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Lawson associate scientist Dr. Lena Palaniyappan has won the Canadian College of Neuropsychopharmacology (CCNP)’s 2017 Young Investigator Award for outstanding contributions to the field of neuropsychopharmacology.

The Young Investigator Award is given for basic research or clinical research in alternating years. This year’s award was presented for clinical research. Scientists who have completed their post-doctoral or residency training 10 years ago or less are considered for the award.

Dr. Palaniyappan uses neuroimaging tools to study the processes that operate in the brain when patients experience symptoms of mental illness, including psychosis – repeated voices or visions (hallucinations) and disturbing thoughts (delusions). For many patients, it is not possible to prevent psychosis or reverse the condition fully. Through their research, Dr. Palaniyappan and his team are working to fully characterize the illness and create new treatments.

Recently he led a study that showed it is possible to use information from the brain’s connectivity maps to alter the chemistry of selected brain regions. The hope is that this approach can be used to target precise areas of dysfunction rather than altering the properties of the entire brain to treat psychiatric symptoms.

“Receiving this award highlights the importance of brain imaging in discovering new therapies for brain-based disorders,” says Dr. Palaniyappan. “I feel very inspired looking at the achievements of past recipients as many of them have gone on to change how we think about the brain and mind.”

Dr. Palaniyappan is the medical director of the Prevention and Early Intervention Program for Psychoses (PEPP), a community-focused mental health program located at London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC). He is also an associate professor at Western University’s Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry.

“With the increasing sophistication of tools to understand the mysteries of the human brain and the world-renowned expertise available in London, there has never been a better time to study psychiatric disorders,” adds Dr. Palaniyappan. “I hope we will soon be able to use brain scans to provide patient-specific information on prognosis and monitor the effects of treatments.”

World-renowned brain researcher, Dr. Vladimir Hachinski, is named as this year’s recipient of the Canadian Medical Association’s (CMA) F.N.G. Starr Award for his contributions in stroke research and patient care. This prestigious award is the highest available to CMA members and is intended to recognize outstanding and inspiring lifetime achievement.

Dr. Hachinski, Lawson Scientist and Neurologist at London Health Sciences Centre is the co-founder of the world’s first successful stroke unit. Two earlier centres in the United States were deemed unsuccessful and eventually closed. Dr. Hachinski and his colleague, Dr. John W. Norris, applied their knowledge and fresh perspectives, and opened a stroke centre at Sunnybrook Hospital, Toronto, in 1975.

“We had a tremendous team of volunteer nurses, physiotherapists and other professionals who were very keen to have an impact,” explains Dr. Hachinski. “We implemented the A, B, C, protocol which focused on Accurate diagnosis, Balance and homeostasis in the patient’s physiology, and avoiding Complication. Dr. Josephine Somerville pioneered early rehabilitation in the stroke unit.”

At the time, stroke was still commonly misunderstood in medicine, until Dr. Hachinski coined the term “brain attack” in 1993, describing the similarities in urgency of strokes and heart attacks.

Realizing the success of their protocols on stroke patients, Dr. Hachinski and his colleagues also noticed improved outcomes for dementia rates in the stroke patients they saw. There is still no treatment for dementia, however they were confident they could delay onset through similar stroke prevention and treatment protocols.

After several studies on both animal models and humans, Dr. David Cechetto from Western University and Dr. Hachinski discovered that the region of the brain, known as the insula, is involved in regulating the parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous systems - evidence that there is an important connection in how the brain impacts the heart.

Today there are several stroke centres operating in Ontario. “We were able to prove that our model was successful at improving the lives of stroke patients, so the government facilitated the opening of these centres across the province. We can now say that we have improved outcomes not just for individuals, but at a population level, where public health policy has its true impact,” says Dr. Hachinski.

Currently Dr. Hachinski and his team are seeking funding for a nation-wide study to examine stroke and dementia outcomes across the country, including how several environmental factors play a role in the development of stroke and dementia with the aim of preventing both. “Since this research is multi-disciplinary, it is challenging to find a funding agency as most of them tend to invest in very specific fields of research,” he explains. “We are hopeful that someone will recognize the importance of this research, and we will be able to move forward with our study.”

“I am extremely appreciative and proud to be recognized with the F.N.G. Starr Award, however I am just the face of this honour. Behind me stands an amazing team. I feel that my greatest strength is to recognize and work with talent.”