Innovative Projects Realized

Conductive Hydrogels for neurohybrid interfaces (CHORE)

CHORE aims at the design of a biohybrid synapse between biological neuronal cells and organic neuromorphic devices made of

CHORE aims at the design of a biohybrid synapse between biological neuronal cells and organic neuromorphic devices made of a conjugated polymer-based hydrogel which is sentitive to ions released by ther biologtical counterpart. The project icludes background in material synthesis and cahraterizaion as wells micro fabrication of devices. Furthermore, the hybrid interfaces will support the understanding of the physical and electrochemical coupling between neuronal cells and neuromorphic materials at the micro and nanoscale. The expected results of the project will be the first steps towards the establishment of a soft neuromorphic interface to be potentially coupled to the neuronal system for adaptiove smart sensing and stimulation.

Shoreline oil granular particle interaction and the formation of sunken oil contamination

This project will explore the interaction between sediment and oil that has been stranded on a shoreline as a result of an oil spill. More specifically, this project will investigate how stranded oil can entrain or adsorb oil and, as a result, sink and contaminate the marine environment. The two proposed oils to be tested are diluted bitumen (dilbit) and Very Low Sulfur Fuel Oil (VLSFO). These oils have been selected because dilbit is an important growing export in Western Canada and VLSFO is a fuel common in large ships around the world. This research will help the partnering organization better understand the behaviour and fate of oil in the aquatic environment in the event of a spill and allow them and the broader oil spill response community to better prepare for such an event.

Establishment, characterization, and directed differentiation of induced pluripotent stem cells for the improved treatment and understanding of pediatric brain tumors

Brain tumors occur in one out of each four children diagnosed with cancer. Sadly, these kids are less likely to survive their disease than those diagnosed with blood cancers. The kids that do survive brain cancer often suffer from side effects of treatment, which can hamper their ability to succeed later in life. Thus, the greatest challenges facing a child with a brain tumor are: (1) the detection and successful treatment of their disease; and (2) the protection of their future quality of life. Our researchgoal is to eventually improve the lives of children diagnosed and treated for brain cancer by developing cellular technologies that enable the prediction and amelioration of toxicities to normal cells that may occur in children as a result of the aggressive treatments for brain tumors. These cellular technologies will also enable us to learn more about the biology that underlies the normal growth and development of neural stem cells, so we can better recognize and treat disorders, like cancer, that result when normal development is disrupted.

Evaluating the efficacy of a 91-day self-talk mental health self-care journal

Self-talk describes our inner monologue, or “inner voice”, that we are often conscious of. This self-talk can be important and helpful, such as when it is encouraging us, calming our fears, or giving us confidence. However, often this self-talk is negative, and can make us feel sad, upset, or worthless. There has been a recent surge in the popularity of health-promotive self-care products, or products aimed at providing individuals with “the knowledge, skills, and attitudes required to achieve and maintain good health”. However, there has not yet been a self-care journal aimed at improving positive self-talk. The purpose of this project is to evaluate the effectiveness of a 91-day self-talk journal for improving self-talk, mental health, and overall well-being. By the end of this project, Switch Research will receive a detailed report and academic manuscript prepared for peer-reviewed publication, both outlining the efficacy of their self-talk journal.

Access to Justice, Nunavut Legal Aid Internship

Nunavut Legal Aid aims to increase the access to justice in Nunavut through the reinstallation of Inuit legal traditions and restorative justice as an alternative to colonial carceral systems. This project will follow a three-phased approach to develop appropriate communication channels for each of Nunavut’s 24 communities; develop a community engagement framework; and consult with communities to determine the needs regarding access to justice. This research is significant as it does not impose colonial resources and solutions but rather provides each community the opportunity to determine resource and governance needs, to move away from a colonially imposed justice system. This research is done in the spirit of reconciliation.

Investigating AKT1-dependent pathways to regulate cellular metabolism

The serine/threonine kinase AKT1 is a key mediator of cell growth and survival processes including glucose metabolism, apoptosis, transcription, proliferation, and migration. AKT1 is activated by phosphorylation at two key regulatory sites, Threonine308 and Serine473, that are both used as clinical diagnostic markers for cancer. AKT1 also plays an important role in glucose metabolism by inhibiting glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK-3) isoforms through phosphorylation. I will investigate AKT1-dependent changes in the mammalian metabolome and glucose metabolism specifically in collaboration with the laboratory of Dr. Karsten Hiller (U. Braunschweig), I will monitor the metabolic profiles of multiple mammalian and cancer cell lines transfected with inactive AKT1 or active AKT1 with programmed phosphorylation at one or both regulatory sites. Leveraging the expertise of the Hiller lab in glucose metabolism and quantitative metabolomics, identification of metabolites and constituents of glucose metabolism that respond to differentially phosphorylated AKT1 will be carried out. Together, the data will reveal new target substrates for AKT1, and metabolites that are diagnostic for hyper-active AKT1, which hallmark of cancer that occurs in 50%human tumors.

