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Influence of physical parameters Page 8
The Canadian Light Source
A Leading Light for Macromolecular Crystallography Page 12 MArCh 2010 volume 14, number 2
R&D News ......................... 1 Pharma Notes.................... 6 Appointments .................... 7 New Products .................. 14 Calendar .......................... 17 Career Spotlight............... 18
new STudy of wALkerTon vICTIMS LeAdS To PI-IBS BreAkThrough
A team of researchers from McGill and McMaster universities have been studying the victims of the tainted drinking water tragedy in Walkerton, ON. Their research has led the team to discover DNA variations in genes that increase the risk of developing post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome (PI-IBS). This was a unique opportunity to study the origin of the disorder, given the scale of infection and the recording of the health of Walkerton’s citizens.
PI-IBS is a functional bowel disorder that has an acute onset after an episode of gastroenteritis. “These patients suffer from chronic abdominal pain, discomfort, bloating and disturbed defecation in the absence of any detectable structural or biochemical abnormalities,” said John K. Marshall, a gastroenterologist. “After the exclusion of known organic disorders, like Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, such patients are diagnosed with PI-IBS.”
“Although the exact cause of PI-IBS remains unknown, we now know for the first time that, in addition to the environmental trigger, genetic factors are also playing a critical role in the development of this disease,” explains McGill PhD Alexandra-Chloé Villani, who led the team under the direction of principal investigators John K. Marshall (McMaster) and Denis Franchimont (formerly of McGill). Stephen Collins (McMaster) also collaborated.
Almost 10 years ago, the municipal water supply of Walkerton was contaminated with E. coli and Campylobacter jejuni, leading to a public health disaster. Seven people died and 2,300 suffered symptoms, including bloody diarhea. Of these 2,300, 36 per cent developed PI-IBS, giving the town the highest incidence of PI-IBS ever reported.
UBC to reCeive $10.3 million in fUnding for StrategiC networkS
Researchers at the University of British Columbia have received $10.3 million in funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) to lead and coordinate two Strategic Networks in machining and biomaterials technology.
Part of $56 million in grants for 11 Strategic Networks, the NSERC grants fund large-scale, multidisciplinary research projects that could significantly enhance Canada’s economy, society and environment within the next decade. “We are grateful to NSERC and the Government of Canada for their continued investment in research collaborations that will generate new and immediately applicable knowledge to some of the most pressing and intriguing technological questions of our day,” said John Hepburn, UBC vice president, Research and International. “UBC has a stellar track record of multi-disciplinary research and the addition
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of two new NSERC Strategic Networks hosted here will further enhance our capacity to contribute to research excellence in Canada.”
The NSERC Canadian Network for Research and Innovation in Machining Technology (CANRIMT) will be led by mechanical engineering professor and NSERC-P&WC Industrial Research Chair professor in Virtual Machining, Yusuf Altintas. CANRIMT aims to develop the world’s most advanced Virtual Machining Technology and a state-of-the-art five-axis mezzo milling machine.
The NSERC Biomaterials and Chemicals Strategic Network will be led by Wood Science professor John Kadla, and aims to develop technologies to better utilize lignin, one of the primary components of wood.
Feb2010.LabFocus.pdf 2/10/10 2:27:39 PM
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CLS-AIded reSeArCh CouLd LIMIT ACId run-off And Co2
Panoramic view of the CLS, overlooking the BMIT, HXMA and SXRMB beamlines. Photo: Canadian Light Source Inc. Composite map of different types of sulphur in a microbial pod (a) obtained at the ALS, along with a comparison of spectra from the various forms of sulphur compared to reference standards from the CLS (b). K. Norlund, McMaster University.
Researchers from McMaster University have found that two species of bacteria isolated from a mine tailings pond in northern Ontario limit the amount of acid produced by working together to share the sulphur in the tailings as an energy source. The researchers made the discovery using two beamlines at the Canadian Light Source (CLS) and a third at the Advanced Light Source (ALS).
The discovery is significant because it could limit the effects of acid mine drainage (AMD), a process caused when sulphur in mine tailings reacts with water and oxygen in the environment to produce sulphuric acid. It is a major environmental issue concerning lake acidification and water quality.
