Dr. Cheryl Wellington

Principal Investigator

B.Sc. [Microbiology] (University of Alberta), Ph.D. [Microbiology] (University of British Columbia)
Professor, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of British Columbia

 

Research Interests

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Dr. Wellington’s major research interests are on both genetic and environmental factors that modulate risk for Alzheimer Disease (AD), the most common dementia. An increasingly recognized environment risk factor for dementia includes a history of traumatic brain injury (TBI). Current projects include understanding how injury severity, number of injuries, and age at injury all affect dementia risk, and understanding how the neuropathology and clinical presentation of TBI-related syndromes overlap with classical dementias. Over two million TBIs occur annually in North America, with rapidly increasing public concern over the long-term effects of concussion on brain health during development and aging. Existing animal models of TBI, however, fail to replicate the mechanics of most real-life human TBIs, which are caused by sharp, angular and/or linear accelerations or decelerations of a freely moving intact head.

Photo courtesy of the Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health

Photo courtesy of the Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health

Working with biomechanical engineers at ICORD, Dr. Wellington and her colleagues have developed a transformative new model of rodent closed head TBI, called CHIMERA (Closed Head Injury Model of Engineered Rotational Acceleration) that was specifically designed to overcome the caveats that limit the translational relevance of existing TBI models. CHIMERA’s innovation lies in its ability to generate, in a biomechanically controlled and reproducible manner, a wide range of TBI severity with completely free head movement, where head motion analyses are integrated with behavioral and neuropathological outcomes.

Neurotrauma fluid biomarkers: Innovative technologies that enable brain-derived substances to be measured in blood samples are transforming the field of neurology. Blood biomarker tests are becoming essential tools for the diagnosis and management of many brain disorders, from outpatient to critical care settings. With CFI-funded infrastructure, Wellington is conducting many projects in neurotrauma fluid biomarkers including spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, concussion, intimate partner violence, and neurocritical care.

Current Lab Members

Master Students PhD Students Postdoctoral Fellows Research Associates Research Staff

Kidus Achalu

 Jennifer Cooper Dr. Bethany Kondiles Sophie Stukas Anna Wilkinson
Tali Romero Tetiana Poliakova Dr. Mehwish Anwer Jianjia Fan Carlos Barron
Mohammad Ghodsi Dr. Tom Cheng Megan Harper
Andrew Agbay

Trainee Awards

Year Name Award
2024 Mehwish Anwer

Health Research BC Scholar award
2023 Jennifer Cooper
  • Graduate Scholarship, Alzheimer Society of Canada
  • Graduate Scholarship, CIHR
  • Young Faculty Award, Alzheimer Disease and Parkinson Disease
2019 Elyn Rowe
  • Frederick Banting and Charles Best Canada Graduate Scholarship, CIHR
  • Faculty of Medicine Scholarship, UBC
  • Mock Grant Proposal Winner, Bright Focus Foundation: Alzheimer’s Fast Track Workshop
  • Alzheimer Society Research Program (ASRP), Doctoral Award, Alzheimer Society of Canada
  • YWCA Women of Distinction Award Nominee, Yang Women’s Christian Association
2019 Emily Button
  • Travel Fellowship, Alzheimer’s Association International Conference
2019 Pantea Azadpour
  • Faculty of Applied Science Graduate Award
2016 Iva Kulic
  • Weston Brain Institute Rapid Response Grant (Weston Brain Institute)
2016 Jerome Robert
  • Weston Brain Institute Rapid Response Grant (Weston Brain Institute)
2016 Emily Button
  • Top 3% of CIHR Doctoral Award (CIHR)
2016 Asma Bashir
  • CIHR Masters Scholarship (CIHR)

 

Recent publications

  • Swaro, A et al.. 2025. Widespread and cell-type-specific transcriptomic reorganization following mild traumatic brain injury.. Cell Rep. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2025.115795.
  • Qiu, Y et al.. 2025. Prognostic value of plasma biomarkers for informing clinical trial design in mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's disease.. Alzheimers Res Ther. doi: 10.1186/s13195-025-01745-3.
  • Zemek, R et al.. 2025. TRANSCENDENT (Transforming Research by Assessing Neuroinformatics across the Spectrum of Concussion by Embedding iNterdisciplinary Data-collection to Enable Novel Treatments): protocol for a prospective observational cohort study of concussion patients with embedded comparative effectiveness research within a network of learning health system concussion clinics in Canada.. BMJ Open. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2024-095292.
  • Muir, RT et al.. 2025. Plasma biomarkers distinguish Boston Criteria 2.0 cerebral amyloid angiopathy from healthy controls.. Alzheimers Dement. doi: 10.1002/alz.70010.
  • Smith, EE et al.. 2025. Use of lecanemab and donanemab in the Canadian healthcare system: Evidence, challenges, and areas for future research.. J Prev Alzheimers Dis. doi: 10.1016/j.tjpad.2025.100068.
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