The ALS Society of Canada Welcomes A New Researcher

June 29, 2012 - PRLog -- The ALS Society of Canada is pleased to announce that David Taylor, PhD, joined the ALS Canada team on May 28, 2012.
Prior to joining ALS Canada, Taylor was a post-doctoral research fellow at the Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases at the University of Toronto working closely with Janice Robertson, PhD. Taylor was also a post-doctoral research fellow at the Laboratory of Functional Neurogenomics at Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL, Switzerland) and worked with Ruth Luthi-Carter, PhD, from 2006 to 2011. In 2007, he expanded his knowledge of neurodegenerative disease and aging through a collaborative research project with the Nestlé Research Centre and EPFL.
Taylor received his PhD in pathology from McGill University working with Heather Durham, PhD and John Richardson, MD, PhD. Taylor's doctoral research was in neuroscience and directly related to ALS. His project investigated why motor neurons are vulnerable to damage, in particular why they fail to activate endogenous stress responses and defend themselves against toxic challenge. He obtained his BSc in the Biomedical Toxicology Co-op program at the University of Guelph.
ALS Canada’s Chief Executive Officer Lindee David says, “David Taylor will be responsible for building and sustaining relationships with the ALS research community, developing and maintaining collaborative relationships with research organizations and leaders in the ALS field and related neurodegenerative diseases as well as being the Canadian research spokesperson for ALS Canada. Taylor's experience will ensure that ALS Canada's research programs will have high visibility within the Canadian market place. In addition, he brings incredible skills in leadership, management, fund development and communication, to the ALS Society.”
Taylor has authored numerous articles for publication and received many awards. His academic memberships have included: the European Huntington’s Disease Network, Swiss Society of Neuroscience, Society for Neuroscience, American Association for the Advancement of Science and Society of Toxicology of Canada.  
Taylor explained why he entered the ALS field, “As an ardent baseball fan growing up, I was aware of the disease that caused New York Yankee’s first baseman, Lou Gehrig, to retire, and I was strongly motivated to apply my research skills to finding a cure.”
Taylor replaces Denise Figlewicz, PhD, who has taken the role of vice-dean research and innovation, at the Schulich School of Medicine, University of Western Ontario.