September 30, 2025
Brain Canada invests in the next generation of brain researchers with new Future Leaders grants
We are pleased to announce that Dr. Anthony Gifuni is among the latest cohort of Brain Canada’s Future Leaders in Canadian Brain Research (Future Leaders). This flagship program provides vital funding to early-career scientists whose bold ideas are advancing brain health.
This year, 22 researchers from across Canada will each be awarded $100,000, for a total investment of $2.2M in bold brain research. The Future Leaders program is made possible thanks to an anchor gift from the Azrieli Foundation, which is matched by Brain Canada through the Canada Brain Research Fund (CBRF), a unique arrangement between the Government of Canada (Health Canada) and Brain Canada, with the support of additional generous donors, and partners.
“These outstanding early-career researchers are tackling some of the most pressing challenges in brain health. By investing in their creativity and talent, we are building the foundation for breakthroughs that will transform lives.”
— Dr. Viviane Poupon,
President and CEO of Brain Canada
Dr. Anthony Gifuni among the laureates
We are proud to share that Dr. Gifuni is among this year’s recipients of the Future Leaders grant, for his project, entitled, “Early Intervention for Youth Suicide: Leveraging EEG to Predict Treatment Response and Suicidality in the TIDE Trial.“
Suicide is the second leading cause of death among youth globally, and effective early intervention remains a critical unmet need in mental health care. This study will build on the Treatment Interrupts Depression Early (TIDE) trial, one of the largest multisite randomized controlled trials (RCT) focused on youth depression. While the TIDE trial aims to compare the efficacy of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) in treating youth depression, the current proposal seeks to leverage this platform to identify neurobiological markers of suicidal risk and treatment response. Specifically, the study will integrate event-related potential (ERP) analyses using EEG to examine neural markers associated with social processing and suicidality. Recent findings from our research highlight the critical role of social cognitive dysfunctions—particularly in response to inclusion and exclusion experiences—in adolescent suicidal behaviors. EEG offers a scalable and accessible tool to detect neural markers, making it a promising approach to inform personalized treatment strategies for youth at risk. The overarching goal of this project is to improve outcomes for depressed youth by advancing our understanding of how neural markers, particularly those derived from EEG, predict suicidal risk and treatment response.
Congratulations to Dr. Gifuni!
A platform for partnership
“By empowering early-career researchers to pursue bold and transformative ideas, we are helping to unlock discoveries that will change lives and improve brain health for all Canadians.”
— Naomi Azrieli,
O.C., DPhil, Chair and CEO of the Azrieli Foundation
Since 2019, the Future Leaders program has supported over 131 emerging scientists, strengthening Canada’s research ecosystem and ensuring the next generation of leaders has the resources to pursue high-risk, high-reward discoveries.
“Brain research is an investment in the future of health care in Canada. We are pleased to support the next generation of scientists whose work will foster new and innovative discoveries for treatments on important areas of health, such as youth mental health, brain function, and neurodevelopmental disorders.”
— Honourable Marjorie Michel,
Minister of Health, Governement of Canada
About Brain Canada
Brain Canada Foundation is a national registered charity that enables and supports excellent, innovative, and paradigm-shifting brain research in Canada. We increase the scale and scope of funding to accelerate the pace of discovery and maximize impact. Since 1998, Brain Canada has raised and invested more than $300 million in brain research through partnerships with donors and the Government of Canada.