HALIFAX – Dalhousie researchers are looking closely at the impact very minute blood vessels could have on an individual’s neurological health.
Dr. Alon Friedman, a neuroscience researcher and the Dennis Chair in Epilepsy Research, focuses his work on blood vessels and how they affect brain functions.
Friedman said that when blood vessels leak, as a result of high-impact or repetitive trauma such as a concussion, it may leave a lasting impact.
“What we are looking is to see the integrity of the blood vessels: how the blood vessels are, if the blood vessels are healthy or diseased and the presence of blood proteins that shouldn’t be in the brain but now they are attacking the brain,” said Friedman.
The researcher is looking to see whether the damage may lead to depression, epilepsy or neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s Disease, Parkinson’s Disease or multiple sclerosis.
“After a brain injury, after even a mild injury, [athletes] could have leaky vessels and that certainly could be one of the reasons that 10, 20 or 30 years later, they develop depression, neuropsychiatric disorders, Alzheimer’s, dementia or other disorders of the brain,” he said.
Friedman said the identification and diagnosis of these patients can be complex, particularly because people do not feel pain in their blood vessels so they often don’t know if they have a problem.
“The leaky vessels would lead to dysfunction of the nervous network. It can lead to epileptic fits or seizures. If it’s in other places, it can lead to psychiatric disorders or to reduction of cognitive capabilities they later face,” he said.
Research linked to Maritime Brain Tissue Bank
Friedman said his research is dependent on the Maritime Brain Tissue Bank, a collection of brain tissues used by researchers not only at Dalhousie University but all over the world.
He uses the bank to study, classify and diagnose the brains of patients in hopes of finding a way to treat individuals before it is too late.
Director Dr. Sultan Darvesh said there are more than 900 brain tissues in the bank right now but there is a need to expand it.
“The most important thing to us is somebody discovering the cause and hopefully the cure for neurological conditions such as Alzheimer’s Disease, ALS or multiple sclerosis.”
Funds for the Maritime Brain Tissue Bank are being collected through the Molly Appeal.
Brain vessel research important for athletes
Isabelle Germain, 22, is a fifth-year Dalhousie student and passionate hockey player.
Germain has been playing for most of her life but sustained a concussion just before she started playing for the Dalhousie hockey team.
“Life after the concussion was awful. I basically had to stay home from school for a couple weeks,” she said.
“I was a little bit depressed. I couldn’t get my head straight. I couldn’t remember things. I had gone on spring break before I got hit and my friends started to reminisce and I had very little memory of it.”
Germain then sustained another concussion during her second year on the team. Medical tests showed there was scarring on the brain and now the once highly competitive athlete only plays recreationally.
She admits she was concerned about developing a severe neurological condition but is hopeful about the research being done by Friedman.
“I was definitely worried about that because I studied that at school.”
“That was one of the big factors for not playing again: the uncertainty of what could happen in the long term. I already know my short-term memory is impaired so there’s no saying what’s going to happen later on.”
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