There are many ways for scientists to study lung diseases.  One way that scientists try to understand lung disease is by growing and examining lung cells in the lab.  While most cells are grown submerged in special liquid that provides the cells with nutrients, a more sophisticated model is to grow cells in an air […]

Muscle wasting is a common complication of many diseases such as cancer, chronic heart and lung disease and results in weakness, impaired quality of life and shortened survival. There are no drugs for the treatment of muscle wasting. We have identified a gene, USP19, in the ubiquitin pathway which is the major pathway of protein […]

Life on the planet has evolved in constant presence of radiation, some of which comes from space, and some of which comes from natural sources in the Earth. This natural background radiation (NBR) is a normal component of biological life. One way we can study the role of NBR in life is to see what […]

Cannabis has been known to treat ailments for thousands of years, including conditions such as pain, cancer, arthritis, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis (MS) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Despite an increase in research dedicated to molecular and behavioural effects of cannabinoids, there has been no direct evidence to elucidate the effect of cannabis on pain-related areas […]

The University of Toronto’s Translational Research Program (TRP) is a graduate program that developed the Co-Translational Framework (CTF) to systematically mobilize research towards innovations to improve health outcomes. The Translational Research for Innovation initiative is the research mechanism to help validate the CTF to facilitate meaningful collaboration between industry and academia. Using the CTF, the […]

Degenerative brain diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease remain incurable despite intense research over decades. Progranulin, a protein that was identified and characterized in our laboratories and it has been shown to inhibit the development of Parkinson’s-like and Alzheimer’s-like symptoms in experimental models in mice by the partner organization Neurodyn. We believe that […]

Like many LGBT+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) community organizations, Reelout Arts Project Inc. provides resources to people who experience social or geographic isolation – particularly through their annual film festival and community film library. For these resources to reach broad audiences, however, they must be able to connect with those who are searching for relevant […]

Currently no regenerative therapy exists for spinal cord injury. This project aims to optimize and generate the ideal cell type for stem cells to be used to treat cervical spinal cord injury. It aims to do so by testing the transplantation potential of different derivatives of the cells responsible for formation of neurons and other […]

We are proposing an investigation of techniques and technologies to support media-enhanced group performances that integrate different performative art forms (dance, theatre, clown, voice, choral) with responsive mixed reality technologies and public data sets. We will work with a group of young performers (13-17 years old) and a local Vancouver choreographer to deeply investigate, with […]

Osteoarthritis is a progressive joint disease that causes pain and stiffness, resulting in a decrease in quality of life for patients. Treatment include intra-articular administration of crystalline corticosteroids or hyaluronate. Intra-articular corticosteroids, due to the large doses required, short residence time in the joint, and crystalline structure, are associated with cartilage damage and a short […]

Patients with low kidney function need to take certain medications at a lower dose because their kidneys cannot filter the medication as well from the body. Taking medications at a high dose may be harmful to a patient and lead sometimes to death. The aim of my research is to help reduce medication errors in […]

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a common illness that affects millions of Canadians, yet there are no effective therapies to treat it. Genes play a role in COPD development, and our proposal aims at identifying those genes in lung tissue that cause the disease. The Providence Airway Centre is very committed at helping COPD […]