The Centre for Bone & Muscle Health

Welcome to the Centre for Bone and Muscle Health!

(currently known as The Centre for Muscle Metabolism & Biophysics)

The Centre for Bone and Muscle Health provides a dynamic research environment for students and faculty to interact and develop a greater understanding of how muscle and bone contribute to overall health. There are 16 investigators whose research programs use a wide range of approaches to study bone and muscle health. These approaches use molecular techniques, experimental in vivo models and intervention studies in humans. While independent research programs are often focused on the metabolism or function of bone or muscle in isolation, the environment of the Centre allows for natural collaborations such that the muscle-bone unit can be studied together rather than in isolation. Formerly the Centre for Muscle Metabolism and Biophysics, the Centre now takes a more comprehensive approach with considerable emphasis on prevention of musculoskeletal diseases. Principal investigators are funded through a variety of funding agencies including the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Heart and Stroke Foundation, Dairy Farmers of Canada, and the Ontario Neurotrauma Foundation.

The Centre provides an ideal training environment for graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and opportunities for sabbatical research. In early 2012, the Centre will move to its new location in the state-of-the-art Cairns Family Health and Bioscience Complex. The proximity of graduate student space steps from the research labs will further maximize daily interactions among members of the Center. The Center is actively engaged of training graduate students through the Graduate Program in the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences.

Objectives of the Centre:

1. To enhance our understanding of the structure and function of healthy bone and muscle tissue, the adaptive range of bone and muscle, and what factors lead to these adaptations.
2. To better understand the changes that occur in bone and muscle in various pathological conditions and develop strategies to enhance the function of bone and muscle in both healthy individuals and individuals with pathological conditions.
3. Develop an internationally recognized program of excellence for innovative investigation and training of highly qualified personnel in the area of bone and muscle structure and function in health and disease.
4. Facilitate collaborative research to contribute significantly to health mandates of local, provincial, national, and international governing bodies.