The Trudeau government’s decision last month to name a federal science adviser should come as welcome news to anyone who supports principles like evidence-informed policy-making and broader initiatives that support Canada’s research and innovation sectors. The appointment of Dr. Mona Nemer, a distinguished molecular geneticist, comes at a time when Ottawa is preparing to invest $950 million in a network…
Clinical trials have demonstrated that immediate initiation of antiretroviral therapy (ART) reduces AIDS-related morbidity and mortality. We tested the hypothesis that initiating ART ≤30 days after HIV diagnosis would be associated with reduced mortality among people living with HIV (PLWH) with CD4 counts >500 cells/mm3. METHODS: PLWH enrolled in the Chinese National Free ART Program between January 2012 and June…
World Pneumonia Day is November 12, 2017. Established in 2009, World Pneumonia Dayaims to raise awareness of the impact that the illness has around the world. Globally, pneumonia is the leading infectious killer of children under the age of five and kills an estimated one million kids each year. Despite being easy to prevent and treat with antibiotics, oxygen and fluids,…
The state of North Carolina is home for Lumbee Native Americans. Approximately 1 in 5000 people of this population are affected by a severe disorder known as 'Native American Myopathy'. Patients have severe muscle weakness and developmental defects. The root cause is a mutation in a gene known as 'STAC3'. In this publication we studied the role of this protein and mapped the location of the genetic mutation on its 3D structure...
It’s one of the most exciting, and controversial, areas of health science today: new technology that can alter the genetic content of cells, potentially preventing inherited disease — or creating genetically enhanced humans. But Canada is among the few countries in the world where working with the CRISPR gene-editing system on cells whose DNA can be passed down to future…
The Canadian scientific community gathered in Ottawa this week to engage in a national dialogue on science, technology and innovation policy at the annual Canadian Science Policy Conference. Just prior to the Keynote Address at this event by the Honourable Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science, Merck Canada Inc. and CDRD – The Centre for Drug Research and Development, announced the…
Bladder cancer is the ninth most common cancer globally, and is the most expensive to treat. On diagnosis, approximately 75% of bladder cancers are non-muscle-invasive, 50% of which are low grade, while 25% are muscle-invasive, which tend to be high grade. The TCGA cohort consisted of muscle-invasive tumours...
Some postdoctoral researchers at public universities in the United States apparently work for fast-food wages whereas others make more than US$100,000 a year, an analysis of postdoc pay has revealed. The salary data, which a science-advocacy group released on 1 November after a year-long investigation, are incomplete and — in some cases — appear to be incorrect. Some researchers are listed as…
Genome BC is pleased to announce a staged investment of $750,000 into CuePath Innovation (CuePath) through its Industry Innovation (I²) Program. CuePath is developing a connectivity platform for patients, their family members and professional caregivers, built around a novel form of smart medication packaging. By combining smart blister packs, cloud analytics and mobile applications, CuePath is increasing prescription adherence and…
Applications are now open for MSFHR’s 2018 Scholar competition. The letter of intent deadline is December 1, 2017, with full applications due February 2, 2018. Since 2001, the MSFHR Scholar Program has supported more than 400 early-career health researchers as they establish independent research careers, build leading health research programs and train junior scientists. Each award provides salary support for up…
