Quebec-led research receives $1.5 million funding boost

Montréal, December 7, 2005 – Most mental illnesses are not as physically obvious as obesity, diabetes, or cancer, but they can be as debilitating. Approximately, one in five Canadians is affected by disorders such as depression, schizophrenia, bipolar or other neurodevelopmental disorders. Hope may be on the way for some of these patients thanks to new funding from AstraZeneca Canada. As part of a new mental health mandate, AstraZeneca announced today two large-scale research programs - $1 million to the Douglas Research Centre for the study of mood disorders and $500 thousand to the Hôpital Louis-H. Lafontaine Foundation for schizophrenia research.

“This financial support will have a huge impact on our work and will directly benefit our patients – including those who are severely depressed, have bipolar illness or seasonal affective disorder,” says Serge Beaulieu, MD, PhD, director of the Mood Disorders Program at the Douglas and principal investigator of the AstraZeneca-Douglas funded program. “Only through research and a better understanding of these disorders can we develop improved treatments and therapies.”

Beaulieu’s research program will encompass five projects:
- Stress response with mood disorders
- Cognitive (thinking) difficulties with mood disorders
- Mood disorders and substance abuse
- Sleep and mood disorders
- Biological markers of mood disorders

“I am extremely pleased with AstraZeneca’s initiative to support mental health research,” says Emmanuel Stip, MD, PhD, Hôpital Louis-H. Lafontaine psychiatrist and lead researcher of the AstraZeneca-Hôpital Louis-H. Lafontaine funded program. Dr. Stip is presently working on a research program involving substance abuse and schizophrenic patients. “These funds will allow us to increase and coordinate research efforts in the area of mental health and addiction. They will also facilitate the development, application and evaluation of interventions, services and products for people with mental health and addiction disorders." He refers to studies which show that the lifetime prevalence of substance use disorders is close to 50 percent among schizophrenic patients. “However, the pharmacological treatment of this co morbid condition has not attracted sufficient interest from clinicians and researchers”.

“AstraZeneca is committed to improving patient health and recognizes the importance of research and development to achieve this goal,” says Michael Cloutier, President & Chief Executive Officer, AstraZeneca Canada. “We believe our funding will enable innovative solutions and the discovery of new and better treatments for mental health disorders.”

Affiliated with McGill University and the World Health Organisation, the Douglas Hospital Research Centre is one of the largest in the country, with a team of over 60 scientists and clinical researchers, and 180 post-graduate students. This team is devoted to understanding the causes of mental disorders – whether genetic, environmental, cultural or social – as well as developing diagnostic tools, treatments and prevention methods.

Affiliated with the Université de Montréal, Hôpital Louis-H. Lafontaine offers specialized and ultraspecialized services in psychiatry. Its research centre includes 65 researchers and welcomes 230 students each year. It is home to the most important Francophone psychiatric research centre in Canada.

AstraZeneca is a leading global pharmaceutical company with an extensive product portfolio spanning six major therapeutic areas: gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, infection, neuroscience, oncology, and respiratory. Ranked as one of the top 50 employers in Canada by The Globe and Mail Report on Business Magazine, AstraZeneca's Canadian headquarters and packaging facilities are located in Mississauga, Ontario. With a state-of-the-art drug discovery centre based in Montreal, Quebec, AstraZeneca has been recognized as having the best oncology pipeline by R&D Directions magazine. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.astrazeneca.ca.

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