Awards

•    2013 University of Manitoba Graduate Student Association Teaching Award
•    2012 University of Manitoba Merit Award for Combination of Teaching, Service, and/or Research, Scholarly Work& Other Creative Activities.

Research key words

Physical activity; Exercise physiology; Cardiovascular health; Diabetes; Biomedical science; Kinesiology; Exercise rehabilitation; Health promotion; Primary prevention; Integrated knowledge translation (iKT); Primary care; Health systems.

Research interests

•    Physical activity and health research is an area of fundamental importance. Therefore, my research program focuses onto two major research themes:

1)    Basic exercise physiology: Although it is widely accepted that exercise training prevents and counteracts many of the disease processes that contribute to chronic disease, researchers still do not fully understand the biological mechanisms to explain how physical activity promotes health. With this in mind, my research program utilizes exercise physiology as a tool to identify novel therapeutic targets and signaling pathways that regulate cardiovascular and skeletal muscle health. In order to do so, my research program utilizes isolated cell models, animal models as well as human volunteers to conduct a physical activity-based physiology research program. Specifically, we have focused particular attention to study processes that are activated by physical activity to regulate calcium transport proteins and muscle metabolism in models of health and disease.
2)    Clinical exercise physiology: Sufficient physical activity is a prerequisite for health. However, 85% of Canadian adults do not accumulate enough physical activity on a weekly basis to achieve health benefits. This statistic is alarming because the Public Health Agency of Canada estimates that physical inactivity contributes to the development of 25 different diseases, including diabetes, heart disease, stroke, cancer and mental disorders. With this in mind, my clinical research program seeks to better support the utilization of physical activity as a health intervention. To facilitate this clinical research program, I have created links with the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority, the regional cardiac rehabilitation programs at the Reh-Fit Center and the Wellness Institute at Seven Oaks Hospital, the Cardiovascular Health and Research in Manitoba (CHaRM) Investigator group at the St. Boniface Hospital and the Health, Leisure and Human Performance Research Institute at the University of Manitoba. As an example, my clinical research program has conducted prospective, observational trials examining the relationship between physical activity and mental health after cardiac surgery amongst a cohort of 450 patients. My research program has also conducted an integrated knowledge translation project examining the development and implementation of a model physical activity promotion program within primary health care, which we commonly refer to as the ENCOURAGE project. Notably, the ENCOURAGE project has helped participants to re-schedule their lives in a manner that enabled them be physically active for 45 minutes more per week than they were before.

Grant Funding

•    Heart and Stroke Foundation of Manitoba Primary Prevention Challenge Grant Program
•    Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada Grant-in-Aid
•    Canadian Institutes of Health Research Operating Grant
•    Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council Discovery Grant
•    Manitoba Health Research Council Establishment Grant
•    St. Boniface Hospital Research Foundation
•    Recreation Connections Manitoba - Public Health Agency of Canada, Canada Healthy Living Fund

Trainee research placements

I enjoy providing students with opportunities to learn more about what it means to be a ‘researcher’. In my own laboratory, I have been the primary mentor for 1 high school, 13 undergraduate, 2 B.Sc. Medicine, 7 Masters and 1 Doctoral students since 2008. I do my best to provide an outstanding training environment for my student trainees by providing trainees with an opportunity to make meaningful contributions to the overall management of each project. I also enable students to interact with our research partners and stakeholders to inform best practice. Finally, I seek to tailor each research placement so the experiences gained fit within the student’s long-term career plan. Students with an interest to learn more about a research placement in my group can contact me by email.

Publications

(Underlining indicates student trainees who contributed to the publication).

