III Newsletter – July 2013

Message from the Scientific Director, Dr. Marc Ouellette

It is a pleasure to reach you in first days of summe of 2013.

I hope that you will be able to take some time off during the summer.

The Institute has been busy on a number of fronts. We have presented our new Strategic Plan at several national meetings and universities, and the feedback that we received has been incorporated into the last version of the plan. We wish to thank all the Canadian researchers and stakeholders who took the time to comment.

CIHR-III has been involved in a number of activities that linked to recent funding opportunities or that may lead to new funding initiatives. One recently funded initiative is the Canadian National Transplant Research Program (see page 4). We co-organized several meetings on antimicrobial resistance and on vaccines, both to have a better understanding of ongoing research activities and to analyze potential funding gaps. Finally, the Institute was a co-lead on a consensus workshop on Environments and Health; a research area that has the potential to become a new Roadmap Signature Initiative at CIHR.

The Institute has a long tradition of convening a New Investigator Forum to train the next generation of researchers. The 5th forum was held recently at Lac Delage, near Quebec City (see page 2) and feedback from the participants suggest that this event will continue to be a high priority in the years to come.

I wish you all a productive period, and please do not hesitate to contact us if you require further information.

Have a pleasant summer,

Marc Ouellette

International Meeting on Antimicrobial Resistance

III lead an international meeting on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) last February in London (UK) at Canada House.

Photo: Dr. The meeting gathered experts on AMR from Canada, UK, and Europe. Left: Nigel Silman, Health Protection Agengy (UK), and Judith Bray, III Assistant Director.

New Investigator Forum

The 5th New Investigator Forum took place May 31st-June 2nd, 2013 in Lac Delage, Québec. Set in an enchanting site, the forum welcomed 64 early-career investigators from all CIHR research themes. Over the course of the weekend, they benefit from expert advice provided to them in a number of areas, by experienced researchers.

Several topics were addressed including: reform of the open competitions, grantsmanship, peer review committees, ethics, lab management, non-traditional funding, the CIHR Proof of Principle program, and collaborations with industry.

The Bhagirath Singh Early Career Awards in Infection and Immunity for 2011 and 2012 were presented during the forum. The recipients were Dr. Tara Moriarty (University of Toronto), and Dr. Simon Rousseau (McGill University). Both awardees were ranked first amongst new investigators in the open competitions of 2011 and 2012. Dr. Moriarty’s research is focused on Lyme disease (for additional information, please see the article on Dr. Moriarty in the November 2012 issue). Her project is entitled “Mechanisms of Vascular Dissemination in the Lyme Disease Spirochete”. Dr. Simon Rousseau works on cystic fibrosis (see his profile below). The title of his grant application is “Role of epithelium-derived IL-33 in driving lung inflammation in Cystic Fibrosis patients”. Congratulations to the winners!

The Bhagirath Singh Early Career Award in Infection and Immunity 2012 Recipient

Dr. Simon Rousseau obtained his Ph.D. in cellular and molecular biology in 2000 from Université Laval in Québec City. During his Ph.D. he studied the intracellular signaling pathways activated by the Vascular Endothelial Growth factor (VEGF) leading to endothelial cell migration, under the supervision of Professor Jacques Huot. He then joined the group of Professor Sir Philip Cohen at the MRC Protein Phosphorylation Unit in Dundee, Scotland, a world renowned scientific unit in the field of signal transduction. Funded by two consecutive fellowship awards from the CIHR, Dr. Rousseau investigated the signaling pathways involved in pro-inflammatory cytokine production by macrophages. In January 2008, he was recruited as an assistant professor at McGill University and joined the Meakins-Christie Laboratories as a research director to investigate signal transduction mechanisms driving pulmonary inflammation. A major focus of his recent work has been host-pathogen interactions in Cystic Fibrosis lungs. Since 2012, he has led the strategic grouping on Cystic Fibrosis of the Québec Respiratory Health Network. He received the 2010-2011 Robbie Promising New Research Award from Cystic Fibrosis Canada. His research is currently funded by NSERC, Cystic Fibrosis Canada and CIHR and he is a Chercheur Boursier Junior 2 of the FRQS. To date his work focused on the role of Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases (MAPKs) in orchestrating cellular functions has resulted in more than 30 manuscripts that have been cited over 2500 times.

Scientific Meetings of Interest

14th International TNF Conference – Tumor Necrosis Factor 2013– July 7-10, 2013, Quebec City, QC.

9th International Retroviral Nucleocapsid Protein and Assembly Symposium – August 25-28, 2013, Montreal, QC.

21st Cochrane Colloquium– September 19-23, 2013, Quebec City, QC.

