Austen Milnerwood

Dr. Austen Milnerwood is a Professor at McGill University's Faculty of Medicine and a principal investigator at The Neuro (Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital), where he leads the Neurodegenerative Disorders Research Group. He was awarded the prestigious Killam Laureate fellowship (2017-2022) and has received Bell - Brain Canada Bipolar Research funding. His research program focuses on understanding the early pathophysiology of neurodegenerative diseases, particularly Parkinson's and Alzheimer's, as well as bipolar disorder.

Dr. Milnerwood's research employs cell biological, electrophysiological, and optical approaches to investigate neural development, connectivity, transmission, and plasticity. His lab has made significant contributions to understanding Parkinson's disease mechanisms, particularly regarding proteins like LRRK2, VPS35, and synuclein, demonstrating their roles in synaptic function and immune signaling interactions. His innovative work on personalized medicine for bipolar disorder uses patient-derived stem cells to create neuronal models that help identify biological bases for differential treatment responses, particularly to lithium.

His publication record shows consistent productivity with multiple high-impact publications in 2024-2025, demonstrating ongoing research momentum. His work reveals how LRRK2 inhibition can rapidly reverse dopamine dysfunction in Parkinson's models and identifies cellular pathways explaining differential responses to bipolar disorder treatments. His research bridges basic neuroscience with clinical applications, focusing on early disease mechanisms that could be targeted for prevention or intervention.

• Killam Laureate (2017-2022)
• Bell - Brain Canada Bipolar Research award

Dr. Milnerwood leads an active research team utilizing advanced techniques including electrophysiology, optical recording, stem cell-derived neuronal models, and in vivo recording in rodent models. He has secured significant funding, including CIHR grants as noted in February 2025. His research is highly collaborative, working with Professor Guy Rouleau at McGill and Professor Martin Alda at Dalhousie University on bipolar disorder research, and with numerous other experts in Parkinson's disease and neurodegeneration.

The Milnerwood Lab maintains specialized facilities for studying neural function, with equipment for electrophysiology, cell culture, and imaging. His lab's work on Parkinson's disease has identified that LRRK2 silencing could be therapeutically useful, as demonstrated by resistance to synuclein aggregation in LRRK2 knock-out mice and reversal of dopamine dysfunction through LRRK2 inhibition. His bipolar disorder research has developed human neuron circuit models that detect differences in electrical activity between patient and control neural networks.