Dementia research is saving lives today.

Making old brain cells young again

Memory loss is associated with aging, but it is also common in most mental illnesses, including depression. Dr. Sibille specializes in exploring the biological connections between memory function, mental illness and aging.

Dr. Etienne Sibille, Senior Scientist, Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, is working on a discovery that could revolutionize how we diagnose and treat the aging brain. 

His research team recently announced the incredible results of their research focusing on GABA receptors--neurotransmittors involved in learning and memory. They discovered that by targeting these receptors with an experimental compound, brain cells can regrow, restoring normal memory function. 

The implications of this discovery are profound.

In behavioural tests with mice, Dr. Sibille has shown that older animals had far better memory skills half an hour after receiving the experimental drug and, remarkably, after two months on the treatment, brain cells that had shrunk in these animals had grown back.

An old mouse will naturally perform at about 50 to 60 per cent on this test. Its working memory is basically not working. But within 30 minutes of receiving the drug, their performance is back up to 80 to 90 per cent, which is almost at the level of a young mouse. Dr. Sibille’s research has achieved a rapid reversal of age-related working memory deficit. 

Meaningful progress in drug development for mental illness has been stalled for decades. This discovery represents a significant leap forward in the pursuit of developing new, targeted medications.

We certainly hope this will improve the lives of millions of people. Remember this is not just the symptoms that are being treated. We have shown that we can improve the health of brain cells. We have been able to reverse the effect of normal aging in the brain. The implications may be broader than we think.

Since these results are based on a decade of pre-clinical work, Dr. Sibille believes a new drug based on this research could become widely available to the public as soon as five to seven years from now.

 “The research that is performed at CAMH on multiple levels of investigation, from molecular to clinical models, is a huge asset for researchers. We are in the midst of what I would say is a revolution in brain science where the amount of knowledge has dramatically increased. It’s a fantastic time to be in brain research.”