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Disruptive Innovations in Genomics (DIG) Competition

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Genome Canada’s Disruptive Innovations in Genomics (DIG) competition seeks to support research projects that focus on disruptive innovations with the potential to advance the field of genomics and eventually lead to social and/or economic benefits to Canada. For the purposes of this competition, a disruptive innovation is defined as either a new genomics technology or the application of an existing technology from another field, applied to the field of genomics. These Innovations must be truly transformative in that they have the potential to either displace an existing technology, disrupt an existing market, or create a new market.

Launched on June 11, 2015, the DIG initiative exists to capture true disruptive innovation and translate it to improve human health, agriculture, and natural resources.

Funded Ontario DIG Projects

On February 4, 2019, The Honourable Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science and Sport, announced the funding recipients from Genome Canada’s Disruptive Innovations in Genomics (DIG) Phase 2 competition to improve human health, agriculture, natural resources. Ontario Genomics led five (5) of the seven (7) awarded projects – driving $4.4 million of federal funding into the province and an additional $9.5 million in investments by industry, the Ontario government and other funding partners, for a total of $13.9 million. This investment will support the development of prototypes of the disruptive innovations developed in Phase 1 of the program.

On December 09, 2016, the Government of Canada announced the investment of $9.1 million in Disruptive Innovation in Genomics to improve human health, agriculture, natural resources. Ontario Genomics led twelve (12) of the awarded early-stage feasibility (Phase 1) projects:

Ontario Genomics led two (2) of the awarded prototype development (Phase 2) projects:

SPARK Program

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The SPARK program aims to catalyzes new research by funding short duration (6-12 months) research projects performed in Ontario academic or industry institutions. SPARK projects must be focused on discrete, unique and transformative technology development relevant to genomics, with the potential to improve and develop new growth opportunities for Ontario, and produce outcomes that would enable follow-on investment for further research or development.

Funded SPARK Projects

In the 2016 SPARK Program, Ontario Genomics provided four (4) individual awards of $25,000 to projects aiming to advance microbiome research:

In the 2015 SPARK Program, Ontario Genomics provided four (4) individual awards of up to $25,000:

In the 2014 SPARK Program, Ontario Genomics provided three (3) individual awards of up to $30,000:

In the 2012 SPARK Program, Ontario Genomics provided four (4) individual awards of up to $50,000:

In the 2011 SPARK Program, Ontario Genomics provided four (4) individual awards of up to $50,000:

GE3LS – An Analysis of the Canadian Regulatory Landscape as It Pertains to Biotechnology Research

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Genomics for Crop Improvement: Agricultural Pest Management – Integrated GE3LS Research

Project Summary

Greenhouse vegetable production is a growing industry in Canada, with Ontario alone home to more than 1700 acres of greenhouse vegetables – the largest concentration in North America. However, a tiny insect, the spider mite, is poised to become a serious threat to this industry. By studying the interaction between plant genes and pest genes, the goal of this international project team led by Dr. Miodrag Grbic is to create pesticide-independent environmentally sound tools and technologies to control spider mites.

GE3LS Research Summary

This genomic research project aims to create the next generation of non-toxic pest-control methods. However, this project also raises important societal questions given that governments and industry have not yet addressed appropriate ways of regulating genomic technologies as applied to agriculture. Even though promising technologies are already upon us, the regulatory system and policy framework exhibit some degree of uncertainty when dealing with biotechnological innovation. Partly, this is because the Canadian public is often given conflicting messages as to what these technologies involve and how the regulatory system operates. The GE3LS research team aims to contribute to improving this situation by providing a thorough analysis of the Canadian regulatory landscape that pertains to biotechnology research.

First, the researchers are studying what types of intellectual-property models yield the most benefit for everyone concerned, including industry, government and the public at large. The objective is to identify effects of intellectual-property rights on research, compare intellectual-property rights and licensing policies among several designated countries and regions and recommend better ways of managing intellectual-property rights.  The research team is studying two closely related subjects: the ability of researchers to use the techniques of genomics for maximum societal benefit, and the development of policies to ensure sustainability and respect ethical values when exploiting the fruits of genomic research.

Second, the team is examining Canadian government policy and legislation regarding the regulation of genetically modified products and their place in agriculture.  They will examine current Canadian policy directions as well as several policy alternatives that may be better-suited for the aims of governments in harvesting the fruits of biotechnology.

