AVC researcher named Fellow to prestigious national academy
Dr. Andrew Tasker, Professor of Neuropharmacology, and Director of the Atlantic Centre for Comparative Biomedical Research at UPEI's Atlantic Veterinary College, has been named a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences (CAHS) at a ceremony in Ottawa.
Dr. Tasker's acceptance letter from the CAHS states, 'Fellows of the Academy are elected on the basis of their demonstrated leadership, creativity, distinctive competencies and commitment to advance academic health sciences. Membership is considered one of the highest honours for members of the Canadian health sciences community.'
Dr. Tasker's research has provided insights into the working of the brain previously unimaginable to scientists. As a result, his team has developed new molecules and working models of the brain that will help generations of researchers test new treatments and possible cures for epilepsy, stroke, and other brain diseases.
He led a team of researchers who developed a patent for an animal model of temporal lobe epilepsy that placed him on the biotechnology timeline with Nobel Prize winners and key researchers throughout history.
'Dr. Tasker is an outstanding scientist, researcher and teacher,' says Dr. Don Reynolds, Dean of the AVC. 'His work has considerable potential to bring hope to many people as he works to advance scientific knowledge and unlock the mysteries of brain function. I congratulate Dr. Tasker on this career achievement.'
"I don't work with the aim of receiving awards and honours,' says Dr. Tasker. 'My team and I work so that we can better understand brain disorders, and ultimately find ways to cure and even prevent them. But I won't deny that it is a nice feeling to be recognized for my contributions to health research. I'm proud to be named a Fellow of the Academy, and to have the opportunity to contribute further to the Canadian health-science agenda.'
'The CAHS Fellowship honours Dr. Tasker's scientific and professional achievements over almost three decades of a prolific career,' says Wade MacLauchlan, President and Vice-Chancellor of UPEI. 'It also honours the fruitfulness of crossing boundaries between animal and human health, and the research leadership of AVC and UPEI in this field."
The CAHS was created by a proclamation of Parliament, to recognize great accomplishment and achievement in academic health sciences in Canada. It also provides timely assessments of urgent issues affecting the health of Canadians. Two of the inaugural fellows of the society include Dr. Ian Dohoo, Director of the Centre for Veterinary Epidemiological Research at AVC, and Dr. Alastair Cribb, former faculty member at the AVC and current Dean of Veterinary Medicine at University of Calgary.
