Douglas Research Centre | Centre de recherche

What Douglas Research Centre | Centre de recherche does

The Douglas Research Centre is a non-profit mental health research institute affiliated with McGill University and the CIUSSS de l'Ouest-de-l'Île-de-Montréal (Montreal West Island Integrated University Health and Social Services Centre), headquartered at 6875 Boulevard LaSalle in Montréal, Québec, Canada. Founded in 1979 with approximately 118 employees, the centre is dedicated to understanding, preventing, and treating mental disorders through science. Its research is organized across five thematic areas: environmental adversity and neurodevelopment; youth mental health and early intervention; aging, cognition, and Alzheimer's disease; sleep and biological rhythms; and stress, anxiety, depression, and suicide. The institute serves academic researchers, clinical practitioners, mental health patients and research participants, and the broader Quebec healthcare system, and is positioned as a leader in Open Science in mental health research.

The centre operates a coordinated suite of research infrastructure and clinical services rather than commercial products. Core platforms include the Clinical Research Innovation Centre (CRIC), a Health Canada-regulated clinical research unit enabling compliant clinical trials in adult and child psychiatry, and the Centre for the Advancement of Clinical Research (CARC), which provides outpatient clinical assessment services. Specialized research platforms include the McGill-Mouse-Miniscope (M3) high-throughput platform for neuronal dynamics research, the Cerebral Imaging Centre (CIC), the Douglas Brain Bank, an Animal Facility, and a Biostatistics Consulting Service. Clinical programs span the Prevention and Early Intervention Program for Psychoses (PEPP), the Eating Disorders Program, the Centre for Depression and Suicide in Teens, and the Centre of Excellence for Understanding Alzheimer's Disease. Underlying distinguished researchers include Canada Research Chair Sylvain Williams (Tier 1, Neural circuits of learning and memory) and Full Professor Marie-Josée Fleury, with over 350 publications.

The Douglas Research Centre operates as a publicly funded research institution with no commercial pricing model. Its funding mix is dominated by competitive government grants from Canadian federal and provincial agencies, including the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Fonds de recherche du Québec – Santé (FRQS), the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), and Health Canada's Substance Use and Addictions Program, supplemented by charitable contributions from the Douglas Foundation. Six research teams secured over $6M in CIHR Spring 2026 Project Grant funding alone, and the Foundation contributed over $1.7M in 2018-2019. Services are delivered through the public healthcare system and academic partnerships rather than via commercial channels, and the centre does not publicly disclose full financial figures.

Name

Douglas Research Centre | Centre de recherche

Legal name

The Douglas Research Centre

Website

https://douglas.research.mcgill.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

1979

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

The Douglas Research Centre is a non-profit mental health research institute affiliated with McGill University, conducting neuroscience and clinical psychiatry research across five thematic areas. It operates research platforms, clinical programs, and the Douglas Brain Bank, funded through government grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Mental Health Research

NAICS

Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Academic Medical Centers & Teaching Hospitals (University-Affiliated) (EDAHAGAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Health & Biomedical Research Universities (Academic Medical Center–Affiliated) (EDAHABAC), Clinical Research Support (CRC/CTA) (EDAOAJAO), Research Administration & Compliance (Sponsored Programs, IRB/REB) (EDADAKAH), Disease-Specific Research & Support (e.g., Cancer, Diabetes, ALS) (BPAGACAA)

Keywords

• Mental health research
• Neuroscience research
• Clinical research services
• Psychiatric research
• Biomedical research platforms

Headquarters

HQ city

Montréal, Québec

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Research Funding: Primary revenue from government agencies including Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Fonds de recherche du Québec – Santé (FRQS), and other federal/provincial research grants
2. Donations and Foundation Support: The Douglas Foundation provides significant financial support, contributing over $1.7M in 2018-2019 alone
3. Research Grants: Competitive grant funding from agencies such as CIHR (over $6M secured in Spring 2026 Project Grant Competition), FRQS, and specialized programs

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Douglas Research Centre is a non-profit mental health research institute that conducts scientific research to understand, prevent, and treat mental disorders. It provides specialized clinical research facilities (CARC, CRIC), research platforms (Animal Facility, Biostatistics Consulting, Knowledge Mobilization), and clinical programs (PEPP, Eating Disorders Program, Centre for Depression and Suicide in Teens, Douglas Brain Bank, Alzheimer's Centre of Excellence) in collaboration with McGill University and the public healthcare system.

