The Research File

Cold, hard research bears fruit in a hotbed of science

Kid institute is playing with the big boys now

By Joshua Karpati

Winnipeg is well-known for being the coldest city in Canada, but that hasn't stopped it from being a hotbed of medical research. In addition to hosting the newly announced national public health agency, Winnipeg also boasts arguably the most prominent centre

for pediatric research in western Canada: the Manitoba Institute of Child Health (MICH). Its creation, in 2001, was the fruit of Winnipeg's century-long tradition of top-level child healthcare at the city's Children's Hospital.

The Institute's Director is pediatric nephrologist Dr Malcolm Ogborn. He can barely contain his enthusiasm as he notes the torrid growth of both the size of the Institute and the scope of its research mandate. "We're ready to take the next step," he readily asserts. He proudly lists "important thematic areas and health priorities: type II diabetes in children, First Nations health issues, asthma, injuries prevention, autism, social issues..." His ambition is bearing fruit. There are 38 full-time researchers at the MIHC and a total staff of roughly 120.

ASTHMA
Drs N Stephens, A Halayko, J Richman-Eisenstat, L Giles and S Dakshinamurti are a team of researchers who are investigating factors that cause airways to be more reactive to irritants and inflammation. The goal is to control the excessive spread of muscle cells manifested in asthmatic lungs. Also under study is the abnormal behaviour of muscle, in arteries, in the lungs of newborns. These contribute to serious problems in both premature and term infants with lung disease.

ALLERGY AND IMMUNOLOGY
Another group comprised of Drs E Simons, A Becker, K Simons, Z Peng, X Gu and W Watson supervise a broad spectrum of research into asthma and possible treatments of severe allergic reactions. The research team has also collaborated to explore potential new uses for proteins identified through allergic reactions to mosquitoes. This may lead to new treatments, from methods of limiting blood clots to non drug-based ways of preventing allergic reactions.

HYDROCEPHALUS
Ongoing research by Dr M Del Bigio explores the impact and mechanism of brain damage after hydrocephalus. This is a significant complication of premature birth and certain types of congenital brain disorders. Other studies examine the developing brain, and the question of its susceptibility to injury by drugs used in the control of seizures.

NUTRITION AND GROWTH
Another prominent researcher at MIHC is Dr Hope Weiler. In addition to a Canadian Institutes of Health Research New Investigator Award, she has recently received the Rh Institute for Medical Sciences Award from the University of Manitoba. Her research program explores the interactions between fatty acid nutrition, body composition and medical therapy with bone health and development. These are examined at both the level of the 'whole body' as well as the biochemical level. The applications in child health involve management of disease states where growth and bone mass are compromised (as a result of either metabolic state or medical management).

Researchers are also continually administering clinical trials of promising new medications ? there are 25 current studies funded by pharmaceutical firms. Dr Ogborn plans on increasing the number of these medication trials. To allow for this expansion and achieve greater flexibility in examining patients, three clinical rooms are being added to the Institute.

The Institute, Dr Ogborn points out, "is at the next stage of evolution ? strategic planning for the next five years." Like its eastern Canadian counterpart, the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, MICH intends to set a standard of excellence in research for many years to come.