According to the Canadian Light Source, AMD is also implicated as a climate change culprit as the sulphuric acid dissolves carbonate minerals in the underlying rock, liberating carbon dioxide; a process known as acid rock weathering.
Kelsey Norlund a PhD student made the discovery along with her advisor Lesley Warren and synchrotron researcher Adam Hitchcock. The findings demonstrate how bacteria can modify their environment and could also lead to a rethink of the amount of atmospheric carbon produced by acid weathering that is included in global models by as much as 26 million tonnes.
The Canadian Light Source article states that the bacteria, strains of Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans and Acidiphilium spp., work together to form microscopic pods, with A. ferrooxidans on the outside and Acidiphilium on the inside. While both microbes can use elemental sulphur as an energy source, Norlund and Warren found that only A. ferrooxidans makes use of the raw sulphur, producing different chemical forms that were then metabolized by the Acidiphilium cells, producing sulphur compounds that, in turn, could be reused by A. ferrooxidans. The result: a microscopic geochemical reactor, in which each species of microbe feeds off the sulphurcontaining by-products of the other, rather than competing for the same chemical food source.
“We were able to see how these different bacteria organize the different types of sulphur,” says Norlund. “It’s a highly organized, cooperative ecological partnership. The waste products of one strain are food for the other, but they aren’t just using the leftovers – they’re actually regenerating each other’s food source.”
The cycling of sulphur compounds in this manner markedly reduces the amount of sulphur available to form sulphuric acid, dissolve carbonate rocks and release CO2. Norlund estimates that between 40 and 90 per cent less carbon is released into the atmosphere because of this cycling than has been predicted based on the sulphur chemistry alone.
weStern SCientiSt’S team Up to StUdy heart failUre
Scientists at the University of Western Ontario, in collaboration with researchers in Brazil have used a unique, genetically-modified mouse line to reveal a previously unidentified mechanism contributing to heart failure.
The research shows how the decreased release of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, a chemical messenger which slows cardiac activity, contributes to heart failure.
The study was led by Marco Prado, Robert Gros and Vania Prado of Western and Silvia Guatimosim of Brazil.
“Lots of people have studied the system that increases the heart rate and that has been the hallmark; we know there’s an increase in the sympathetic nervous system in people who have heart failure,” explains Gros, a cardiovascular researcher and assistant professor in the Departments of Physiology & Pharmacology and Medicine at Western’s Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry. “What we’re now showing with this mouse model is that even if you have a functional sympathetic nervous system, if the other system, the parasympathetic system is dysfunctional or works less optimally than normal, you still end up with a sick heart. This opens up a whole new avenue that people have missed in the past.”
Cardiac output is controlled using two opposing divisions of the autonomic nervous system: the sympathetic nervous system which boosts the heart rate and the parasympathetic system which slows it by releasing acetylcholine.
“There are other mouse and rat models of heart failure, but what we haven’t had before is a model where we specifically target this chemical messenger, acetylcholine,” says Marco Prado, a professor in the Departments of Physiology & Pharmacology and Anatomy & Cell Biology. “One striking finding in this study is that heart dysfunction in these mice could be corrected by treating the animals with an existing drug which increases acetylcholine levels. Although it requires further study, this could provide a novel opportunity for treating failing hearts.”
york openS new mUSCle health reSearCh Centre
York University has officially launched its Muscle Health Research Centre, the first of its kind in Canada. The MHRC conducts collaborative research, with scientists from the School of Kinesiology & Health Science and the Department of Biology.
“This centre is unique in that we’re zeroing in on skeletal muscle and its relationship to health, with a strong focus on what exercise can do,” said director David Hood, a professor in the School of Kinesiology & Health Science, Faculty of Health. “We’re looking for new discoveries on how exercise can benefit Canadians through adaptations in the metabolism and structure of muscle.”
“Like all research centres at York, the MHRC has an interdisciplinary mandate – that is, enabling researchers from different departments and disciplines to work together towards a common goal,” said Hood.
Scientists from the MHRC are investigating topics such as muscle metabolism, muscle development and muscle adaptations to exercise, metabolic disease, and cancer. Professor Tara Haas and colleagues in the MHRC recently identified a cell-signalling process that stimulates blood vessel growth and may help individuals with diabetes to exercise and thereby improve their health.