2013 OHTN (Ontario HIV Treatment Network) Research Conference – November 17-19, 2013.

Funding Opportunities

Operating Grant – Fall 2013 Priority Announcement (Bridge Funding)
Registration deadline: 2013-08-15
Application deadline: 2013-09-16
Funding Start Date: 2014-04-01

Team Grant : Health Challenges in Chronic Inflammation Initiative – Phase 2: application
Application deadline: 2013-10-15
Funding start date: 2014-04-01

There will be another funding opportunity launch on July 9, 2013 which will include:

• Dissemination Events: Fall 2013 Priority Announcement;
• Planning Grants: Fall 2013 Priority Announcement

The following HIV/AIDS Funding Opportunities will be launched later in the Summer 2013:

• Operating Grants: HIV/AIDS Community-Based Research
• CIHR Centres for HIV/AIDS Population Health and Health Services Research Program
  
  • CIHR Clinical Trials Network in HIV/AIDS directed grant program

Update on the Signature Initiative on Inflammation and Chronic Disease

The Roadmap Signature Initiative on Inflammation and Chronic Disease launched its first funding opportunity in July 2012. The Team Grant: Health Challenges in Chronic Inflammation Initiative created a lot of interest and dozens of Letters of Intent (LOI) were received. Following relevance and peer reviews, 27 LOI applicants received an invitation to submit a complete application by the deadline of October 15, 2013. The list of invited projects is available here. Congratulations to those who were selected!

Congratulations to funding recipients

III would like to congratulate the following researchers for their success in securing funding from III Priority Announcements

Dissemination activities (Fall 2012)

• John Bergeron, McGill University, The Multi-tasking Endoplasmic Reticulum in Health and Disease.
• Jonathan L. Bramson, McMaster University, Canadian Cancer Immunotherapy Consortium Symposium 2013.
• Claire M. Brown, McGill University, Biotechnologies to Shed Light on Disease.
• Canadian Society for Immunology, Symposium: Immunobiology of Dendritic cells at the intersect between tolerance and immunity.
• Jonathan C. Choy, Simon-Fraser University, ImmunoVancouver 2013.
• Andrée-Anne Thibeault-Hudon, Congrès Armand-Frappier 2013
• Fawziah Marra, University of British-Columbia, Community-Associated Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (CA-MRSA) Infections: From Knowledge to Action.
• Andrew M. Morris, Mount Sinai Hospital (Toronto), Early Results and Lessons Learned from Ontario’s Rollout of Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs.

Dissemination activities (Winter 2013)

• Melissa Parker, McMaster University, Recognizing World Sepsis Day: An Opportunity to Foster Collaboration and Disseminate Knowledge.

Planning grants (Fall 2012)

• Trevor A. Hart, Ryerson University, National Collaboration in HIV/AIDS Prevention for HIV negative Men Who Have Sex With Men
• Kevin M. Keough, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Prion 2013.

Planning grants (Winter 2013)

• Alan T. Li, Ontario HIV Treatment Network, Supporting PHA service providers at the individual, organizational, and systemic levels.

Transplantation Research Initiative

The Institute of Infection and Immunity is proud to announce the outcome of its strategic research initiative on transplantation.

Solid organ transplantation is the preferred treatment for end-stage organ failure, and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is an established therapy for many conditions and can be a cure for certain cancers. However, challenges remain in meeting the increasing demand for organs, cells and tissues and in achieving long-term graft survival accompanied by a good quality of life for transplant patients. To address the critical gaps and barriers that prevent transplantation from being truly effective III, in consultation with partners and experts in the transplantation field, launched a Request for Applications in 2012. On April 22, 2013, at the Ottawa Hospital General Campus, the Honorable Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of Health announced the funding of the Canadian National Transplant Research Program (CNTRP).

Ministerial announcement of the CNTRP on April 22, 2013 at the Ottawa Hospital General Campus

Led by Dr. Lori West at the University of Alberta, the CNTRP will be supported over the next five years by III and partners for a total financial investment of $13.85M, of which $11.25M will be provided by CIHR through III; the Institute of Cancer Research; Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health; the Institute of Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes; the Institute of Gender and Health; and the CIHR Ethics Office. External funding partners include: Canadian Blood Services; Canadian Liver Foundation; Cystic Fibrosis Canada; Fonds de recherche du Québec – Santé; Genome British Columbia; and the Kidney Foundation of Canada. The CNTRP will bring together over 105 investigators across 9 provinces to transform the field of transplantation by increasing the number of available organs, improving the quality and viability of donated organs and grafts, and enhancing long-term survival and quality of life of transplant patients. The CNTRP will be the first program in the world to unite and integrate the solid organ transplant, bone marrow transplant, and the donation and critical care research communities together in a groundbreaking national research endeavour.

Consultation on Human Pathogens and Toxins Act

The Human Pathogens and Toxins Act (HPTA) was passed in 2009 to address concerns regarding the absence of comprehensive nationally consistent controls for non-imported human pathogens and toxins as well as the absence of nationally consistent safety requirements. The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) is charged with enforcing the Act and developing a program and regulatory framework. On June 23, 2009, a suite of obligations and prohibitions (and their related penalties) came into force. The next stage of implementing the HPTA and achieving policy objectives is the development of a program and regulatory framework.