Metabolic differences during metastasis of epithelial ovarian cancers

Epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) is a debilitating disease that has a 5-year survival rate of only 44%, making it the fifth most lethal cancer in women. A major reason for this low survival rate is the high rate of metastasis, where cells detach from the primary tumour site on the ovary and reattach at secondary locations to form additional tumours. When these cancer cells detach from the primary tumour on the ovary to metastasize, the individual cells clump together to form aggregates known as spheroids. Although the cells in these spheroids are not actively dividing, they are able to travel through the body and reattach at additional sites, where the cells again begin uncontrolled cancerous growth. Understanding the genetic pathways underlying spheroid formation and reattachment is key to metastasis prevention and development of new chemotherapies. My project aims to use a technique called metabolomics to identify potential biomarkers in EOC. This method looks at intermediate signalling molecules to predict pathway functions and will be used to investigate the mechanisms by which ovarian cancers are able to metastasize.

La bioaugmentation pour la réduction des volumes et la valorisation des boues dans les étangs aérés de traitement des eaux usées.

Le partenaire de ce projet, Nordikeau, est souvent approché par ses clients et partenaires qui souhaitent avoir une expertise et des recommandations en lien avec les sollicitations et offres de service qu’elles reçoivent de la part de compagnies de biotechnologie pour des mandats de bioaugmentation visant principalement le traitement des eaux usées et la réduction des volumes de boues dans les étangs aérés. Au terme du projet, l’entreprise pourra dégager des recommandations claires et réalistes afin de guider ses clients existants et nouveaux dans leurs prises de décisions quant aux pratiques de bioaugmentation.
Pour y arriver, ce projet vise l’utilisation, à des fins de bioaugmentation de stations de traitement des eaux usées, de microorganismes permettant un traitement efficace des eaux usées, une génération plus faible des volumes de boues et la production concomitante de biopesticides. Ce projet a pour objectif principal de déterminer les capacités souches bactériennes commerciales et appartenant à des collections de microorganismes de traiter les eaux usées afin de respecter les objectifs environnementaux de rejets, de minimiser la quantité de boues produites et de maximiser la production de biopesticides, et ce, dans des conditions contrôlées de laboratoire. Ce projet sera réalisé en trois phases.

Bioréparation des fissures du béton – Amélioration de la robustesse et validation sur des ouvrages en service

La bioréparation d’une fissure d’un béton a pour but de la colmater pour empêcher le passage de l’eau. Actuellement, deux types d’ouvrages sont principalement ciblés : les ouvrages hydrauliques et les voutes des tunnels en béton. Le colmatage est accompli en injectant, dans la fissure, un liquide nutritif contenant des bactéries. Ces bactéries produisent du carbonate de calcium (CaCO3). Le milieu liquide nutritif injecté contient du carbone et du calcium métabolisables qui sont les matières premières pour produire le carbonate de calcium. Le principal travail des bactéries est de transformer ce milieu nutritif en carbonate de calcium. Le projet de postdoctorat a pour but de perfectionner la technique de bioréparation (augmentation de la robustesse) par l’amélioration de la performance des bactéries, par l’optimisation des méthodes d’injection et par des essais de validation sur des ouvrages réels.

Brain wave investigation of the neural monitoring measurement stability

Brain wave technologies allow researchers and clinicians to monitor the brain at work. Our team has developed a new technology that uses electroencephalography (EEG) to provide an online record of different brain functions in a very short period of time. The brain waves recorded by this technology may change normally as time passes and we first need to understand how this happens in a healthy individual. Thus, it is the purpose of this project to determine how the brain responses elicited by our technology change over time in order to determine which brain wave changes are within normal limits. Once we know the normal limits of brain wave changes for this technology, we can monitor individuals with brain injuries in order to see how the injury affects their brain waves (e.g., concussion). The ability to monitor the changes in brain function after injury will be critical in guiding the best treatment for recovery.

An Application of Machine Learning to Mortgage Prepayment Modeling

The business partner is interested in expanding its understanding of prepayment. Specifically the goal is to predict prepayment risk for mortgages as a function of mortgagors’ characteristics (including data from previous interactions with the bank), and the local economy. In recent years, with the improvement in efficient computing and data storage, the relying on a wide range of mortgagors’ characteristics to predict prepayment risk has become more prevalent in the industry. Given the large amount of data collected by financial institutions for mortgages, extracting information that can be used to predict prepayments requires appropriate statistical techniques to perform big-data analysis

Guide to Establishing an Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas (IPCA) Innovation Centre

This project aims to document the process that was undertaken to establish the first Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area (IPCA) Innovation Centre. This documentation will serve as a roadmap and assist in the establishment of future IPCA innovation centres across Canada and internationally. The establishment of IPCAs are essential if Canada hopes to protect biodiversity and ultimately achieve Target 1. Innovation Centres play a key role in providing Indigenous peoples with the support and resources needed to ensure the successful establishment, governance, and management of these areas. The proposed project will assist the partner organization in the development of future IPCA Innovation Centres because it will summarize the steps taken and lessons learnt from establishing the first IPCA Innovation Centre, thus making the process more efficient for future projects.