Innovative Projects Realized

Determining the mechanisms implicated in the development of preeclampsia

Preeclampsia is a pregnancy-associated disease where women develop high blood pressure and protein in their urine. It is the leading cause of mother and foetus mortality and morbidity. However, we have yet to identify its specific cause as well as methods for early detection and prevention. Women who have high-blood pressure are more at risk of developing preeclampsia. We have characterized a mouse model which has the same symptoms as women who suffer from high blood pressure and go on to develop preeclampsia when they become pregnant. In addition, our recent data suggests a new molecule that could be implicated in this disease. As such, we wish to further investigate these mechanisms and determine if it may be used as a therapeutic target using our animal model. This would have important clinical impact as there is no effective treatment for this disease a part from early delivery.

Evaluating Skill Transfer Between Canadian and Global South Midwifery Associations

The Canadian Association of Midwives (CAM) implements global programs in Africa and the Caribbean, building midwives’ technical skills and strengthening the capacity of midwifery professional associations in our partner countries. CAM seeks two researchers first to assess current best practices in skills and knowledge transfer activities (particularly the transfer of healthcare skills) and civil society strengthening, and second, to develop tools to monitor and evaluate the efficacy of CAM’s current project implementation activities in the domains of midwifery skills and knowledge transfer and in association-strengthening.

The Safety, Efficacy, and Tolerability of Microbial Ecosystem Therapeutic-2 in People with Major Depression and/or Generalized Anxiety Disorder

The gut-brain axis is being heavily explored in current neuropsychiatric research. Evidence has shown considerable individual variability in bacterial content of the gut microbiota, which is hypothesized to influence brain function. Preclinical and clinical research examining this relationship suggests that fecal microbiota transplant (FMT) may aid in improving depression and anxiety symptoms by recolonizing the gastrointestinal tract with healthy bacteria. The objective of this study is to examine the effects of a microbial therapeutic composed of various strains of gut bacteria from a healthy donor as an alternative to FMT on mood and anxiety symptoms. Treatment-naïve adults diagnosed with major depressive disorder or generalized anxiety disorder will orally consume once daily an encapsulated microbial therapeutic, containing various strains of bacteria purified and lab-grown from a single healthy donor stool, for 8 weeks. TO BE CONT’D

Adapting Kinematic Profiles to Apraxia Patients

We want to better understand the problems that arise from apraxia, a movement

disorder that may result after stroke. These individuals experience difficulty in producing

skilled or learned movements, and have difficulties doing activities of daily living. As a

result we want to record their movements using portable sensors to have more objective

measures of what is apraxia by asking them to participate in a battery of tests. This will

help us develop better ways of assessing apraxia and give us more data on what

troubles arise in their everyday life. This data can then be shared with numerous health

care providers, as well as the patients, which may aid in their recovery.

Analyzing neuroprotective properties of Lactobacillus rhamnosus HA114 in models of age-dependent neurodegeneration

Our aging population is burdened by decreased health and an increased risk of disease, including for many age-dependent neurodegenerative disorders like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). There are no cures for these conditions, and according to the United Nations the number of people affected may double by 2040. Using simple genetic models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis we have discovered a probiotic bacteria that delays disease onset, and this may be a new therapeutic approach for patients. We wish to test this probiotic bacteria in a mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease which, if protective, will set the stage for clinical studies.

Vers la production de protéines animales durables : optimisation de l’utilisation de l’azote alimentaire chez le porc et le poulet

L’objectif général de ce projet est de réduire les apports en protéine brute (PB) en optimisant son utilisation par les animaux, en ajustant, aussi précisément que possible, les apports aux besoins des animaux afin d’éviter une réduction des performances lors de la baisse de PB. Cela permettra de réduire les rejets d’azote, mais pourrait également améliorer la santé des animaux et favoriser la réduction de l’utilisation d’antibiotiques et donc la durabilité de ces productions. Deux objectifs seront développés: 1) étudier l’effet de la baisse de protéines chez les poulets en croissance en termes de performances et de santé et 2) étudier la réponse des porcelets et des porcs en croissance à la valine en fonction des autres acides aminés à chaîne ramifiée par méta-analyse et essai in vivo. La réalisation de ces objectifs se fera par la formation de deux étudiants postdoctoraux et d’un étudiant à la maîtrise.

