Congratulations to MacART member Dr. Margaret Fahnestock, Professor in McMaster University’s Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences. Dr. Fahnestock has received one year of funding for a project titled “Immunity, sex and genes in the etiology of Alzheimer’s disease.” This work will examine the role that sex and changes in the immune system might play in the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. The proposed project was to test the capacity of potentially toxic immune proteins (called ‘autoantibodies’) to change normal behaviour, the viability of neurons, and the molecular markers of memory in mouse models. This work is looking for new ways to understand, diagnose, and treat this serious brain disorder.