Finally, they are conducting a study of material-transfer agreements among various research groups working in a multi-regional research project such as this one.

GE3LS – Framing New Bio-technologies to Aid Regulatory Decision-Making

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Bioproducts and Enzymes from Environmental Metagenomes (BEEM) – Integrated GE3LS Research

Project Summary

Today’s global economy is based upon the production of fossil fuels. But increasingly, as we grapple with the depth of the environmental footprint that the production and use of those fuels leaves, we are searching for sustainable alternatives. This project team, led by Drs. Elizabeth Edwards and David Major, plans to apply basic research knowledge and skills to develop microbial-based processes to transform, reuse, recycle and remediate contaminants and byproducts from common industrial and agricultural processes. Their goal is to contribute to the sustainability of the biorefineries of the future.

GE3LS Research Summary

The project team has had success in the commercialization of a microbial consortium, called KB-1™, which is the only such consortium so far to gain approval through Environment Canada’s New Substances Notification Regulations. Unfortunately, the development of KB-1™ is a rare example of a successful Canadian bioremediation project. Its development and approval required a decade-long effort, not only of genomics, microbiology and engineering, but also of discussion with government agencies.  The GE3LS research team is using its experience with KB-1™ as the basis for developing a framework for the integration of scientific research and public policy analysis.  Barriers to the entry of new bioproducts to the marketplace often come down to a lack of familiarity by end users, governments and regulators.

Working with these groups, the aim is to lower barriers to entry by generating a comprehensive plan for introducing new bioproducts.  The team is integrating scientific, economic and policy data in studies that aim to provide comparisons of new technologies with old to help decision-making by regulators, industrial users, and policy makers. Much of this work is being carried out in collaboration with a new programme in Engineering and Public Policy at the University of Toronto, whose mandate is to promote studies at the intersection of public policy and technology so that sound policy judgments can be made on the basis of well-developed and quantitative science.

The research team is approaching this study in the following ways:

  • First, the team will devise quantitative methods for assessing the environmental and resource impacts of new bioproducts compared to similar, petroleum-derived products;
  • Second, they will use these methods to assess the relative merits of the new biological products and processes developed in this research project;
  • Finally, they will model how sustainable bioproducts industries can be maintained by providing quantitative information on environmental-resource impacts and total production costs.

GE3LS – The Meanings and Understandings of Consent Forms and Information Documents Used in Clinical Studies

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Structural and Functional Annotation of the Human Genome for Disease Study – Integrated GE3LS research

Project Summary

This genomics project is led by Dr. Robert Hegele and aims to characterize the widespread and clinically relevant large-scale genomic variations (copy-number changes, deletions, duplications, insertions, and rearrangements) in the human genome.  Additionally, a range of gene product variants arising from alternative splicing events are being profiled, and previously unknown genes and other functional elements throughout the human genome are being identified.  The resulting new annotation of the human genome promises novel insight into a wide range of human diseases, including breast cancer, diabetes, and heart disease.

GE3LS Research Summary

In order to ensure optimal data collection and informed choice, the GE3LS project team’s over-arching goal is to investigate how the understandings of terms used in genomics research by scientists, when translated into the scientists’ meanings on consent forms, information letters, surveys, and demographic forms, may or may not be consistent with the understandings of research participants and their meanings when they respond to such documents. The team will:

  • perform a textual analysis of research grants, information letters and consent forms that are being used in clinical studies of this Genome Canada grant and others funded in the last Genome Canada competition. With interview ‘prompts’ from the results of this research, research participants and researchers involved in the clinical Themes of this Genome Canada grant will be interviewed to provide further insight into the meanings and understandings of terms used in genomics research, particularly related to copy number variations (CNVs);
  • survey other key stakeholders’ views of genomic research (particularly related to CNV), such as health professionals’ (medical geneticists and counselors, physicians) perceptions of the clinical meaning of CNV results (what kinds of results should provoke duty to warn, and child protection obligations);
  • examine the views and experiences of patients and their families as research participants towards furthering informed choice to participate in CNV research;
  • explore the meanings and understandings of terms used in CNV research by studying issues revolving around the interpretation, management and communication of whole genome scanning (WGS) results to patients and their families; and
  • consider the legal issues that are emerging from the methodologies of the aforementioned studies that explore the meanings and understandings of terms used in CNV research, including qualitative content analysis, interviews of researchers and research participants, and electronic surveys.

