Northern high-latitude ecosystems experience disproportionate levels of climate change. This strongly affects the previously temperature-limited vegetation in the sub-arctic tundra. Treelines, the boundaries between forests and the tree-less tundra, are expected to shift northwards in response. However, only half of the examined treelines have advanced since 1900. Why warming is associated with treeline advances in […]

Vascular disease (problems with blood vessels) are a leading cause of death and disability. Stroke alone (blockage of blood vessels) is the 4th biggest killer globally (3rd in Canada), most disabling (2/3rd of survivors disabled) and costs society ~£26 billion a year in the UK. It can be hard to detect. A brain that has […]

Insect pests pose a major threat to forestry in Canada, the UK and globally, particularly in the context of a changing climate and global trade. Effective survey and detection tools are needed to provide early warnings of pest outbreaks and provide information to guide decisions about the need for management action. For eruptive and invasive […]

The use of cocaine and heroin among young Europeans and Americans has been steadily increasing over the past decade (UN World Drug Report, 2018) and as such it has never been more important to understand the mechanisms whereby some individuals switch from recreational controlled drug use to compulsive drug seeking, the hallmark of drug addiction. […]

Land-use change and invasive species are two of the three major drivers of biodiversity decline globally, however, interactions between these drivers in their impact to whole community diversity and ecosystem function are relatively understudied. This proposal serves to fill this knowledge gap through collaboration with the long-term ecological monitoring data from the Toronto and Region […]

Candida is a fungus that is often found in healthy mouths, but can also cause infection. Such infections are common in denture wearers where Candida grows on the acrylic denture surface. My PhD is determining what factors on the denture promote infection. The research will measure attachment of Candida and certain bacterial species which live […]

Recent progress in the development of computer algorithms for detecting pathological changes in fetal heart rate (FHR) variability (fHRV) and electroencephalogram (EEG) points to a potentially groundbreaking technology for detecting fetal acidemia and inflammation during labour. Using FHR and EEG as a diagnostic tool is an attractive option because they can be acquired noninvasively. Despite […]

Soil nutrients are integral to plant growth and development, and affect the quality of grapes and wines. Soil nutrients are highly variable within and among vineyards, which leads to nutrient deficiencies or excesses and differences in vine growth and grape quality, even within vineyards. The common approach to fertilization involves the application of a constant […]

The certification of food products, their authenticity and origins has become a growing priority amongst consumers and producers. The differentiation of the different Canadian maple groves necessitates the development and implementation of forensic tools to link maple syrups to their corresponding terroir. Strontium (Sr) isotopes have shown to reflect the local geological conditions of the […]

People acquire Toxoplasma gondii infection most often by one of two routes: by consuming either bradyzoite-stage parasites from infected meat, or oocyst-stage parasites from contaminated environments. It is important to be able to identify how people become infected with this parasite, for several reasons. Firstly, because this information could be important for predicting how ill […]

Organophosphorus compounds (organophosphates) cause numerous deaths globally due to pesticide poisoning or due to their alternative use as chemical weapons. Potent organophosphates, such as soman, are highly toxic inducing paralysis, seizures, respiratory failure and death. Exposure to sub-lethal soman doses results in immediate convulsive seizures, leading to decreased blood flow in the brain and the […]

Cancer cells can be expanded and studied alone outside of the body in two-dimensional plastic dishes. These simplistic conditions lack the genetic variation and complex signals found in human tumours that tell cancer cells to grow uncontrollably and spread throughout the body. To effectively identify the signals that fuel breast cancer spread and develop clinical […]