September 29, 2009 - Michael Strong, health research leader at The University of Western Ontario and Lawson Health Research Institute, has been inducted into the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences (CAHS).
The ceremony took place earlier this month at the annual CAHS meeting in Ottawa where Strong was recognized for his accomplishments and achievements in academic health sciences in Canada.
Strong is a scientist at Lawson and Robarts Research Institute at Western. He is chief of Neurology and co-chair of the Department of Clinical Neurological Sciences at London Health Sciences Centre and Schulich and holds the Arthur J. Hudson Chair in ALS Research.
In 2005, Strong was awarded the Sheila Essay Award from the American Academy of Neurology for his research into the pathogenesis of ALS. He was awarded the Forbes Norris Award for ALS research and patient care in 2008, and is the only Canadian to hold both major international awards.
Strong’s research labs are centred at Robarts, where he has focused on understanding the basic cellular mechanisms of ALS. His work has led to an understanding of the process by which intracellular deposits of protein (composed primarily of neurofilament) are formed, and how these aggregates contribute to the disease process of ALS.
“By recognizing the importance of research into ALS, the academy has signaled a critical need to further our understanding of this devastating disorder from which about three Canadians die daily,” says Strong.