Articles Published in Refereed Journals
1.    Horne D†, Kehler DS†, Kaoukis G, Hiebert B, Garcia E, Chapman S, Duhamel TA‡, Arora RC‡. Impact of Physical Activity on Depression after Cardiac Surgery (IPAD-CS). Accepted for publication. Canadian Journal of Cardiology on August 18, 2013. † indicates an equal contribution to the project that warrants co-first authorship. ‡ indicates an equal contribution to the project that warrants co-senior authorship.
2.    Epp RA, Susser SE, Morissette MP, Kehler DS, Jassal DS and Duhamel TA. Exercise training prevents the development of cardiac dysfunction in the high fat diet-fed, low-dose streptozotocin diabetic rat. Canadian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology. 91(1):80-9. 2013. Funded by the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
3.    Horne D†, Kehler DS†, Kaoukis G, Hiebert B, Garcia E, Duhamel TA‡, Arora RC‡. Depression before and after cardiac surgery: do all patients respond the same? Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery. 145(5):1400-6. 2013. † indicates an equal contribution to the project that warrants co-first authorship. ‡ indicates an equal contribution to the project that warrants co-senior authorship. Funded by the Manitoba Health Research Council.
4.    Hnatiuk JA, Duhamel TA, Katz A, Ready AE. Physical Activity Supports Provided by Health Care Providers to Patients with Type 2 Diabetes. Can J  Diabetes. 36.119-127. 2012.
5.    Green HJ, Duhamel TA, Smith IC, Rich SM, Thomas MM, Ouyang J, Yau JE. Muscle Fatigue and Excitation-Contraction Coupling Responses Following a Session of Prolonged Cycling. Acta Physiol (Oxf). 203(4):441-55. doi: 10.1111/j.1748-1716.2011.02335.x. 2011. Funded by NSERC.
6.    Green HJ, Duhamel TA, Smith IC, Rich SM, Thomas MM, Ouyang J, Yau JE. Muscle metabolic, enzymatic and transporter responses to a session of prolonged cycling. Eur J Appl Physiol. 111(5):827-37. 2011. Funded by NSERC.
7.    Bohm CJ, Ho J and Duhamel TA. Regular physical activity and exercise therapy in end-stage renal disease: how should we move forward? J Nephrol. 23(3):235-43. 2010.
8.    Adameova A, Xu YJ, Duhamel TA, Tappia PS, Shan L, Dhalla NS. Anti-atherosclerotic Molecules Targeting Oxidative Stress and Inflammation. Curr Pharm Design 15: 3094-3107. 2009. Funded by the Canadian Institute for Health Research.
9.    Green HJ, Bombardier E, Duhamel TA, Stewart RD, Tupling AR, and Ouyang J. Metabolic, enzymatic and transporter responses in human muscle during consecutive days of exercise and recovery. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 295(4):R1238-50.2008. Funded by NSERC.
10.    Dhalla NS, Sani-Chohan HK, and Duhamel TA. Strategies for the regulation of intracellular calcium in ischemic heart disease. Future Cardiology. 4(4), 339-345. 2008. Funded by the Canadian Institute for Health Research.
11.    Green HJ, Burnett ME, Duhamel TA, D'Arsigny CL, O'Donnell DE, Webb KA, Ouyang J. Abnormal Sarcoplasmic Reticulum Calcium-Sequestering Properties in Skeletal Muscle in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol. 295(2):C350-7. 2008. Funded by NSERC.
12.    Green HJ, Duhamel TA, Stewart RD, Tupling AR, and Ouyang J. Dissociation between changes in muscle Na+-K+-ATPase isoform abundance and activity with consecutive days of exercise and recovery. Am J Physiol: Endo Metab. 294(4):E761-7. 2008. Funded by NSERC.
13.    Green HJ, Bombardier E, Duhamel TA, Holloway GP, Moule J, Ranney DW, Tupling AR and Ouyang J. Acute responses in muscle mitochondrial and cytosolic enzyme activities during heavy intermittent exercise. J Appl Physiol. 104(4):931-7. 2008. Funded by NSERC.
14.    Stewart RD, Duhamel TA, Tupling AR and Green HJ. Effects of consecutive days of exercise and recovery on muscle mechanical function. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 40(2):316-25. 2008. Funded by NSERC.
15.    Green HJ, Duhamel TA, Holloway GP, Moule J, Ranney DW, Tupling AR and Ouyang J. Rapid upregulation of GLUT4 and MCT4 expression during sixteen hours of heavy intermittent cycle exercise. Am J Physiol Regul, Integ Comp Physiol. 294(2):R594-600. 2008. Funded by NSERC.

Invited Commentaries Published in Refereed Journals
16.    Czubryt M, Wigle J, Duhamel T, Singal P. Preface to: Scientific Basis for Heart Health and Care (Winnipeg Heart International Conference). Can J Physiol Pharmacol. 2012 Aug;90(8):v. Epub 2012.
17.    Duhamel TA. Viewpoint: Fatigue mechanisms determining exercise performance: integrative physiology is systems physiology. J Appl Physiol. 104(5):1544. 2008.

