February 27, 2006
Down Syndrome Research Foundation
MLA Statement

More and more international organizations are coming to British Columbia to hold their conferences and conventions. In six months the 9th World Down Syndrome Congress will be held in Vancouver. I am proud to see that the Down Syndrome Research Foundation of Burnaby North is the host of this convention.

Down Syndrome is a genetic disorder resulting from abnormal cell division before or after conception. About 95 percent of all people with Down syndrome are of type trisomy 21, which means that all the cells in their body have an extra chromosome — 47 instead of 46 — but this type is not genetically inherited. It is not completely understood why the chromosome becomes irregular, and currently there is no known treatment.

The Down Syndrome Research Foundation was formed in 1995 to empower people with Down syndrome, to disseminate information and to support research projects related to Down syndrome. Last year the foundation completed the installation of a magnetoencephalography or MEG laboratory in Burnaby. MEG is a non-invasive technique based on the measurement of external magnetic fields produced by neural currents in the cerebral cortex.

The whole MEG instrumentation system was manufactured by a local B.C. company, VSM Medtech. Research collaborations have been established with Simon Fraser University, the University of British Columbia, University of Victoria and the Children's and Women's Health Centre of B.C.

The Down Syndrome Research Foundation is a shining example of British Columbians coming together to support the families, to develop people's potential and to push the frontier of technology and science. Please join me to wish them every success in bringing experts from all over the world to British Columbia to further our knowledge of Down syndrome.