Another UCalgary-led international study shows that an experimental neuroprotective drug, nerinetide, helps to preserve brain cells for a time after stroke.   

Dr. Michael Hill, MD, a neurologist at the FMC and professor in the departments of Clinical Neurosciences, Radiology, Medicine and Community Health Sciences, and Dr. Mayank Goyal, MD, PhD, a neuroradiologist at the FMC and professor in the departments of Radiology and Clinical Neurosciences, led the team of stroke researchers in a clinical trial which shows that treating acute ischemic stroke patients with nerinetide, combined with a surgical procedure to remove the clot, improves patient outcomes by promoting brain cell survival.  

“The study provides evidence of a biological pathway that protects brain cells from dying when they are deprived of blood flow,” explains Hill, who is a member of the HBI, the Libin Cardiovascular Institute and the O’Brien Institute for Public Health. “Nerinetide targets the final stage of the brain cell’s life by stopping the production of nitric oxide within the cell...the neuroprotection that we’ve seen opens the door to a new way of treating stroke.”  

Images of patients’ brains from the study show the expected size of the damage from the stroke is sizeably reduced when nerinetide is administered and the clot retrieval procedure is performed. 

“Many studies investigating neuroprotective drugs have been conducted and have failed, so we’re extremely excited by these results,” says Goyal, who is also an HBI member. “While nerinetide is not approved for use yet, it shows the potential of a new tool to promote recovery from stroke.” 

The results in the nerinetide study, called the ESCAPE-NA1 Trial, build on the success of the ESCAPE trial, in which the Calgary Stroke Program proved that a clot-retrieval procedure known as EVT (endovascular treatment) can dramatically improve patient outcomes after an acute ischemic stroke. The researchers are now leading a third study, ESCAPE-NEXT, to confirm the exciting results of ESCAPE-NA1. Read more about the ESCAPE-NA1 Trial, including the trial results published in The Lancet. 

Stroke is a complex and diverse disease with no single treatment of benefit to all patients. The Calgary Stroke Program uses novel imaging techniques to deliver quick, accurate and personalized stroke care — a diagnosis and treatment plan tailored to the individual patient.

When someone arrives at the hospital showing signs of a stroke, every minute counts. The current diagnostic approach for stroke can include as many as three steps. Created by UCalgary researchers, the Simple Perfusion Reconstruction Algorithm (SPIRAL) is based on just one computerized tomography scan (CT or CAT scan), and locates the blockage without the use of contrasting dyes.

“What we’ve developed will allow more Canadian stroke centres to conduct endovascular procedures in the future,” says Dr. Philip Barber, MD, a neurologist at the FMC, who is an associate professor in the departments of Clinical Neurosciences, Radiology and Community Health Sciences, and a member of the HBI. “By avoiding the additional scans that are currently required, there are many advantages in terms of time and cost savings. This new technology is a significant innovation.” Learn more about SPIRAL, including the published findings in the American Journal of Neuroradiology.

The Calgary Stroke Program builds on the skills of an interdisciplinary team of individuals who work diligently to advance stroke treatment through research, education and patient-centred care.  

“A patient who has had a stroke relies on the efforts of a team,” says Dr. Demchuk. “We have a team of dedicated clinician scientists; basic, imaging and computer scientists; engineers; statisticians; epidemiologists; and management experts, working in parallel to change lives. We are leading trials and investigations that are advancing stroke treatment throughout the world, and it is a huge team effort.”  

Perhaps the Calgary Stroke Program’s greatest shared success is the training of stroke specialists.  

The internationally recognized Calgary Stroke Fellowship Program has trained more than 100 stroke physicians from more than 20 countries, helping them to become stroke champions in their geographic areas. The global impact of this training has transformed stroke care in countries throughout the world such as India, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Australia, the Philippines and the United Kingdom.  

“A significant strength of the program is the diversity of fellows that we have,” says Dr. Bijoy Menon, MD, a neurologist at the FMC, an associate professor in the departments of Clinical Neurosciences, Radiology and Community Health Sciences, and a member of the HBI. “People come into the program with very diverse educational backgrounds and have the opportunity to share their experiences in an environment where questioning and challenging is encouraged.”  

Fellows train within an integrated stroke management team made up of stroke neurologists, researchers and specialized health-care personnel. These experts provide comprehensive integrated services in the areas of acute stroke, stroke management, stroke rehabilitation, stroke prevention and stroke research. 

"Another huge strength of the fellowship program is research," says Menon. "Fellows participate in the design, execution, and implementation of many clinical trials and studies that investigate diagnosis, prevention, cognitive impairment and rehabilitation. We're really proud of the education we're able to provide through our world-class combined clinical and research program model."