Pressure ulcers (PUs) are a major health problem in people with spinal cord injuries (SCIs). PUs increase hospital admissions, with 25% of SCI treatment cost linked to PU management. Currently, treatment is limited and new therapeutic options are required. Wound fluid from PUs is invaluable for researchers as it allows a detailed study of the […]

Motility is an essential characteristic of many aquatic and terrestrial animals. In vertebrates, self-contained and autonomous neuronal networks in the spinal cord can produce patterned and rhythmic locomotor outputs in the absence of higher brain centres and sensory inputs. Spinal locomotor networks comprised of interneurons differentially control the outputs of respective motoneuron subtypes that exclusively […]

Recent evidence shows there is extensive and direct communication between the brain and gastrointestinal tract, where nutrients are absorbed, and that intestinal microbiota have a role in healthy brain function. This study aims to look at the effects of probiotics, live bacteria that inhabit the gut and can help improve your health, on the mood, […]

Proteins can exist in two forms: left-handed (L) or right-handed (D); however, for indeterminate reasons life on this planet only uses the L-form. When studied in more detail, both protein forms possess identical physiochemical and biological properties. Yet, D-proteins show minimal proteolytic degradation and fail to elicit immune responses in animals, due to their unnatural […]

The Negro and Solimoes rivers in the Amazon Basin house an incredible diversity of fish, up to 3000 species, and are critical to the economies and cultures of the communities through which they run. The waters of the Rio Negro are clear and black, with a high concentration of dissolved organic material but almost no […]

Complexity of human brain is limiting our understanding about the mechanisms that dominate its spontaneous activity. An understanding about the architecture of the axonal fibers in the brain and how they support the functions is crucial when it comes to dealing with brain injuries. A mathematical model, was investigated to gain an understanding about the […]

Irrigated cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) in arid areas of China receive very high nitrogen inputs of up to 240 kg/ha-1. The crop also receives large inputs of irrigation water mostly under drip irrigation system. This system will be used to determine the contribution of processes of nitrification and denitrification (microbial processes involved in the production of […]

Understanding the genes involved in variation of complex traits is termed genomics. Genomics can provide new tools that can be used to easily and accurately select animals for economically important traits. This exercise will generate large numbers of DNA markers that can be used to find the genes that explain variation in such traits. These […]

The Bicknell’s thrush (Cathurs bicknelli) is a rare songbird with the most restrictive breeding range in North America. The Bicknell’s thrush spends its summer months breeding in high elevation, stunted growth forests – a habitat that the species specializes in. In New Brunswick, there has been a documented population decline of 11.5% per year since […]

Microplastic pollution is an emerging threat to marine environments. Microplastics (small plastic polymers

Rhodnius prolixus is a hemathophagous insect that has served for decades as a model to study insect physiology. Rhodnius prolixus is also a major vector of Trypanosoma cruzi, the etiological agent of Chagas disease that kills 45,000 people annually and affects over 8 million people worldwide. The genome of R. prolixus contains ~15,500 predicted protein-coding […]

Chronic spinal cord injury (SCI) is a debilitating disease with enormous economic and personal impact. To date there is no approved treatment that can repair the severed nerves found in SCI. The research project entails translational development of an early stage experimental protein drug candidate that has shown remarkable ability to trigger dormant human stem […]