Projets novateurs réalisés

An Evaluation of Exercise Referral Schemes in Healthcare.

Greater physical activity and exercise is associated with better overall health and a reduced risk of many chronic conditions, but most of the Canadian population is insufficiently active. Physicians reach a large proportion of the population but experience barriers such as of time that prevent them from providing tailored exercise advice, as such they are interested in referring their patients to qualified exercise professionals or community exercise programs. Our proposed project aims to review the effectiveness of these exercise referral schemes to improve patient focused outcomes (i.e., physical activity levels, blood pressure, etc). The anticipated results of the present study may lead to more initiatives aimed at increasing the availability of community exercise programs and exercise professionals to support physical activity promotion in primary care.

Évolution des réseaux d’interactions

Les interactions entre espèce représentent la moitié des informations indispensables à la compréhension des écosysytèmes qui nous entourent et de leur fonctionnement. Les interactions antagnistes (e.g. hôte-parasite) sont notamment fortement impliquées dans les dynamiques que l’on peut observer entre des populations, des espèces ou des communautés. Ces dynamiques peuvent être étudiées dans une perspective évolutive afin de déterminer l’adaptation, par exemple, d’une population à une condition particulière (e.g. présence d’une autre espèce). L’utilisation des réseaux d’interactions s’avère être un outil très puissant pour suivre ces dynamiques dans le temps ou l’espace, peu importe le niveau d’étude (individus, population, etc.). À la fin de ce stage, j’aurai finalisé deux modèles mathématiques qui seront opérationels et pourront être pubiés dans des revues scientifiques. Le premier porte sur la dynamique évolutive entre les bactéries et leurs virus. Le second interroge la dynamique évolutive entre deux populutions, qu’elles soient compétitrices, mutualistes ou proie-prédateur.

Le rôle de la sensibilité trigéminale dans les rhino-sinusites chroniques

La rhino-sinusite chronique (RSC) est une inflammation chronique de la muqueuse nasale et sinusale laquelle est l’un des troubles chroniques les plus courants en Amérique du Nord. Deux symptômes communs sont observés chez les patients atteints de RSC, soit une obstruction nasale et une réduction de l’odorat nommée hyposmie. En plus d’une réduction du système olfactif, les patients atteints de RSC présentent aussi une réduction de la sensibilité trigéminale comparativement aux individus sains. Le système trigéminal est un troisième sens chimique à côté de l’odorat et du goût et permet la perception de sensation de fraicheur, chaleur, picotement des molécules volatiles. L’atteinte du système trigéminal dans la RSC pourrait contribuer à l’obstruction nasale subjective souvent observée chez les patients avec une RSC. TO BE CONT’D

The use of advanced SPM technology to study amyloid dynamics in neuronal model membranes

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is thought to be caused by accumulation of protein, called “beta-amyloid” in the brain. This protein has been shown to accumulate on the surfaces of brain cells, deforming and damaging their outer surface (called the lipid membrane). There is a major open question however: what factors make brain cells sensitive to beta-amyloid? It has been observed that the amount of beta-amyloid in the brain does not correlate with disease progression and thus other important factors must be at play. In our lab, led by Prof. Zoya Leonenko (University of Waterloo), we are testing the hypothesis that the composition of the lipid membrane is the key factor which causes AD, and suggest that protecting the membrane with small molecules, like melatonin, may be an effective preventative strategy for AD. TO BE CONT’D

Red meat, cholesterol and breast cancer

We all know someone affected by breast cancer. Many of us have also heard that we can reduce our risk of experiencing breast cancer from what we eat. Much of this comes from studies that compare people who got sick with those who didn’t and trying to understand what makes them different. But what is it exactly that’s causing this difference in risk?
The opportunities here are enormous. We know that cells communicate with each other and that things we eat can influence this. Learning what specifically makes the change from advanced scientific methods and strong international teams can help those at higher risk reduce their chances of getting sick. As we think diet affects more than just breast cancer, the opportunities are even greater when we start thinking about other diseases. TO BE CONT’D

Méthodes de programmation dynamique stochastique pour la planification hydro-électrique moyen-terme sous incertitude

Le but de la planification hydro-électrique moyen-terme est de déterminer la quantité de ressources hydrauliques qui sera puisé de chacun des réservoirs d’un système de production pour répondre à une demande électrique ou en débit. Ces quantités ou politiques s’étendent en général sur des horizons de 1 à 2 années avec des décisions hebdomadaires ou mensuelles. La principale source d’incertitude dans ce problème est le volume d’eau que recevra notre système dans le futur. Une politique sera donc d’autant précise que le modèle des apports en eau permettra de capturer l’hydrologie locale.
Nous nous proposons de développer une méthode de calcul d’une politique basée sur l’utilisation d’un modèle hydrologique autorégressif à moyenne mobile. Nous étudierons ensuite une méthode hybride entre deux paradigmes connus, permettant d’aller tenir compte du détail d’un grand système de production comme celui d’Hydro-Québec.