Traçage isotopique des flux d’eau et d’azote en contexte minier

L’industrie minière présente un secteur économique très important au Canada, cependant, les différentes opérations dans la mine entrainent des impacts d’une ampleur importante sur l’environnement. Parmi les étapes de l’activité minière est le sautage en utilisant des dynamites pour excaver et extraire le minerai du gisement. Certains ne réagissent pas complétement et libèrent des éléments azotés qui se retrouvent à l’effluent final sous forme d’azote ammoniacal (qui est toxique pour la vie aquatique). D’autre source des composés azotés est des sous-produits de destruction des cyanures (utilisés pour séparer l’or de sa gangue). Le présent projet vise à tracer la provenance des composés azotés dans les différents composés de la mine pour optimiser les procédés de traitement une meilleure gestion des eaux.

Traitement de l’azote ammoniacal par ozonation et de la salinité résiduelle par filtration membranaire sur des effluents miniers réels par des essais en écoulement continu

Les sites miniers en exploitation génèrent de grands volumes d’eaux contaminées. Si es eaux se déversent dans sans traitement adéquat elles peuvent devenir la source de nombreux problèmes environnementaux. La mise en place de procédées d’enlèvement économiquement acceptable et respectant les normes de rejet visant à préserver les milieux récepteurs, représentent l’un des plus importants défis environnementaux auxquels l’industrie minière doit faire face. Certaines substances sont la cible de recommandations ministérielles destinées à renforce leur surveillance et leur contrôle dans les effluents miniers à savoir : l’azote ammoniacal, sources de toxicité aquatique et la salinité affectant également les organismes d’eau douce et causant aussi des dommages aux infrastructures d’exploitation.TO BE CONT’D

Relative Reachability in Transportation Networks

We propose to explore the notion of relative reachability in transportation networks. Relative reachability refers to the determination of which transportation mode is more efficient to reach a given location in a city, e.g., using private vehicles vs. public transit. Within this context, an obvious and admittedly straightforward question (query) is to find the relative reachability of a particular destination. A more interesting and challenging problem though is to compute a city’s relative reachability, which is the main goal of this project. More specifically, given main points of interest such as hospitals, exchange transit centers or schools, our goal is to find their average relative reachability from different locations within a city. The results produced by such query can be explored to answer useful questions within the context of urban planning. TO BE CONT’D

Investigating Early Land Plant Cuticular Wax Biosynthesis

The plant cuticle is an essential extracellular structure required for plant survival on land. It forms a seal over the aerial plant surfaces providing protection against biotic and abiotic stress. It controls water exchange between the plant and its environment and reduces the risk of infection and herbivory. Cuticle structure, composition and biosynthesis are well studied in flowering plants, but this is not the case in early land plants, such as the moss Physcomitrella. patens. The proposed research will establish the role of important wax biosynthetic enzymes of P. patens and shed light on whether their function is conserved between the early land plant representative P. patens and the flowering plant Arabidopsis thaliana. This work will enhance our overall understanding of cuticular wax biosynthesis and identify key genes for genetic engineering of wax composition and wax load to improve tolerance of crop plants to adverse growth conditions.

Network optimization model for food distribution after a natural disaster in Canada

Canada is susceptible to different hazards associated with natural disasters. On one hand, the East Coast is exposed to hurricanes and its effects, and on the other hand, the West Coast is threatned by earthquakes and its chain consequences such as tsunamis. In such circumstances, it is critical to arrange delivery of emergency supplies to affected communities. The purpose of this project is to find a solution to a network-based optimization model that can help decision-makers during the emergency response phase. The model considers different modes of transportation that are used to distribute food to impacted areas. Considering that a linear programming model requires a high computational effort, it is necessary to find a near-optimal solution using an alternative method in order to have results within a reasonable time. This alternative method is the main outcome of this project and combines heuristics and meta-heuristics. TO BE CONT’D

Investigation of Cytokine Signaling in the Immune System

We combine quantitative experimental measurements of immune cells with mathematical models to systematically study the body’s anti-viral response. In particular, we are looking at how immune cells communicate with each other to coordinate an immune response. We want to understand how biochemical reactions in the cell can be used to process the complicated pattern of signals which orchestrate immune activity. Our approach is to search for signatures in the cascade of events which occur inside a cell after a signal is received. We use high-throughput experimental techniques to track these event over time, and mathematical models to identify signatures which the cell can use to respond appropriately during an infection. Our research provides a framework for studying cellular signal processing and engineering effective immune therapies.