Brain Disease ‘Mystery’ Still Unsolved, Scientists Say

CANADALAND

“All I will say is that my scientific opinion is that there is something real going on in New Brunswick that absolutely cannot be explained by the bias or personal agenda of an individual neurologist.” Those are the words of Dr. Michael Coulthart, a microbiologist employed by our federal government, specifically by Public Health Canada. He’s talking about the mysterious neurological disease that is striking down people in New Brunswick. We were not supposed to read his words. They are from a leaked email obtained by Canadaland, first published by the newspaper The Guardian.

Then there was another leaked email. Doctor Samuel Weiss, a neuroscientist and the scientific director of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. In his leaked email, he states, “I felt incredibly optimistic that an all out government effort to unravel the mystery was in the cards. However, in short order, the scientific effort was shut down at the request of the governments.”

It’s nine years since the first case was documented. The numbers, by some reports, have grown to over 300 suspected cases. And we still have no answers. Our reporters, Cherise Sucheran and Sarah Lawrynuik present the latest instalment in our ongoing investigation.

Host: Jesse Brown

Credits: Cherise Sucheran and Sarah Lawrynuik (Reporters)

Caleb Thompson (Audio Editor), Max Collins (Production Manager), Bruce Thorson (Senior Producer), Karyn Pugliese (Editor-in-Chief)

Additional music by Audio Network

Further reading:

• Second Canadian Scientists Alleges Brain Illness Investigation was Shut Down
• Top Canadian Scientist Alleges in Leaked Emails He Was Barred From Studying Mystery brain Illness
• Government Officials Mislead the Public About the “Mysterious” New Brunswick Neurological Disease, and We Have the Documents to Prove it

Sponsors: Douglas, Article, Squarespace

If you value this podcast, support us! You’ll get premium access to all our shows ad free, including early releases and bonus content. You’ll also get our exclusive newsletter, discounts on merch at our store, tickets to our live and virtual events, and more than anything, you’ll be a part of the solution to Canada’s journalism crisis, you’ll be keeping our work free and accessible to everybody.

You can listen ad-free on Amazon Music—included with Prime.

---

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.