Nature, Nurture or Both?
New $6 million research facility at Douglas to help understand the causes of mental illness

Montreal, January 30, 2006 – One out of four individuals will be diagnosed with a mental illness during their life. Some of them will thrive and others will flounder. Understanding why this occurs is the goal of the new Douglas Hospital Research Centre Neurophenotyping Centre. Thanks to funding from the Quebec Ministry of Economic Development, Innovation and Export, the Douglas Hospital Foundation and in association with McGill University, this goal is one step closer.

The $5 million contribution from the Ministry, announced today and the $1 million from the Douglas Hospital Foundation, will help build a state-of-the-art animal and research facilities to accommodate the needs of more than 60 internationally-renowned researchers, and 180 graduate students and post-doctoral fellows. This new Centre will be at the forefront of emerging technology and enable a collaborative effort toward a better understanding of mental disorders and how to better treat them.

“The last few years have seen huge progress in identifying the genetic basis of mental illnesses,” says Neurophenotyping Centre Director, Claire-Dominique Walker, PhD. “However, it is important to remember that there is an environmental and genetic aspect to the development of the disease and it is the interaction between the two that will determine the onset or resilience of the illness.

This new Centre will enable us to study both aspects of disease progression…this is very exciting for us”, adds Walker. For instance, using the design of natural environments, researchers from the Douglas will be able to determine whether social pressure can precipitate the onset of depression. On the other hand, they will examine whether a genetic predisposition to schizophrenia can be “silenced” by a comforting environment, social networks, etc. The facilities will enable them to better explore animal models of human pathologies such as Alzheimer Disease and identify –through more sophisticated testing- some of the environmental factors that trigger expression of the illness.

“Work at the Centre will directly benefit patients,” adds Rémi Quirion, PhD, scientific director at the Douglas Hospital Research Centre. “For example, many of our researchers are interested in the role of genetics on drug response. We will be able to evaluate why some medications work better for some patients. This will ultimately lead to patient-tailored drug regimes and overall better treatment of the disease. The research will benefit patients including those with mood disorders, anxiety and impulsivity, aging and Alzheimer disease and schizophrenia.”

The Neurophenotyping Centre, which will begin construction in the fall, will cover an area of more than 15 000 square feet and have specialized equipment and amenities including:
- larger animal facilities
- specialized animal environments (sterile, or semi-natural)
- behavioral analysis laboratories
- tissue analysis rooms
- genetic processing rooms

"In line with our triple mission of care, research and teaching, the Douglas Hospital Foundation is proud to support the Neurophenotyping Centre, an innovative, neuroscience research project", says Jane H. Lalonde, president and chief operating officer of the Douglas Hospital Foundation. “There is no doubt in our minds that investing in the Centre –the only one of its kind in the province of Québec- will lead to improved treatments and therapies for those who suffer from mental illness and help prevent the onset of the illness for those who are at risk", concludes Mrs. Lalonde.

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Source : Christine Zeindler