GE3LS – Issues Stemming from the Development and Commercialization of Quantum Dot Diagnostics

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Quantum Dot Diagnostics: Simultaneous Genomic and Proteomic Profiling of Multiple Pathogens at Point-of-Care – Integrated GE3LS Research

Project Summary

Around the world, infectious diseases cause billions of infections and over 17 million deaths each year. With its well-travelled population and cultural diversity, Canada is at risk of global diseases such as SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome), malaria, and avian influenza (bird flu).  This research team, led by Drs. Kevin Kain and Michael Greenberg, is combining advances in nanotechnology with pathogen genomics and proteomics to create a point-of-care diagnostic device able to detect and diagnose multiple global infectious diseases within minutes.

GE3LS Research Summary

The team will systematically address the potential GE³LS issues stemming from the development and commercialization of the quantum dot (Qdot) diagnostic system, a high-throughput diagnostic system capable of detecting multiple global infectious disease threats at point-of-care; in 3 parts:

1. Public Engagement: The project team will develop and evaluate a public engagement tool for high school students and the general public that encompasses various emergent technologies and their application to infectious disease research.

2. Regulation of the Convergence of Genomics, Proteomics and Nanotechnology: The project team will identify regulatory issues related to convergent technologies and work with Canadian regulatory authorities to develop regimes and guidelines on implementation of any standards that may be developed. As such, they will a) survey Canadian and international regulatory regimes for each of the major technologies involved in the project; b) develop a database of cognate regulatory regimes; c) identify potential bottlenecks that are likely to slow down the development of convergent technologies; d) develop recommendations for the federal government on how to streamline the different regimes to develop “smart regulation” for convergent technologies; and e) work with Canadian regulatory authorities to develop regulatory regimes and guidelines on implementation of any future Canadian standards.

3. Monitoring of Risks and Benefits of Quantum Dots: The project team will monitor research on toxicity of Qdots and develop an annotated database of research publications and data on the potential risks of Qdots after exposure, and participate in policy discussions with the Canadian federal government on these issues.

GE3LS – Attitudes of Adults and Adolescents to Predictive Genetic Testing for Diabetes

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Genome-Environment Interactions in Type 1 Diabetes – Integrated GE3LS research

Project Summary

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) afflicts 200,000 Canadians and is the result of multiple genetic risk factors and currently unknown environmental factors. This innovative research project, led by Drs. Jayne Danska and Andrew Macpherson, aims to investigate the interactions of the genetic components and environmental factors underlying T1D.

GE3LS Research Summary

Recent research advances mean that Research Ethics Boards (REBs) are now reviewing protocols that involve predictive genetic testing in children.

While issues surrounding predictive genetic testing are clear in adults, there remain significant problems regarding the ethics of predictive testing in children. Further information on the acceptability and impact of predictive testing in children and adolescents and their families is required so as to allow REBs to better quantify risks and benefits of such studies.

The objectives of this research study include:

  • There is a high interest in predictive testing in both the diabetic and general community and that factors motivating predictive testing are different in adolescents than in adults.
  • In adults, the major motivating factors are related to their personal health. There is indication that adults may modify their behaviour to reduce risk of T1D based on predictive testing outcomes.
  • Adolescents tend to take predictive testing for altruistic reasons.
  • Siblings have an excellent knowledge base of diabetes and they can readily describe the long and short term consequences associated with the disease.
  • The child’s reaction to the affected sibling’s diagnosis was shock and emotional; they attempt to cope with a normalization process in describing their affected sibling and family life. These young people will also participate in caregiving and show more respect for their sibling with T1D.
  • These adolescents think the decision for predictive genetic testing is ultimately theirs to make, even though parents do have the right to know and should sit down and discuss with the child.

This information will help guide investigators, REB members and research participants on the key elements that need to be included in consent forms for research in T1D that includes predictive testing. Many other childhood diseases, including asthma and Crohn’s disease, are now understood to involve genome-environment interactions. Information gained will be generalisable to many other disorders and will be very important as other large population-based predictive studies are undertaken.

GE3LS – Ethical Questions Relating to the Use of Human Tissues and Genetic Information

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The Dynactome: Mapping Spatio-Temporal Dynamic Systems in Humans – Integrated GE3LS Research

Project Summary

A key to understanding complex diseases such as cancer lies in investigating the dynamic changes in the cell’s protein interaction networks and signaling cascades.  This project team, led by Drs. Tony Pawson, Jeff Wrana, and Shawn Li, is mapping protein interactions within human cells in order to determine whether diseases such as malignant cancers result not only from specific changes to individual genes and proteins, but also from changes in the entire cellular network.

