings an unparalleled standard of excellence.
  • Research is the backbone of a progressive and strong healthcare system.
  • There is nothing more important than health.

I now know who “they” are, and feel so very privileged to have been exposed to this world where all Canadians benefit by approximately 14,000 anonymous heroes. Thank you IMHA and thank you CIHR.

Good news stories

Arthritis can’t stop us. It won’t stop us!

Regular physical activity can provide numerous benefits for kids with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). So, get out and get active! Watch the Leap video, featuring active kids with JIA!

The Linking Exercise, Activity, and Pathophysiology in Childhood Arthritis: A Canadian Collaborative Team (LEAP) is a national research team funded by CIHR’s Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis. LEAP is studying the link between physical activity and juvenile idiopathic arthritis. It is the first program to study bone and muscle development and biomarkers of inflammation in the blood.

The work of the LEAP team will provide information to help us better understand the interaction between inflammation, physical activity, and bone development in children with arthritis. It will help develop safe and effective exercise programs to keep children with arthritis healthy and improve their quality of life.

In the end, it’s about helping kids with arthritis be kids!

A rising star in dental research

Photo: Western University dental student, Patricia Brooks, receives an International Hatton Award for her research at the General Session of the International Association for Dental Research in Iguaçu Falls, Brazil.

Schulich dental student celebrated for research achievements nationally and internationally

In the last three years, Western University student Patricia Brooks (Dentistry 2013) has become recognized as an up-and-comer in dental research both in Canada and globally. Ms. Brooks worked for two summers investigating the mechanisms that allow our bones to respond to outside stimuli. These studies were supervised by Matt Grol (graduate student in the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology) and Jeff Dixon (professor in the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology). Ms. Brooks’ hard work and determination paid off with an important discovery of heretofore unrecognized crosstalk between signaling pathways in bone-forming cells called osteoblasts. Her studies have helped us understand how bone remodels in response to applied forces, as occurs during orthodontic tooth movement.

Ms. Brooks received first prize in the junior category of the 2011-2012 Canadian Association for Dental Research (CADR) Student Research Award competition. Her research was entitled “Crosstalk between Wnt/β-catenin and P2X7 nucleotide receptor signaling in osteoblasts”. Ms. Brooks was also one of only two trainees from across Canada to receive a 2012 International Association for Dental Research (IADR)/Unilever Divisional Award, allowing her to compete in the International Hatton Competition during the 2012 IADR General Session in Iguaçu Falls, Brazil. There, she won second place in the junior category of the International Hatton Competition, competing against 16 other top student trainees from around the world.

In addition, Ms. Brooks received the 2011 Canadian Dental Association (CDA)/Dentsply Award, which enabled her to compete in the Student Clinician Competition at the 2012 meeting of the CDA, where she was awarded second place in Canada. Ms. Brooks was supported by summer studentships from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Joint Motion Program and the Canadian Arthritis Network.

Upon completion of her DDS at Western University in spring 2013, Ms. Brooks will enter a prestigious program at the University of Toronto, which combines speciality training in Oral Pathology and Medicine with PhD research in dental health. Congratulations to Patricia and best wishes for her continued success!

Further information: Please contact S. Jeffrey Dixon, DDS, PhD, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University at jeff.dixon@schulich.uwo.ca.

Partner corner

Cochrane corner

Collaboration-wide news

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Recently published reviews from the Cochrane Back Review Group

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Check out the IMHA Cochrane Corner where you will find reviews from the following Cochrane groups:

Share your news with the IMHA community

Do you have a story that has helped sustain health and enhance quality of life by eradicating the pain, suffering and disability caused by arthritis, musculoskeletal, oral and skin conditions? Are you planning an event that might be of interest to the IMHA community? Is your organization launching a funding opportunity? IMHA would like to celebrate our partners' and stakeholders' success stories, events, and funding opportunities in our monthly newsletter. Please make your submissions to IMHA@cihr-irsc.gc.ca. We look forward to sharing you information with the IMHA community!

Meetings of interest

Canadian Orthopaedic Association Annual Meeting
June 20-22, 2013
Winnipeg, MB

Canadian Dermatology Association 88th Annual Conference
June 27-30, 2013
Quebec, QC

Update on Psoriatic Arthritis
July 11, 2013
Toronto, ON

21st Cochrane Colloquium
September 19-23, 2013
Quebec, QC

11th World Congress on inflammation
September 21-25, 2013
Natal RN, Brazil

Canadian Chiropractic Research Foundation Symposium
September 27-28, 2013
Toronto, ON

2013 Arthritis Alliance of Canada Conference (save the date)
November 21-23, 2013
Ottawa, ON

Contact us

CIHR - Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis
Department of Molecular Genetics
Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto
The Banting Institute
100 College St., Room 207B
Toronto, ON, M5G 1L5
Tel: 416-946-7243
Email: imha.iala.cihr.irsc@utoronto.ca

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