A Big Data Analysis Framework for MBFC Manufacturing

The Mercedes-Benz Fuel Cell Division (MBFC) in Burnaby, Canada develops and runs the manufacturing processes required for the assembly of Fuel Cell Stacks prototypes. MBFC uses the Manufacturing Execution System (MES) to collect and analyse data from the manufacturing lines to the database system. However, because the size of the collected data is very large, MBFC is not able to detect certain fuel cell defects in a timely manner and sometimes not at all. This Mitacs project aims to develop and evaluate a big data mechanism that improves the predictive power and reduces the time taken to search MBFC’s data and detect failures in the manufacturing process in a real-time fashion.

Evaluation of corticosteroid-releasing nano- and micro-particles for pain management in osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis is a progressive joint disease that causes pain and stiffness, resulting in a decrease in quality of life for patients. Treatment include intra-articular administration of crystalline corticosteroids or hyaluronate. Intra-articular corticosteroids, due to the large doses required, short residence time in the joint, and crystalline structure, are associated with cartilage damage and a short duration of action requiring multiple injections. The use of intra-articular hyaluronate has conflicting clinical evidence, with some studies demonstrating an increase in adverse events, a clinically irrelevant benefit, and a short duration of action. There is thus a need for the development of new approaches for providing long-term pain relief for OA patients (>26 weeks) while limiting chondrotoxicity. The objective of the proposed project is to develop novel corticosteroid releasing technologies that have been processed in the form of nano- and micro-particles to be administered intra-articularly to provide long-term, sustained pain release for OA patients.

Comparaison de configuration de systèmes CVCA pour un espace d’agriculture intégré au bâtiment afin d’assurer une performance énergétique.

Ce projet de recherche vise à caractériser la consommation énergétique ainsi que de l’appel de puissance des systèmes permettant le contrôle de la température ainsi que de l’humidité de l’air dans les espaces d’agriculture intégrés au bâtiment (eAIB). Plusieurs configurations de ces systèmes seront analysées afin d’être en mesure d’identifier les avantages et inconvénients de chacune de ses configurations. La première étape du projet sera de caractériser tous les gains thermiques des équipements utilisés ainsi que d’estimer la transpiration des plantes dans l’environnement agricole étudié. Ensuite, en prenant ces paramètres en compte, différentes configurations possibles des systèmes de contrôle de l’environnement seront développées. Finalement, un outil de simulation énergétique sera utilisé afin d’étudier la performance énergétique de chacune des configurations étudiées.

Pricing Swaptions and Bond Options by Using One Volatility Surface

Options belong to a class of investments known as derivatives, because their value is derived from the

value of an underlying asset that the option holder has the right to buy or sell. Their pricing models

generally require at least the volatility of the underlying asset (eq. swap rate, bond price). We want to

focus on developing a model that allows us to apply the volatility of one type of option to another, by

taking into consideration the different behaviour of the underlying. The result will lead to a

comparative methodology of two different products (swaptions and bond options). With these results,

the investor will be able to hedge one of these instruments against the other. Moreover, such analysis

will lead to strategies for relative trading. By comparing prices, the financial institution will be able to

determine which investment has the highest expected return and also arrive at a decision of trading in

one product over another.

A preclinical study evaluating INOLIFE’s needle-free injection system (INOJEX) with cannabidiol (CBD) for the treatment of neuropathic pain and associated anxiety-depressive symptoms in rats.

Chronic neuropathic pain affects millions of Canadians for which the government spends ~$6 billion a year on treatment. It is therefore imperative to find new therapies with few side effects and high therapeutic efficacy. This study will examine the therapeutic properties of cannabidiol (CBD), which is a non-intoxicating component of cannabis. Studies have shown that CBD has ant-inflammatory, anti-anxiety, and pain-relieving effects. Our main objective is to test the effects of CBD using Inolife’s needle-free injection system (Inojex) in an animal model of neuropathic pain and understand its mechanism of action. The Inojex system gives us an opportunity to deliver cannabis-based drugs to patients unable to consume cannabis through traditional oral routes. This system could revolutionize a safe and effective way of dosing and administrating cannabis for medical purposes in animals and eventually in patients.TO BE CONT”D

Leverage on Artificial Intelligence in Capacity Management: Predict IT assets usage based on Business events

The Societe Generale Bank possesses a network of trading applications which generate the hardware consumption data (CPU, memory and network communication). The main usage of this trading system is to receive/ send orders from the market and/ or the clients or vice versa, and based on these order information, business decisions are made accordingly.
The project’s main research focus is to use Artificial Intelligence technologies to help better manage hardware capacity and data flow in the network.
To achieve this, we will be using different methodologies such as gradient boosting (and others) to investigate the relationship between the components of this network and make predictions on hardware consumption and how the whole network reacts to data flow and market fluctuation.
Ideally, this research will result in a clearer understanding of the network and help maintain the infrastructure and avoid system crush.