Published Reports
18.    Duhamel TA, McDonald G, Garcia E, Chapman C, Kehler DS, Petheric L, Norman TM, Buchanan P, Glazebrook C, Gysel A, Brown K, Giesbrecht G, Dunn N. AFTER THE SCHOOL BELL RINGS: A Manitoba After School Recreation Project. 1-258. 2013. http://www.afterschoolmanitoba.ca/assets/after%20the%20bell_july24_final.pdf Accessed on September 23, 2013. Winnipeg, MB, Canada.
19.    Buchanan P, Norman M, Petherick L, Duhamel TA. Getting Girls Active: Examining the Physically Active Recreation Experiences of Ethno-Racially Diverse Girls. Boys and Girls Club Canada - City of Winnipeg. Funding Organization: Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC 6269-07-2010/1092046. Manuals. Date Submitted June 30, 2012.

Published Book Chapters              
20.    Kehler DS, Dhalla NS and Duhamel TA. Biochemical Mechanisms of Exercise-Induced Angiogenesis. In: Biochemical Basis and Therapeutic Implications of Angiogenesis (pp. 181-206). Ed. By JL Mehta and NS Dhalla, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, New York. 2013.
21.    Duhamel TA and Dhalla NS. Molecular Mechanisms of Renin-Angiotensin-Aldosterone Blockade in Congestive Heart Failure.  In: Recent Advances in Cardiovascular Sciences, Ed. by S.S. Agrawal, DIPfSAR, Govt. of NCT Delhi, New Delhi, 1-41. 2008.

Knowledge translation publications
22.    Duhamel T. (2012). 100 Steps a Minute. Reh-fit Center. http://www.reh-fit.com/fitness-basics/100-steps-a-minute/ Accessed on June 18, 2013. Winnipeg, MB. Canada.
23.    Kent D,  Kehler DS, and Duhamel T. (2013). A prescription for exercise? Winnipeg Regional Health Authority. Inspire:News and information for staff working for the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority. http://www.wrha.mb.ca/extranet/inspire/2013/130612-a-prescription-for-exercise.php Accessed on June 25, 2013. Winnipeg, MB. Canada.
24.    Kent D,  Kehler DS, Prowse S, and Duhamel T. (2013). Are you physically active enough? Winnipeg Regional Health Authority. WAVE (Winnipeg's health and wellness magazine) Published on August 27, 2013. Winnipeg, MB. Canada. http://www.wrha.mb.ca/wave/2013/09/files/WaveFull-1309.pdf Accessed on September 23, 2013. Winnipeg, MB. Canada.

Published Theses
M.Sc. Students
25.    Morissette M. (2013) Examining the role of the adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase α2 (AMPKα2) subunit on sarcoplasmic reticulum calcium-ATPase (SERCA) expression and function in sedentary and exercise-trained mice. University of Manitoba. Winnipeg, MB, Canada. April 2013.
26.    Kehler SD (2012) Pre-habilitation Program for Elective Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery Patients: A Pilot Project. University of Manitoba. Winnipeg, MB, Canada. April 2013.
B.Sc. Med Thesis
27.    Nilupama Wanigasekara. (2012) Examining the effects of a novel model of cardiac rehabilitation in reducing wait times and increasing adherence to behavior changes promoted by the program. University of Manitoba. Winnipeg, MB, Canada. August 2012.
28.    Riley Epp (2013). The ENCOURAGE project: Fee for service interviews. University of Manitoba. Winnipeg, MB, Canada. August 2013.

Courses taught

Graduate level courses
Current Research in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure: Physical Aspects (PERS 7004)
Research in Kinesiology and Recreation Studies (PERS 7080

• Cardiac Science and Exercise Physiology
• Cardiac Rehabilitation Research
• Exercise Biology

Advanced Training in Basic and Clinical Research Topics in Medicine (Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine University of Manitoba & St Boniface Hospital)

Undergraduate level courses
Advanced Exercise Physiology (KIN 4470)
Advanced Pathology and Sport Medicine (KIN 4160)
Supervised Fieldwork placements (PERS 4630)
Undergraduate Directed Studies (PERS 4600)