Product overview

Douglas Research Centre is a mental health research institution affiliated with McGill University that operates as a research center rather than a commercial product company. The center provides a coordinated suite of research services including specialized clinical research facilities (CARC, CRIC), research platforms (Animal Facility, Biostatistics Consulting, Knowledge Mobilization), and clinical programs (PEPP, Eating Disorders Program, Centre for Depression and Suicide in Teens, Douglas Brain Bank, Alzheimer's Centre of Excellence). These services support the center's mission to understand, prevent, and treat mental disorders through scientific research.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Centre for the Advancement of Clinical Research (CARC) Outpatient service unit providing blood withdrawal, electrocardiology, physiological, psychological, and behavioral assessments, and observation for clinical research studies conducted by Douglas researchers.
• Clinical Research Innovation Centre (CRIC) Health Canada-regulated clinical research unit providing tools and support for clinician-researchers to conduct compliant clinical trials in all areas of adult and child psychiatry.
• Animal Facility Animal research facility supporting preclinical neuroscience and mental health studies conducted by Douglas Research Centre researchers.
• Biostatistics Consulting Service Statistical consultation and analysis support for research projects, helping researchers with study design, data analysis, and interpretation.
• Knowledge Mobilization Services Supports the translation and dissemination of research findings to various audiences including policymakers, practitioners, and the public.
• Research Support Office Administrative and operational support services for researchers including grant management, compliance, and institutional research coordination.
• Douglas Brain Bank Repository of brain tissue specimens for neuroscience and mental health research purposes, including Alzheimer's disease research.
• Prevention and Early Intervention Program for Psychoses (PEPP) Early intervention program for individuals experiencing first-episode psychosis, providing specialized treatment and support.
• Eating Disorders Program Specialized clinical program for the treatment and research of eating disorders.
• Centre for Depression and Suicide in Teens Specialized center focused on understanding, preventing, and treating depression and suicide in adolescent populations.
• Centre of Excellence for Understanding Alzheimer's Disease Research excellence center dedicated to advancing understanding of Alzheimer's disease mechanisms and treatment.

Quantifiable outcome

• Six teams funded through CIHR Spring 2026 Project Grant Competition with over $6M in grant funding
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• McGill UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic affiliation providing research collaboration, faculty appointments, and academic programs. The Douglas Research Centre is affiliated with McGill University's Department of Psychiatry, with researchers holding faculty positions as Full Professors.
• CIUSSS de l'Ouest-de-l'Île-de-Montréal (Montreal West Island IUHSSC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealthcare system integration through the Montreal West Island Integrated University Health and Social Services Centre, providing clinical research infrastructure and healthcare system connections.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Montreal Neurological Institute (The Neuro): McGill-affiliated neuroscience and brain research institute in Montreal. Highly comparable as a co-located McGill research center with overlapping neuroscience, brain imaging, and patient-oriented research programs serving similar investigator and trainee communities.
• Allen Institute for Brain Science: U.S. nonprofit brain research institute producing large-scale open neuroscience datasets and operating advanced imaging platforms. Comparable for its Open Science approach, specialized platforms (imaging/behavior), and nonprofit research-center operating model.
• Baycrest / Rotman Research Institute: Toronto-based academic health sciences center focused on aging, cognition, and Alzheimer's disease research. Directly comparable for its Alzheimer's Centre of Excellence overlap, brain bank, and university-affiliated geriatric mental health research programs.
• Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH): Canada's largest mental health and addiction teaching hospital and research institute, affiliated with the University of Toronto. Directly comparable as a Canadian academic medical center focused on mental illness research with similar McGill-equivalent university affiliation, clinical programs, and grant-funded research model.

Broad incumbents

• Karolinska Institutet: Swedish medical university with extensive psychiatric and neuroscience research. Comparable as a large publicly funded medical research university with strong mental-health and translational neuroscience programs similar to McGill-affiliated research.
• Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin: Europe's largest university hospital, jointly operated by Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität. Comparable for its public-academic medical center structure combining patient care, psychiatry research, and biomedical research infrastructure.
• Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (King's College London): One of Europe's largest centers for mental health and neuroscience research, embedded in a major university. Comparable as a large university-affiliated psychiatric research institute with broad coverage of Douglas's research domains (psychosis, depression, Alzheimer's).
• Max Planck Institute for Brain Research: German basic-research institute dedicated to understanding brain function at the cellular and circuit level. Comparable for its neuroscience focus, advanced imaging capability, and government-funded basic research model without commercial revenue.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCUi7Rkllmqv5JXpxSu3u7Ww/playlists
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/douglas-research-centre

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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