{"id":43109,"date":"2024-08-20T11:56:48","date_gmt":"2024-08-20T15:56:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.parkinson.ca\/?p=43109"},"modified":"2024-08-22T14:01:54","modified_gmt":"2024-08-22T18:01:54","slug":"meet-some-past-awardees-of-our-research-applicant-grant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archiveparkinson.thedev.ca\/fr\/meet-some-past-awardees-of-our-research-applicant-grant\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet Some Past Awardees of our Research Competition"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 2025 Parkinson Canada Research Grant Competition is returning this September. This research program supports promising trainees and researchers as they discover new ways to understand, diagnose, and treat Parkinson\u2019s disease.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Meet three of the brilliant minds driving this progress. Learn more about their groundbreaking research and how their work is shaping the future of Parkinson’s care.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Tara Shomali<\/span><\/b> (Graduate Student Award)<\/span><\/i>\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Tara Shomali is a PhD candidate at McGill University researching the role of the PINK1 protein in protecting neurons from harm, and how interruptions in this process lead to the development of Parkinson\u2019s disease (PD). PINK1 helps alert the body to damage occurring in cells so that the body can safeguard itself, and so PINK1 disruptions can lead to accumulation of nerve damage in the brain.\u00a0Her work is innovative and requires several research questions to be answered along the way, including the development of a new model of PINK1 to better understand how neurons detect and respond to damage.\u00a0The long-term goal is to develop drugs that can affect PINK1 signals in the brain, and potentially lead to new treatments for PD.\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Ms. Shomali became interested in PD after working in a hospital and seeing patients and families who have been impacted firsthand. With generous financial support from the Leacross foundation, Parkinson Canada has granted this Graduate Student Award to support her continuing education and help her dedicate more time to investigating novel treatments for PD. Tara\u2019s future goal is to run her own lab exploring approaches to treating neurological conditions and training the next generation of scientists.\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Stefan Lang<\/span><\/b> (New Investigator Award)<\/span><\/i>\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Dr. Stefan Lang is a researcher and clinician at the Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health investigating the use of deep brain stimulation (DBS) to treat non-motor symptoms of Parkinson\u2019s disease (PD). PD presents with a wide variety of symptoms, from physical and movement problems to emotional and cognitive ones. DBS is known to help with motor symptoms, but less is understood about how it impacts non-motor symptoms. By better understanding how DBS engages different brain circuits and which symptoms different electrode positions have the greatest impact on, Dr. Lang hopes to better optimize DBS treatment and develop new therapies for some of the understudied emotional and cognitive issues many with PD experience.\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Dr. Lang developed an interest in PD early in medical school while shadowing a neurosurgeon. While observing a patient coming in for DBS, he saw how drastically it improved their ability to walk right after receiving the treatment. Dr. Lang received a Graduate Student Award from Parkinson Canada originally before then being granted a Movement Disorders Fellowship, and now he\u2019s received a New Investigator Award with financial support from the Parkinson Society of British Columbia to help with this important work and grow his lab. We’re very proud to have helped support his work from his time as an early-career researcher to now.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Kaylena Ehgoetz Martens<\/span><\/b> (Pilot Project Grant)<\/span><\/i>\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Dr. Kaylena Ehgoetz Martens is a researcher at the University of Waterloo investigating freezing of gait (FOG), and the efficacy of a combination cognitive therapy and physical exercise treatment strategy. FOG is a Parkinson\u2019s disease (PD) symptom that is quite common and can be difficult to address.\u00a0In this pilot study, Dr. Ehgoetz Martens and her research team will determine the benefit of a novel integrated care strategy before potentially scaling up the study for a larger trial.\u00a0Given the wide range of symptoms that individuals with PD can experience, integrated care approaches (that address both physical and non-physical symptoms) can be a very important approach as we seek to improve treatments for PD.\u202f<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Dr. Ehgoetz Martens has a history of volunteering in rehabilitation settings and has seen how debilitating FOG can be, both in terms of potential physical harm that suddenly freezing can cause, as well as the stress and anxiety that PD can lead to. We are proud to have supported Dr. Ehgoetz Martens\u2019 research along her career, from her days as a postdoctoral research fellow in Australia, to a New Investigator Award to help her establish her new lab and now this Pilot Project Grant to explore this unique integrated care treatment. We\u2019re excited to see her continue this important work into the future.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Thinking about your next big research project? The 2025 Research Competition will launch on September 3<\/span><\/b>rd<\/span><\/b>. <\/span><\/b>Discover how you can secure funding and support to advance your work. Explore the eligibility criteria and see if you could be one of the next recipients driving innovation in Parkinson\u2019s research.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Discover the Parkinson Canada Research Program<\/span><\/b><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The 2025 Parkinson Canada Research Grant Competition is returning this September. This research program supports promising trainees and researchers as … En savoir plus<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":90,"featured_media":43135,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[237,246],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nMeet Some Past Awardees of our Research Competition - Parkinson Canada<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"fr_FR\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Meet Some Past Awardees of our Research Competition - Parkinson Canada\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The 2025 Parkinson Canada Research Grant Competition is returning this September. 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