Women are disproportionately affected by neuro-degenerative disorders compared to men. For years, research has attempted to identify why this phenomenon occurs. The answer may be found in the gut. The intestinal tract contains millions of bacteria that are colonized from birth; These bacteria are essential for keeping the brain and immune system healthy. Changes in […]

To treat infant and toddler patients, a range of over-sized valves are currently used to replace their malfunctioning heart valves. It is well understood that larger valves are not appropriate given the smaller size of children’s hearts, leading to surgical complications and patient prosthesis mismatch. Here we proposed a unique design of our MHV that […]

This proposed rural community sustainability research program at the Rural Development Institute (RDI) aims to collectively address and support rural issues through research. The main themes surround sustainable economic development and diversification, climate resiliency, environmental protection, and sustainable community indicators for development and prosperity. Economic development and diversification will entail collaboration between different scales of […]

In our experiments with semiconductor microstructures, such as those used for the fabrication of light emitting diodes (LED), our team has discovered that popular LED devices could also be used for the detection of micro-organisms that come in contact with the device. As a result of our almost 5 years of research, we have demonstrated […]

Over the past few decades, mental disorders (e.g., depressive and anxiety) have become a significant medical burden for people of all ages. According to the survey performed by the World Health Organization (WHO), at least one out of ten people in the world suffers from mental health diseases (i.e., mental disorders, neurological disorders and addition). […]

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women worldwide. Estrogen, a sex hormone in women plays a key role in the proliferation of cancer cells especially in post-menopausal women. Selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs) like tamoxifen and raloxifene are the most efficient drugs for treatment of breast cancer. These drugs bind to estrogen receptors […]

Querying databases without a layer of privacy protection might lead to serious privacy issues. Such issues include access patterns and communication volume patterns. By combining the state-of-the-art privacy standard (differential privacy) and encryption in provides resilience to a host of attacks on remote databases, including data reconstruction attacks. However, there is still research work needed […]

In the proposed project, we will develop a key piece of technology that will significantly improve interactive simulations of scenarios involving complex multi-body contact. For instance, the simUlation of human or robotic hand grasping of an object involves complicated chains of compliant joints combined with distributed contacts. Multi-legged robots and vehicles in general are similar. […]

There are 2.6 million Canadians with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). COPD is a disease characterized by progressive loss of lung function that leads to shortness of breath, poor quality of life, reduced productivity, emergency visits, hospitalizations and mortality. The World Health Organization estimates that COPD will be the 3rd leading cause of death worldwide […]

Invasive species represent a major threat to global biodiversity, and are projected to increase in impact as globalization promotes the continued introduction of novel species. Proactive research that investigates the ecological, social, and economic threat of novel species prior to or early in their establishment is therefore critical to effective conservation planning. For our research […]

Canadian local governments are seeking new strategies to deliver their core services in more financially and environmentally sustainable ways, including turning to infrastructure asset management as a key tool to manage infrastructure. Municipalities are increasingly recognizing that natural assets such as aquifers, forests, streams and foreshores can provide equivalent or better services to many engineered […]

Sustainable public transfer systems are getting a lot of attention, and many organizations are transforming their fleets into systems that rely on alternative fuels; the Electric Vehicle (EV) being most popular. The environmental, geopolitical and financial advantages of EV vehicles are well studied; however, security of these systems is not given full attention. The most […]