SPARK Program

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

• CRISPR/Cas9 conjugative plasmids for microbiome control
• Discovery of the microbiome of corn silks: The entry point for fungal pathogens including Fusarium
• Genome-based community modeling reveals essential metabolite exchanges in anaerobic microbial communities
• The impact of antibiotics on gastrointestinal dysbiosis and bloodstream infections in the neonatal intensive care unit

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

• “Antenna-in-a-cell”: A tool for forest insect pest research and management
• Micro laser beams used to develop new methods of genomics analysis
• Developing diverse chemical libraries
• Developing biosensors to promote healthy plant growth

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

• Methane to bioplastics: Bacterial strains for production of high value bioplastics on methane feedstock
• Genomic ancestry in a non-model wildlife species at risk, the Eastern Wolf
• Creating a non-invasive Norway Maple

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

• Enhanced metabolite profiling for newborn screening
• Monomeric genome-editing nuclease
• Development of highly diverse but fully defined phage display libraries
• BANGS: A tool for Bayesian analysis of next-generation sequencing data

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

• MedSavant: a platform for identifying causal variants from disease sequencing studies
• First-of-a-kind web tool for exploring splicing misregulation in human disease
• Instrumentation for automated pronuclear microinjection
• A novel technology for streamlined synthesis, screening, and sequencing of privileged cyclic peptide scaffolds