To help inform this process, cross-Canada consultations are being undertaken by PHAC and will focus on the following key elements:

• Licences: what specific procedures will be required for the different risk groups of human pathogens, or toxins
• Security screening: for whom and for which Risk Group 3 and Risk Group 4 human pathogens and toxins
• Inventories: what level of detail and content would be required for which human pathogens and toxins
• Laboratory Incidents: reporting on laboratory acquired infections and other incidents involving human pathogens and toxins
• Biological Safety Officers: what specific qualifications and training will be required, and what will be their duties and functions.

World Hepatitis Day – July 28th

July 28th 2013 marks the 6th World Hepatitis Day, begun by the World Hepatitis Alliance and in partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO). This is an annual event that provides international focus for patient groups and people living with hepatitis B and C. It allows interested groups to raise awareness and influence real change in disease prevention and access to testing and treatment.

The two themes for World Hepatitis Day 2013 are:

1. This is hepatitis. Know it. Confront it. The focus is the real-life impact of hepatitis infection.
2. See no evil, hear no evil, and speak no evil. Relative to other infectious diseases, hepatitis is not receiving the worldwide attention that it merits. This is a call for that to change.

To commemorate World Hepatitis Day, CIHR-III will be profiling an eminent hepatitis researcher from a Canadian institution on our website. We also encourage you to visit the page for the Hepatitis C Research Initiative, where you will find news about past and current funding opportunities.

Institute Advisory Board in Hamilton/Burlington

III held its 39th IAB in Hamilton on May 6-7, 2013. A visit to McMaster provided the opportunity to meet with the I&I research community. We had the privilege of listening to very interesting presentations by Dr. Dawn Bowdish, Dr. David Earn, and Dr. Hendrick Poinard.

It was also the last IAB for Dr. Eric Brown. Dr. Brown has been a member of the IAB since 2009, and he brought with him a unique expertise in antibiotics as well as an insight into the pharmaceutical industrial world. We thank Dr. Brown for these years of hard work and for his commitment toward the Institute.

Did you know …

Every year, III develops strategic research initiatives and partners with other CIHR Institutes on larger funding programs to respond to critical research needs in Infection and Immunity in Canada. During the last few years, III has invested in the following diverse programs and initiatives:

• Strategic Training Initiative in Health Research (STIHR);
• Regenerative Medicine and Nanomedicine Initiative (RMNI)
• Collaborative Health Research Projects (NSERC Partnered)
• Cochrane Collaboration
• Kidney Research Scientist Core Education and National Training program (KRESCENT)
• China-Canada Joint Health Research Initiative
• Institute Community Support;
• Canadian Microbiome Initiative;
• Canada-UK Partnership on Antibiotic Resistance;
• Network Catalyst Grant;
• Signature Initiative on Personalized Medicine;
• Signature Initiative on Inflammation and Chronic Disease;
• Transplantation Research Initiative;
• Planning and Dissemination grants;
• Bridge Funding;
• Catalyst Grant: Environments, Genes and Chronic Disease;
• Café Scientifique;

III Cochrane Corner

The Cochrane Collaboration is a global not-for-profit organization that produces the ‘gold standard’ in systematic reviews. Cochrane reviews explore the research evidence about the effectiveness and appropriateness of interventions for medical conditions and the delivery of health care.

Cochrane reviews are published in a searchable database, The Cochrane Library. Reviews are updated every 3-4 years as new research emerges.

III is financially supporting the Cochrane Collaboration in Canada and is proud to offer to its community a web site, the III Cochrane Corner, listing recent reviews in the field of infection and immunity. An upcoming addition to the list of reviews will present the role of probiotics in the prevention of diarrhea related to antibiotic use. The authors studied Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) infections in patients taking antibiotics and found symptoms of diarrhoea were substantially reduced when patients were also treated with probiotics. To read more on this study and its conclusion, please consult the review here.

We are inviting you to regularly consult the III Cochrane Corner to keep yourself inform of the status of medical interventions in infection and immunity.

Are you a trainee who studies sex and gender considerations in the area of infection and immunity research?

In keeping with our commitment to investing in world-class research excellence, the CIHR Institute of Gender and Health is interested in training and sustaining a strong and diverse foundation of health researchers who integrate sex and gender considerations in their work. The purpose of IGH’s Institute Community Support (ICS) Program is to build capacity for gender, sex and health research and knowledge translation among trainees, including graduate students and postdoctoral fellows across the full spectrum of health research disciplines. Whether training in the area of biomedical, clinical, health systems or population health research, all trainees who bring a substantive focus on gender, sex and health to their research are encouraged to apply.

IGH funds four types of awards through its ICS Program. Please see individual funding opportunity pages for specific eligibility requirements.

For information about the CIHR Institute of Gender and Health ICS Program, please contact: Angela Hold, Executive Assistant, by phone at 604-827-4470 or by email at angela.hold@ubc.ca.