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Dr. Rathbone has training in medicine, biochemistry, pharmacology and clinical epidemiology and is neurologist with an active basic research program. Dr. Werstiuk has training in physiology, pharmacology, chemistry and biochemistry. Their expertise and experience are complimentary and synergistic. Together their laboratory has a record of undertaking basic research and translating it into clinical practice. Dr. Rathbone was the consulting medical director of the NeoTherapeutics in California and both Dr. Rathbone and Werstiuk consult to other pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. This experience and expertise, in conjunction with that of their team, enables them to provide assistance to all phases of work from basic laboratory studies to clinical trial design and implementation.

The in-house team includes basic scientists, physicians, veterinarians and surgeons from around the world. The laboratory collaborates extensively within the university as well as with other Canadian, American and centers worldwide, thus greatly enhancing the breadth of available expertise. Our team has been selected by four major national and international pharmaceutical companies to conduct large scale in vivo and cell culture studies.

Some recent scientific achievements include:

• A major role in developing two compounds now in advanced clinical testing.
• Discovery of a novel receptor for non-adenine based purines.
• Demonstration of functional recovery after spinal injury by transplantation of enteric glia into the spinal cord of rats.

We have available a range of sophisticated animal models for:

• Concussive head injury
• Stroke
• Spinal cord injury
• Demyelinating diseases
• Wound healing
• Alzheimer's Disease
• Parkinson's Disease
• Diabetes
• Apoptosis

Expertise of the team:

• Advanced experimental microsurgery
• Histology
• Mmunohistochemical techniques - double and triple labeling
• Microscopic techniques: light microscopy, confocal microscopy, electron microscopy, fluorescent microscopy
• Morphometric analysis involving light and electron microscopy
• Behavioural and functional testing in animals including learning, memory and motor behaviour
• Cell culture
• Cell biology, biochemistry
• Experienced in writing scientific papers and industrial technical reports
• Qualified veterinary pathologist involved appropriately in all in vivo studies

Our large and experienced team as well as being a part of a major academic research university affords us several advantages:

• The wide expertise of our colleagues provides a first class academic environment.
• Access to first-class animal care facilities with three veterinarians on staff.
• Our entire staff is trained in animal handling and biohazard techniques.
• Our senior staff are trained in animal surgery from the most basic procedures to advanced microsurgery.
• Surgical suites at all biohazard levels.
• Dedicated animal neurosurgery suite.
• Full equipped main laboratory for cell biology, biochemistry and cell culture.
• Faculty microscopy facilities - light microscopy (including confocal), electron microscopy.

We are happy to discuss potential collaborative efforts and research contracts. It is our belief that our experience and faculties would be highly valuable in furthering biotechnological developments and we look forward to the opportunities and future.

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