Sim Lab
Welcome to the Sim Lab.
DONATIONS TO RESEARCH?
Tax deductible donations can be made to support my research in the following three ways:
1. Online at: uabgive.ca/prions.
2. Calling 1-877-992-7587 and directing your gift to The Centre for Prions Activities - Dr Sim Fund, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry
3. Mailing a cheque payable to the University of Alberta with Sim (#27659) written in the memo line and mailed to:
A charitable tax receipt will be sent to you after receiving your gift. Contact us at 780-492-7587 or fomdstewardship@ualberta.ca
Who are we?
I am a clinician scientist (neurologist) with an interest in rapidly progressive dementias caused by proteins that misfold. I lead a research team looking into the pathogenesis of these diseases at the level of protein structure and the brain.
Where are we?
Our lab is located in the Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases (CPPFD) in the Brain and Aging Research Building (BARB) at the University of Alberta.
Why are we here?
We primarily study prion diseases, which include bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE or mad cow disease) in cattle, chronic wasting disease (CWD) in deer, elk, moose and reindeer, Creutzfeldt Jakob disease (CJD) in humans, and scrapie in sheep. These diseases result when a normal protein, the prion protein (PrP), misfolds into a higher beta sheet state and aggregates in the brain. A rapid neurodegeneration follows, which, in people, usually includes dementia, ataxia, visual hallucinations and myoclonus, ending with akinetic mutism. The diseases are always fatal and there are no treatments.
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Last updated: 2022-01-27