image: The Hotchkiss family and representatives from the T. Boone Pickens Foundation, from left: Sheryl and Jeff Hotchkiss, Sally Geym̈uller, Brenda Mackie, Jay Rosser. view more
Credit: Adrian Shellard for the University of Calgary
A US $12.5 million injection of funding from the late American philanthropist and energy industry giant T. Boone Pickens is bringing new opportunities for brain and mental health research at the Hotchkiss Brain Institute (HBI) within the Cumming School of Medicine (CSM) at the University of Calgary. The legacy gift — Pickens’ second to the HBI and his only philanthropic giving in Canada — will be used to recruit and train emerging neuroscience research leaders and invest in the commercialization of neurosciences discovery: all with the goal of improving the brain and mental health of millions of people around the world.
“One of the things Boone wanted to accomplish with his health and medical giving was to advance health care for generations. And that's what the gift with the Hotchkiss Brain Institute will do,” says Jay Rosser, officer with the T. Boone Pickens Foundation and Boone’s longtime employee and friend.
The largest portion of the legacy gift will support a new endowed fund in Pickens’ memory to support recruitment and education of trainees and early career investigators in order to promote neuroscience research innovation at the institute named for the donor’s long-time friend, Harley Hotchkiss, Hon. LLD’96.
Dr. Deepika Dogra, PhD, is an emerging leader at the HBI. Her research involves an innovative method to screen anti-seizure drugs for use in children. Dogra collects blood from study participants and tricks these blood cells into becoming a cell type capable of giving rise to neurons. She then grows these cells into brain-like structures called organoids.
“The cerebral organoid is a cultured neural structure that allows me to test various drugs to see which one or which combination will work for a specific person,” says Dogra, a postdoctoral fellow. “This method also helps us eliminate possibilities, so a child doesn’t have to keep trying new medications.”
Research study ‘feels like hope’ for a Calgary family
Linden Walsh experienced her first seizure when she was six months old. She had been developing typically; no one suspected she had a rare genetic mutation. Diagnosed with Dravet Syndrome, 14-year-old Linden lives with unrelenting seizures that are treatment resistant.
“Linden lives in a very controlled environment because of her seizures and cognitive impairment,” says Erin Walsh, Linden’s mom. “Someone is with her 24/7. She is not stable on her feet.”
Dravet Syndrome is a rare form of epilepsy that is often diagnosed early in life. Children appear to be developing typically until suddenly seizures begin, which if not controlled, can lead to developmental delays.
“It feels like hope. Linden’s seizures are extremely limiting. She is never alone, even at night, one of us sleeps with her,” says Walsh.
Walsh adds a unique aspect of the syndrome is that seizure types are always changing. She’s hopeful the research will find a way to end the constant cycle of seizures.
“We can screen 450 drugs in just a few months in a brain organoid established from Linden’s blood. Currently, an individual with Dravet Syndrome could maybe try four to six new drugs in a year,” says Dr. Deborah Kurrasch, PhD, professor at the Cumming School of Medicine and principal investigator leading the organoid research project. “Brain organoids are the new player on the scene. We hope this technology will enable us to help Linden’s medical team and family identify the best treatment to control her seizures and on a reduced timeline.”
New frontier for precision medicine
Kurrasch says the technique of growing brain organoids really took off around 2016. The field started to realize this approach could be a human-based alternative model system to research traditionally conducted in mice, rats, and even zebrafish, for conditions like epilepsy.
Kurrasch says there is still a lot to learn and discover about growing organoids. Given the newness of the system, continual optimization of how the cells are cultured is required. Researchers are studying various growth chambers, proper balance of nutrients, even optimal oxygen levels all to identify the parameters that best mimic the human brain environment.
“These cells rely on cues from their microenvironment to develop properly,” says Kurrasch. “Some cells will become a neuron while others will develop into another cell type found in our brains, and the microenvironment helps drive these decisions. The more accurately we can mimic this environment, the more reliable these brain organoids will be as a model system for drug testing and disease modeling.”
For the Walsh family, this is the first time that Linden’s specific mutation has been acknowledged and looked at.
“We don’t want to be unrealistic. We understand this type of research is new. We’re very grateful to have access to it,” says Walsh.