GE3LS Research Summary

The GE3LS project team is examining ethical questions relating to the use of human tissues and genetic information, and ensuring confidentiality and protection of research subjects’ privacy. A critical review of consent documents from China, and evaluation of conformity with Canadian laws and guidelines set forth in Canada’s Tri-Council Policy Statement, Ethical Guidelines for Research involving Humans, as well as international guidelines (e.g., International Ethical Guidelines for Biomedical Research Involving Human Subjects (Council for International Organizations of Medical Sciences/World Health Organization) and the Declaration of Helsinki (World Medical Association)) will be performed. Where nonconformities exist, the team will develop and implement an enhanced consent form for future donors to the biobank from which this project obtains its human tissue samples.

In addition, international research guidelines, including those mentioned above, will be assessed with respect to how they address biobanking studies, culminating in a review that details ways that genomics and proteomics researchers can deal with different international research guidelines in this area. The finished product will examine topics such as informed consent, standards for external review, recruitment of participants, and cultural challenges related to consent.  The assessment will uncover where these guidelines are uniform and where they diverge, and highlight problems associated with this in relation to international research, particularly with the ‘Dynactome’ project. We will also study problems that arise when a standard is included on one or more documents but omitted on others.

GE3LS – Reporting Genetic Research Results: Perspectives of Study Participants and Researchers

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The Contribution of Genetic Modulators of Disease Severity in Cystic Fibrosis to other Diseases with Similarities of Clinical Phenotype – Integrated GE3LS Research

Project Summary

Leveraging Canada’s tradition as a world leader in cystic fibrosis (CF) research, project leaders Dr. Peter Durie and Dr. Julian Zielenski are expanding the knowledge about CF modifying genes known to influence the severity of CF.  The project applies this new knowledge to clinically similar diseases such as pancreatitis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, with the goal of developing genetic tests for disease susceptibility.

GE3LS Research Summary

Several recent commentaries argue that researchers bear an obligation to report genetic research findings to study participants. The nature and scope of this obligation remains disputed and unresolved.  While the principles of respect for persons, reciprocity, and beneficence are fundamental to the research enterprise, they may neither be well served if results are disclosed nor denied if they are not disclosed.  This integrated GE3LS research examines study participants’ and researchers’ perspectives on how to manage genetic research results with respect to this putative obligation.

Phase 1 of this research surveyed research participants from the Canadian Consortium for Cystic Fibrosis research regarding the meaning ascribed to a recent gene modifier finding reported in the academic literature. One key finding was that study participants expect researchers to share genetic research results with them.  Phase II of this research involves a complex experimental design that aims to understand the factors influencing researchers’ judgments regarding reporting results. Using a cross sectional factorial survey design that includes vignettes presenting hypothetical scenarios involving genetic research findings to investigators engaged in cystic fibrosis and autism genetics research, this research aims to better understand the factors that influence researchers’ judgments about (a) informing individuals about genetic research findings, (b) the clinical significance of a hypothetical research finding, (c) the nature of a research obligation to re-contact study participants with updated information about a particular finding, and (d) the nature of a clinical obligation that may/may not ensue from reporting research findings.  Taken together, findings from this integrated research will inform the governance of this important research ethics issue.

GE3LS – Exploring the Impacts of DNA Barcoding

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Canadian Barcode of Life Network

Project Summary

DNA barcoding uses a small fragment of an organism’s DNA – a portion of a single gene – to identify the species to which an organism belongs. This project, led by DNA barcoding pioneer, Dr. Paul Hebert, is using these powerful tools to catalogue Canada’s biodiversity. He and his team continue to lead international work aiming to catalogue the earth’s life forms completely.

GE3LS Research Summary

The project is collaborating with the “Taxonomy at a Crossroads” project, a major study being led by social science researchers at Lancaster University who are probing the impacts of DNA barcoding on taxonomy.

The project team is also combining educational outreach initiatives with GE3LS research by engaging high school students in research projects relevant to consumer fraud and food safety (e.g. market surveys of fish labeling).

In addition, the project team acknowledges that there are policy implications that arise from DNA barcoding, and as such, the GE3LS committee is continuously monitoring opportunities and discussing strategies for policy recommendations and implementation.