Child Health and Human Development
 

4 trainees from the CHHD Program were among the recipients of the EDI Award for Academic Excellence:
Bryan Inibhunu, M.Sc student in Neuroscience - Dr. Geneviève Bernard
Naiya Patel, M.Sc. student in McGill's Division of Clinical and Translational Research - Dr. Daniel Dufort
Phoenix Plessas-Azurduy, M.Sc. student in McGill's Division of Clinical and Translational Research - Dr. Gabriel Altit
Sacha Williams, Jean-Martin Laberge Global Pediatric Surgery Fellow and PhD student in the Department of Surgical and Interventional Sciences - Dr. Dan Poenaru

1 trainee from the CHHD Program was also among the recipients of the MISI Prize for Inclusive Science:
Ayla Gerk, MD, doctoral student in surgical and interventional sciences - Dr. Dan Poenaru

Dr. Maryam Oskoui’s medical practice brings together cutting-edge science and a strong sense of humanity. As a clinical researcher in pediatric neurology, she transforms care for children with rare neurological conditions, thanks in large part to gene therapy and innovative tools like a therapeutic video game for home physiotherapy. She listens to families, letting their realities guide her research to make concrete improvements in care. Thanks to her commitment, spinal muscular atrophy has been included in Quebec’s newborn screening and in the creation of international standards of care. Her deeply humanistic approach to innovation in care makes her truly deserving recipient for the Research Award of Excellence

Dr. Wissam Shalish is leading a novel project that uses sound to monitor respiratory support in preterm infants. Called BubbleSense, the initiative recently received a $25,000 McGill Innovation Fund Discover award. Working with graduate students Amanda Gross and Emily Campbell, Dr. Shalish aims to convert bubbling sounds from a common respiratory device into real-time diagnostics, offering a smarter, safer way to support fragile newborn lungs.

Dr. Geneviève Bernard, Senior Scientist in the CHHD Program, is among the recipients of D2R funding to support her groundbreaking research on RNA-based therapies for cancer and rare genetic diseases.

Loydie Jerome-Majewska, PhD, a Senior Scientist in the CHHD Program, co-leads $8.3 million genomics sequencing project to advance healthcare for Black communities.

New funding from Génome Québec will strengthen rare disease data infrastructure, accelerating research and discoveries. At the heart of this initiative, along with Dr. Vinh, are three co-directors: Geneviève Bernard, MD, Scientist in the CHHD Program, Dr. Philippe Campeau, from the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Sainte-Justine, and Nicolas Pilon from the Université du Québec à Montréal.

Three platforms at The Institute will benefit from new funding for innovation and sustainability.

One of these platforms is the Centre for Applied Nanomedicine (CAN) at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (The Institute) directed by Janusz Rak, MD, PhD, senior scientist in the CHHD program. The CAN, co-managed by the Immunophenotyping Platform at The Institute, is a specialized technology platform and research hub for studies on extracellular vesicles (EVs) and nanosized extracellular particles (EP).

The J. Armand Bombardier Foundation Research Fund in Mother and Child Health competition aims to provide seed funding for innovative collaborative projects between researchers from two institutions; the Azrieli Research Centre of CHU Sainte-Justine and The Institute, in maternal, fetal, and child health.

This year, three outstanding projects were funded as part of the very first edition of this competition. Congratulations to three researchers from the CHHD program who were part of the innovative collaborative projects: Mallory Downie, MD, PhD, Aimee Ryan, PhD, and Ugochinyere Vivian Ukah, PhD.

Researchers at The Institute reveal how a lipid signaling pathway regulates sperm function, paving the way for innovative diagnostics.

Infertility affects millions worldwide, yet 34% of men with infertility receive no clear explanation for their condition. A new study by researchers at The Institute sheds light on a crucial piece of the puzzle: the molecular mechanisms underpinning the sperm’s ability to fertilize an egg.

Led by Cristian O’Flaherty, DVM, PhD, Senior Scientist in the Child Health and Human Development program (CHHD) at The Institute, the study explores sperm capacitation—the process by which sperm become capable of fertilization. Published in Human Reproduction, the research identifies a key role for sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P), a lipid molecule, in regulating this process.

Dr. Nada Jabado, Senior Scientist in the Child Health and Human Development Program at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (The Institute) and Pediatric Hemato-Oncologist at the Montreal Children’s Hospital of the MUHC, was appointed Officer of the Order of Canada for having revolutionized pediatric neuro-oncology with her discovery of oncohistones, linking mutations in regulatory histones to cancer. This groundbreaking work revealed the role of histones in developmental and neurodevelopmental diseases, driving new research, clinical trials and treatments, and reshaping cancer and epigenetics studies globally.

Gabriel Blanco Gomez, a doctoral student in neuroscience at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (The Institute), won Prix du Scientifique en chef, first place, in the outreach challenge for his presentation: Unlocking Autism: Finding the Brain's Hidden Keyboard. He is supervised by Mayada Elsabbagh, PhD, in the Child Health and Human Development (CHHD) Program at The Institute.

Major advances made at the RI-MUHC could help improve counselling for individuals suffering from infertility, premature ovarian insufficiency, recurrent miscarriages and androgenetic hydatidiform mole.

The findings of a new study, just published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, led by co-senior authors Dr. Rima Slim and Dr. Teruko Taketo of the Child Health and Human Development Program and in collaboration with Dr. Jacek Majewski’s team, will improve the molecular diagnosis of recurrent molar pregnancies, premature ovarian failure, and infertile women and men.

Researchers seek to revolutionize neonatal care with innovative wireless technology

Dr. Guilherme Sant'Anna and Dr. Wissam Shalish are Neonatologists at the Montreal Children's Hospital (MCH) and Scientists affiliated with the Translational Research in Respiratory Diseases and the Child Health and Human Development Programs at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC). Both conduct research in the Centre for Outcomes Research and Evaluation at the RI-MUHC. With Robert Kearney, Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at McGill University, they are the lead researchers of the Smart Hospital Project, the first of its kind in Canada.

A study shows that adolescence and young adulthood are risky periods for those living with diabetes.

For young people living with diabetes in Quebec, adolescence and young adulthood are periods marked by a significantly higher risk of interruptions in clinical care, hospitalizations and emergency room visits, reveals a study conducted by Dr. Meranda Nakhla at the RI-MUHC. These alarming findings highlight the need to improve care for youth living with diabetes during this pivotal period of their lives.

RI-MUHC researcher Marilyn Ahun publishes new work on the effects of multi-component parenting and mental health interventions on child and parent outcomes

For cardiology and neonatology professionals to share their research findings, and support collaboration within this field.
Registration and submission period: September 1 until November 1, 2024.

Eight RI-MUHC trainees earn 2024 EDI award for academic excellence. The awards for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in health care research recognize the academic excellence of medical and health science students from racialized groups.

With the support of a nonprofit organization started by a patient’s family, rare disease expert Dr. Kenneth Myers initiated a clinical trial for a promising treatment for a severe and deadly disease caused by mutations in the POLG gene. The results surpass all expectations.

Acquiring the right skills to treat kids who've suffered a traumatic injury can be expensive and time-consuming, but a new virtual reality tool developed at McGill University in Montreal aims to reduce those costs and hopefully save more lives.

Mark Your Calendars: CHHD Annual Research Day Coming in May 10th 2024! For more information, registration, and abstract submission, please visit the website.