U of L neuroscientist earns election to the Royal Society of Canada

trevor.kenney — Tue, 07 Sep 2021 16:05:54 +0000

Acknowledging a lifelong career with exceptional contributions to the field of neuroscience, the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge’s Dr. Robert Sutherland, Board of Governors Research Chair, Chair of the Department of Neuroscience and Director of the Canadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience (CCBN), has been elected to the Royal Society of Canada (RSC).

Dr. Robert Sutherland's work revolutionized the understanding of how the hippocampus is involved in the storage of new memories.

“It’s absolutely thrilling and it’s really gratifying to know there are colleagues who have been working at the highest level in Canada who recognize our contributions and voted to elect me into fellowship,” says Sutherland. “It’s a tremendous honour and I think it’s also an acknowledgement the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge is a mature research-intensive institution that can hold its own in many areas. It’s a great tribute to all the people who put in efforts to create a neuroscience program, and that includes undergraduate students.”

Sutherland began studying neuroscience before it was a recognized field and he has watched it grow over the years. In the 1970s when he was starting his post-secondary studies, neuroscience courses were typically found in psychology departments.

“It’s been very exciting to be with the area of neuroscience from its inception all the way to now,” he says. “It’s been fantastic, a really good ride.”

Following the completion of his PhD at Dalhousie ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ in Halifax, Sutherland joined the U of L as a post-doctoral fellow under Drs. Bryan Kolb and Ian Whishaw. His key focus was on developing better ways to measure memory in non-human animals. He devised methods that are now used by drug companies and laboratories around the world.

Wanting to expand his skill set and work with students at all levels, Sutherland then took a position at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of New Mexico. There, he was able to work with students from undergraduate to PhD levels and post-doctoral fellows. During that time, he developed a theory of long-term memory that impacted the field and began focusing on understanding the role of the hippocampus in long-term memory. While scientists generally thought the hippocampus was only briefly involved in the storage of new memories, Sutherland’s work has shown the hippocampus continues to be engaged during memory recall.

He returned to the U of L as a senior Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research scientist when the CCBN building opened in 2001 and the U of L became home to the first Department of Neuroscience in Canada to offer degrees at the bachelor’s, master’s and PhD levels.

“I also morphed my research from purely normal aging to pathological aging and then to Alzheimer’s disease, bringing along the methods and theoretical perspectives I’d acquired over the years,” he says. “Now, in my lab, I’d say half of the work we’re doing is directly related to understanding Alzheimer’s type dementia.”

Sutherland’s election will be formally recognized at the Royal Society’s meeting at McGill ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ in November. Notably, he’ll become the fourth member of the Department of Neuroscience to receive the honour, along with Drs. Bruce McNaughton, Ian Whishaw and Bryan Kolb.

For more, see this profile.

2013 Gill Symposium honours neuroscience researcher McNaughton

robert.cooney — Thu, 19 Sep 2013 19:08:50 +0000

��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Neuroscience researcher Dr. Bruce McNaughton is receiving a significant award from a major US-based neuroscience research institute located at Indiana ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ, in Bloomington, IN.

As part of the annual Indiana ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ – Bloomington Gill Centre for Biomolecular Science Symposium, McNaughton, the Alberta Innovates – Health Solutions (AIHS) Polaris Research Chair at the Department of Neuroscience and Canadian Center for Behavioural Neuroscience (CCBN), will receive the 2013 Gill Award for his significant contributions to neuroscience research.

He will also deliver a keynote address to the 300 delegates who attend the event each year from around the world.

Dr. Bruce McNaughton was the first scientist to win the $10 million Alberta Innovates – Health Solutions (AIHS) Polaris Award, the richest health research award in Canada.

McNaughton joined the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge in 2008, moving his research program from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Arizona to the Canadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience (CCBN) at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge.

His research focuses on how brain cells process information and form memories, and how those processes are altered by aging, trauma or substance abuse.

McNaughton is the first scientist to win the $10 million Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research (now Alberta Innovates – Health Solutions (AIHS)) Polaris Award, the richest health research award in Canada. The AIHS award of $10 million was matched by the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge and the Informatics Circle of Research Excellence (ICORE) for a total investment of $20 million into McNaughton's research and the CCBN.

There are presently 56 researchers on McNaughton’s Polaris team at the CCBN, including principal investigators, doctoral and post-doctoral researchers, masters and undergraduate students, and a team of technicians.

According to Gerry Oxford, executive director of the Stark Neurosciences Research Institute and professor of pharmacology and toxicology at the IU School of Medicine, McNaughton has provided definitive experimental evidence for the concept that consolidation of memory -- in this case the memory of an individual journey in space -- was facilitated by repetitive "replay" of the hippocampal neuronal activity that occurred during the actual experience.

"His scientific accomplishments are extraordinary and broad, but with a relentless focus on understanding cognitive function through the dynamics of functional brain circuitry," Oxford said.

Gill Symposium organizers will also acknowledge the achievements of Dr. Loren M. Frank, associate professor of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of California San Francisco Center for Integrative Neuroscience and Department of Physiology, who is receiving this year’s Gill Young Investigator Award. His findings have broken new ground concerning memory formation and wakefulness.

For more information about the Gill Symposium or the Gill Center please contact Misty Theodore at 812-856-1930 or mtheodor@indiana.edu.

To speak with Professor McNaughton, contact Amanda Mauthe-Kaddoura at 403-332-4099 or amanda.mauthe2@uleth.ca.

Website: http://ccbn.uleth.ca/people/primary/McNaughton.php

Professor Frank can be reached at 415-502-7357 or loren@phy.ucsf.edu.

For additional information, please visit the Gill Symposium website: http://news.indiana.edu/releases/iu/university-wide/2013/09/2013-gill-awards.shtml

About the Linda and Jack Gill Center for Biomolecular Science

The Linda and Jack Gill Center for Biomolecular Science, which is part of the College of Arts and Sciences at IU Bloomington, was established by a generous gift from Linda and Jack Gill to advance the understanding of complex biological processes and to train the next generation of scientists in biomolecular measurements, especially in the field of neuroscience. Members and collaborators include faculty from IU's departments of Biology, Chemistry, Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry, Physics, Psychological and Brain Sciences, Neuroscience and the School of Medicine.

http://www.indiana.edu/~gillctr/symposiums.shtml

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