Dr. Brian Christie

Introduction

Dr. Brian Christie grew up on the lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy and the Tsuut’ina and Nakoda Nations in Treaty 7 territory and now lives and works on the traditional territories of the lək̓ʷəŋən and W̱SÁNEĆ peoples. As a first-generation university graduate, his scientific journey has been shaped by exceptional mentors and a lifelong curiosity about how the brain learns, adapts, and recovers.

His training took him from the University of Calgary to the University of Otago in New Zealand, Baylor College of Medicine in Texas, and the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in California. Along the way, he contributed to foundational discoveries in synaptic plasticity, including early work on what would later become known as metaplasticity: the idea that the brain's capacity to change is itself dynamic and shaped by experience. His research also advanced understanding of how neurons integrate information and how neural circuits are modified by learning and experience.

At the Salk Institute, Dr. Christie began pioneering studies examining how physical activity influences the brain. Working with leaders in the fields of neurogenesis and neural plasticity, he helped establish links between exercise, the birth of new neurons, and improved brain function. These discoveries helped launch a research program that continues to investigate how lifestyle factors can be leveraged to promote brain health.

Today, Dr. Christie leads an internationally recognized research program focused on understanding brain plasticity across the lifespan. His laboratory investigates how experiences such as physical activity, nutrition, and cognitive engagement shape neural function, while also exploring how brain injury, prenatal substance exposure, and aging alter developmental and cognitive trajectories. By combining fundamental neuroscience at the School of Medical Sciences, with translational and community-based research at the Institute for Aging and Life-Long Health, his team seeks to develop practical interventions that harness the brain's innate capacity for adaptation, recovery, and resilience.

Dr. Christie's work has helped shape our current understanding of neuroplasticity, exercise-induced brain adaptation, and recovery following neurological challenge, and continues to bridge fundamental neuroscience with real-world approaches to improving brain health across the lifespan.

Research

Since establishing his laboratory in 2000, Dr. Christie has focused on understanding how the brain changes throughout life and how those changes can be harnessed to improve cognitive health. Early work from the lab helped demonstrate that newly generated neurons in the adult hippocampus become functionally integrated into existing neural circuits, providing important evidence that adult neurogenesis contributes to normal brain function. The lab also helped establish that physical activity enhances levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a key molecule that supports learning, memory, and synaptic plasticity.

Building on these discoveries, the Christie Lab has spent more than two decades investigating how brain plasticity is altered by developmental disorders, brain injury, and aging. The laboratory's research has examined conditions including prenatal alcohol exposure, prenatal cannabis exposure, Fragile X syndrome, and traumatic brain injury, with a particular focus on the hippocampus—a brain region critical for learning and memory. A central theme of this work is the idea that many neurological and neurodevelopmental conditions share common disruptions in neural circuitry and plasticity, creating opportunities to identify interventions that may benefit multiple disorders.

A major focus of the lab has been understanding how lifestyle factors such as physical activity, nutrition, and cognitive engagement influence brain function. Through both preclinical and human studies, the Christie Lab has demonstrated that behavioral and lifestyle interventions can promote neural plasticity and improve cognitive performance. This work has helped advance the concept that the brain retains a remarkable capacity for adaptation throughout life and that this capacity can be leveraged to support recovery, resilience, and healthy aging.

Today, the Christie Lab integrates basic neuroscience with translational and community-based research. Current projects investigate how developmental substance exposure, brain injury, aging, and metabolic factors influence brain health, while also exploring innovative approaches to enhance cognitive performance and resilience in older adults, athletes, and individuals living with neurological conditions. By bridging discoveries made in the laboratory with real-world interventions, the lab aims to develop evidence-based strategies that improve brain health across the lifespan.

The Christie Lab has been supported by major national and international funding agencies, including the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), and the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), as well as numerous foundations and philanthropic partners. Equally important to the laboratory's mission is the training of future scientists and healthcare professionals. Former trainees now hold academic, research, and clinical positions across Canada and around the world, reflecting the lab's longstanding commitment to excellence in mentorship and education.

People

• Current lab members
• Christie lab alumni