PGP 2008-2009 | PGP 2009-2010 | PGP 2010-2011
SRP 2009-2010 | SRP 2010-2011
DAP: 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011
PPG: 2008 | 2009 | 2010
SRI in OA 2003-2008 | SRI in IJD 2006-2011 | SRI in BIO 2008-2012
SRID: 2007-2008 | 2006-2007 | 2005-2006 | 2004-2005 | 2003-2005 | 2002-2004

Research Grants Awards

SRI in IJD 2006-2011

Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA) is a very common chronic inflammatory joint condition in children and one that can be debilitating. In Canada, one in 1,000 babies, toddlers and children under age 16 suffer from JIA and, as a result, the Canadian Arthritis Network (CAN) together with The Arthritis Society (TAS) and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research's Institutes of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis (CIHR - IMHA) and Infection and Immunity (CIHR - III) have pooled resources to support JIA research that may ultimately lead to the development of new treatments and prevention techniques.

Dr. Alan Rosenberg, of the University of Saskatchewan, and his multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional research team were awarded $1.1 million to study the interaction of genes, environment and lifestyle early in the disease, which may help predict JIA outcomes such as joint damage and diminished quality of life.

In addition to the $1.1 million funding, various academic, government and not-for-profit research organizations have contributed $560,000 to this research, which has launched Canada into a leadership role in the study of JIA.

Dr. Rosenberg and his team believe that genes may be an important variable in the study of JIA because the body's bone-strengthening and bone-destroying proteins are determined by genes. Consequently, one of the most important considerations will be assessing the genes that determine inflammatory protein levels. The ability to predict outcomes more accurately means we are moving closer to improving patient care and creating "a world free of arthritis" - CAN's vision. Dr. Rosenberg and his team are testing three hypotheses as they study JIA. They are:

• The effect of stress on inflammatory protein levels and examining arthritis outcomes;
• Investigating whether infections will worsen arthritis outcomes since infection also increases inflammation (especially in the presence of particular genes); and,
• Determining whether nutrition, physical activity, sun exposure, exposure to tobacco smoke and physical trauma can predict damage to the bone and cartilage in the joints.

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