Funding: Researcher receives New Investigator Grant in Maternal, Reproductive, Child and Youth Health
Congratulations to Stephen Renaud, PhD, Assistant Professor with the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, on receiving a Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) New Investigator Grant in Maternal, Reproductive, Child and Youth Health.
Renaud will be studying the role of immune cells in the uterus in regulating placental blood flow and fetal health.
"The focus of this project is to discover the contribution of specialized sub-types of maternal immune cells to the health of the placenta and baby during pregnancy," said Renaud. "Accumulating evidence suggests that the mom's immune cells have a major role in controlling how the placenta develops."
Working alongside Dr. Genevieve Eastabrook and Susanne Schmid, PhD, Renaud and his colleagues are working to determine the feasibility of targeting a mother's immune cells to enhance placental development.
For Renaud, this support form CIHR is essential to his research and further emphasizes the importance of a healthy pregnancy as a critical determinant of the short and long-term health of both mother and baby.
"This is an emerging area of research and is an important opportunity for therapeutic intervention to help prevent acute sickness and long-term debilitating disease in two of Canada’s most vulnerable populations: pregnant women and their babies."
Dr. Shoo Lee, Scientific Director of CIHR's Institute of Human Development, Child and Youth Health made the funding announcement.
"Early career investigators are the future of our health research enterprise. This initiative will help support those working in maternal, reproductive, child and youth health research with the aim of ensuring that Canada continues to be a leader in the field in the coming years," said Dr. Lee.
