There are few words more painful to imagine than “your child has cancer.”

Overhearing these life-altering words prompted Mitacs research intern Taylor Jamieson-Datzkiw to pursue a career in pediatric oncology — that is, cancer treatments for children and young adults.

Gum disease is a condition that shows up in 85 percent of cats and dogs before the age of four. Without proper treatment, the illness is painful and can lead to other health issues such as heart or kidney disease.

To improve the health of pets and prevent the issue, Quebec entrepreneur Andrée-Ann Adam has been working on a first-of-its-kind, all-natural dental gel.

As of July 27, 2020, the number of COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide reached 16.3 million people, with 114,000 cases in Canada. About two to eight percent of COVID-19 cases experience severe symptoms that lead to respiratory distress, organ failure, and even death. Currently, regular medical checkups consist of one-on-one phone calls to monitor the patient’s vital signs remotely.

When the second wave of the Spanish flu hit Canada over 100 years ago, the effect was even more devastating than that of its first wave. In fact, 90 percent of the deaths happened in the fall of 1918, during the pandemic’s second peak.

When Gurudeeban Selvaraj and Satyavani Kaliamurthi came to Canada in 2019, they had no idea they would be creating both a preventative vaccine and a curing drug to address the millennium’s biggest pandemic.

As of May 27, 2020, there have been 2,925,466 infected COVID-19 patients reported worldwide, with a total of 355,727 deaths. The rapid progression of the COVID-19 pandemic has raised concerns regarding the short supply of medical equipment needed to control the rate of transmission and mortality. In most developing countries, transporting vaccines can be difficult without the proper storage technologies, since vaccines and equipment can spoil in high temperatures.

St.Amant, located in Manitoba, supports nearly 2,000 children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities and autism. In 2014, the St.Amant Foundation launched their Community Transitions program through which they offer community living options to people living at the residential care facilities administrated by St.Amant. While this transition enables them to live a full and active lifestyle in their communities, there was no study to actually assess what this means for their health and quality of life.

When the COVID-19 pandemic was announced and the Government of Canada called upon researchers and businesses to develop solutions, Ramtin Rasoulinezhad answered.

A graduate student at Western University, Ramtin was working as a research engineer supported by Mitacs Accelerate . He was working on the Net Zero Energy Building project with AVL Manufacturing when CEO Vince Discristofaro selected him to work directly with the Hybrid Solution Division.

That’s why Mitacs Globalink students Friederike Floegel from Germany and Mireya Cervantes González from Mexico joined Professor Frampton’s lab at Dalhousie University in Halifax this summer. They had the opportunity to advance two new approaches for culturing cells that better replicate human tissue.

Friederike created temperature-responsive coatings to produce cells that can be detached to study the specific behaviour of cancer cells; and the coating will also make them easier to reproduce.

Autism spectrum disorder refers to a broad range of conditions characterized by challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviours, speech, and nonverbal communication. This once misunderstood disorder affects a broad range of communications skills and behaviours.

According to Public Health Agency Canada, one in 66 Canadian children are diagnosed with autism.