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nrC-IfCI And CAnMeTenergy PArTner for CLeAner energy
Maja Veljkovic, Director General, NRC-IFCI and Hassan Hamza, Director General, CanmetEnergy
A new partnership between the Department of Natural Resources Canada’s CanmetENERGY and the National Research Council Institute for Fuel Cell Innovation (NRC-IFCI) was formed through the signing of a memorandum of understanding in Devon, AB. The partnership addresses the need to reduce energy intensity and green house gasses.
“By combining our complementary expertise in the traditional and clean energy sectors we can help green oil refining processes, significantly reducing energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions” said Maja Veljkovic, NRC-IFCI director general. “This strategic partnership applies NRC’s core fuel cell capabilities to the development, demonstration and commercialization of integrated clean energy solutions.”
NRC-IFCI is already collaborating closely with CanmetENERGY with funding from NRCan’s Program of Energy Research and Development (PERD) to develop novel materials and catalysts that can improve the quality of heavy oil upgrading products, and to improve understanding of hydrocarbon chemical and thermophysical properties of the oil sand diesel fuels.
“This partnership will allow us to explore new more cost effective ways for CO2 capture through development of novel materials,” said Hassan Hamza, director general of CanmetENERGY.
CanmetENERGY conducts cuttingedge research and development on oil sands and heavy oil extraction, processing and upgrading, with an emphasis on environmental technologies. NRC-IFCI is a recognized world leader for research, development and testing of fuel cells and related clean energy technologies.
MCMASTer And fedS SIgn AgreeMenT on CAnMeT LAB
The Government of Canada has reached an agreement with McMaster University, which is related to the upcoming relocation of the CANMET Materials Technology Lab (CANMETMTL) from Ottawa to Hamilton’s McMaster Innovation Park.
CANMET–MTL is the largest research centre in Canada devoted to metals and materials fabrication, pilot-scale processing and evaluation. The lab’s scientific and technical staffs provide materials solutions for Canadian industry in the energy, transportation
Minister Raitt Unveils Design of Government of Canada Research Lab in Hamilton and metals-manufacturing sectors. McMaster University President, Peter George, said the synergies that will
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result from the relocation cannot be overstated. “The proximity of CANMET–MTL to our research community and facilities will build a critical mass of expertise that is without parallel,” he said, adding that “the collaborative research and development agreement guarantees Hamilton’s status as a world-class materials innovation centre and will help guide the next generation of research scientists.”
The relocation project includes a budget of $40 million for laboratory construction and equipment and $6 million per year for operational expenses. Construction is almost complete, and staff relocation will begin in spring 2010.
“This research agreement with McMaster University builds on Canada’s proud innovation history and is an important step in establishing a world-class capability for innovation in strategic and commercially important research areas,” said the Natural Resources Minister Christian Paradis. “It includes the development of materials required for clean energy technologies and infrastructure, a field important to help Canada reach its climate change goals. Collaborative partnerships like this one with other universities and stakeholders will help develop a cluster of expertise, spurring innovation and fostering competitiveness.”
mUn reCeiveS nearly $10 million in federal fUnding
Dr. Christopher Loomis, president and vice-chancellor pro tempore at Memorial University in St. John’s, NL, boasted that his university is poised to become the world leader in diverse research activity, ranging from medical genetics to fishing technology, thanks to a major investment from the federal government.
The recently announced $9.6 million in funding for research and development projects at the university was received by the Faculties of Medicine, Engineering and Applied Science, along with the Marine Institute under Round VII of the Atlantic Innovation Fund. C-CORE, a separately incorporated entity of Memorial also received significant funding.
“As the most successful university in Atlantic Canada in securing AIF funding, Memorial takes pride in partnering with businesses which rely on research and innovation to advance their competitiveness, productivity and access to their respective markets,” Dr. Loomis said. “This includes working closely with technology-based industries to successfully commercialize the innovations emerging from our laboratories, as well as assisting in the growth of business-led research and development in the province. The AIF has become an indispensable program in achieving these goals.”
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