In about 4% of patients that have had an abdominal surgery ranging from a C-section, to appendectomy, to removal of the gall bladder, they will develop bands of scar tissue that can cause extreme pain and/or life-threatening complications such as bowel obstruction which requires emergency operation. The only temporary cure is a second operation which usually only provides temporary relief. No therapeutic is available to prevent adhesion formation. We have the technology to look inside the belly and see these adhesions form and we discovered how this happens.

Infiltration of the heart with the protein transthyretin (TTR) commonly leads to the development of cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM) and heart failure. Once considered rare, advancements in testing have led to the finding that ATTR-CM is much more prevalent. However, no current data exists in a Canadian population. Therefore, this project will determine the how prevalent ATTR-CM is in patients undergoing cardiac surgery at the New Brunswick Heart Center (NBHC). Furthermore, we will determine whether ATTR-CM is associated with worsened outcomes, including mortality, following an intervention.

Health Utilities (HUs) measure patient preferences and can be used to monitor quality-of-life (QoL) and calculate quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), which are used in economic evaluations assessing treatment interventions.

This research project employs novel bioprospecting technologies for pioneering research and development of unique bioparticles that have cross sector applications. Intern will have the opportunity to work on the frontiers of nanobioparticle academic research using extraction and formulation technologies that will lead to next generation products and ingredients for consumer-packaged goods, agri food tech and medicine. There’s an increasing need and demand for more effective nutritional supplementation.

Inflammation of the brain is a symptom of many different types of brain diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, multiple sclerosis, depression, stroke, and traumatic brain injury. If left untreated, the inflammation can become a chronic problem that causes further damage to the brain. Different types of cannabinoids are a promising source of potential treatments to dampen inflammation in the central nervous system without the side effects that accompany other anti-inflammatory drugs. Panag Pharma Inc.

Pharmacists are providing increasingly patient-centered clinical services such as Pharmacists Prescribing for Minor Ailments (PPMA). However, several factors delay pharmacists’ ability to implement PPMA including integration with workflow and time constrains. Technology solutions aim to support PPMA can be important innovative tools to help pharmacists to perform PPMA. The aim of this project is to examine the feasibility and potential impact of a new clinical innovative software tool to support pharmacists for minor ailment prescribing.

The bacteria living in our gastrointestinal system, the gut microbiome, play a key role in human health and disease. Multiple studies demonstrated altered gut microbiome in patients with constipation or abdominal pain but knowledge of a clear cause-effect relationship or underlying mechanism are lacking. We found previously that microbiota from patients with irritable bowel syndrome induces altered gut function, low-grade inflammation and abdominal pain.

Gene therapy has the potential to effectively treat a wide range of ocular disorders. However, the introduction of foreign therapeutic genes to cells is incredibly challenging. Compared to viral vectors, non-viral vectors (NVV) are far less immunogenic and less toxic. However, NVV are less efficient than viral vectors at delivering therapeutic genes because they must overcome numerous cellular barriers. An appropriate design of the components of the NVV will enhance the properties of the vector to improve delivery into the cell.

Nucleic acids such as DNA and RNA offer exceptional opportunities to fight against infectious and genetic diseases. To use nucleic acids effectively in a clinical setting, one needs to use effective delivery vehicles that can deliver the nucleic acids into the diseased cells. This project will develop effective delivery systems for this purpose. The delivery systems will be used to deliver RNA and DNA based therapeutic agents in 2 diseases, namely Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and hematological cancers.

New evidence about psychedelic remedies has increased the number of patients who potentially can benefit from therapies using these drugs. In clinical trials worldwide, the findings are reported on psychedelic medications for treating illnesses such as addiction, depression, anxiety, and mental health conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). If psychedelic drugs are orally administered, the bioavailability can significantly decrease due to the first-pass metabolism of the liver.