Can-GARD: Advanced Therapies for Rare Diseases
2020 Spring Accelerator Grant Competition

Can-GARD aims to fund proposals that would eliminate barriers in the diagnostic or treatment journey for rare disease patients.

RESULTS

Can-GARD is pleased to announce the recipients of the Advanced Therapies for Rare Diseases 2020 Spring Accelerator Grant.

After a meticulous reviewing process, we would like to congratulate our three grant recipients.

The grant recipients are as follows (in alphabetical order):

 

Recipient	Funds granted
“Modulating sphingolipid metabolism to improve outcome in a mouse model of spinal muscular atrophy with progressive myoclonic epilepsy (SMA-PME)”. David Dyment,MD, PhD Clinical Investigator, Department of Genetics Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario     and Steffany A.L. Bennett, PhD Professor, Biochemistry, Microbiology, ImmunologyUniversity of Ottawa	$150,000 CAD in total for the two-year project.
“Investigating noninvasive treatment options for focal cortical dysplasia using human stem cell-derived neurons and brain organoids”. Yun Li, PhD Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, SickKids	$150,000 CAD in total for the two-year project.
“Targeting Stray Proteins to Fight a Rare Neurodevelopmental Disorder”. Guang Yang, PhD Assistant Professor, Health Science Centre The University of Calgary   and Melissa Jean MacPherson, MD, PhD Assistant Clinical Professor, University of Alberta	$150,000* CAD in total for the two-year project. *RDMM is pleased to be funding $25k/year for two years.

 

On behalf of the Can-GARD Committee, we would like to thank all the applicants for the proposals submitted.