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Ontario Genomics-CANSSI Ontario Postdoctoral Fellowship in Genome Data Science Request for Applications

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We are pleased to open the Request for Applications (RFA) for the Ontario Genomics-CANSSI Ontario Postdoctoral Fellowship in Genome Data Science. This Postdoctoral Fellowship will provide salary support for up to two years for an early career investigator pursuing research in the areas of statistical genetics or genetic epidemiology. In this call for applications, we seek to support research projects that deepen our understanding of genomic epidemiology of infectious disease, using genomics for pathogen surveillance or host-virus genetic interaction.

The Fellowship offers two-year salary support for up to $50,000 per year for postdoctoral fellows undertaking full-time research. Candidates are responsible for selecting, contacting, and securing the commitment of two mentors to jointly supervise them in their project.

Applicant Eligibility

  • Postdoctoral fellows with a PhD in the fields of statistics, computational biology, biostatistics, bioinformatics, computer science, epidemiology, engineering, mathematics, or a related quantitative field.
  • Two proposed supervisors from different academic divisions at a CANSSI Ontario member university or at any of their affiliated research institutes, where at least one supervisor is a faculty member with a PhD in statistics, biostatistics, epidemiology, computational biology, genomics, or computer science.

Research Project Eligibility

  • Research projects in genomic epidemiology of infectious disease, using genomics for pathogen surveillance or host-virus genetic interaction; although all applications in the areas of statistical genetics or genetic epidemiology, developing new methodology or using existing methodology in innovative ways, may be considered; final selection is at the discretion of the adjudication panel.
  • Funding eligibility of submissions will be assessed based on defined eligibility criteria related to scientific excellence and innovation by a joint adjudication panel.

Funding and Tenure

  • Up to two years at $50,000 maximum per year.

We expect to fund the highest ranked candidate.

Guidelines and Deadline

Contacts

Ontario Genomics
Michael Dorrington, Manager, Strategic Partnerships
Telephone: 416.673.6562
Email: mdorrington@OntarioGenomics.ca

CANSSI Ontario
Esther Berzunza, Program Manager
Telephone: 416-689-7271
Email: esther.berzunza@utoronto.ca

Ontario Genomics-CANSSI Ontario Postdoctoral Fellowship in Genome Data Science

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August 30, 2021: We are pleased to announce a partnership between Ontario Genomics and the Ontario regional node of the Canadian Statistical Sciences Institute (CANSSI Ontario) to establish a joint Postdoctoral Fellowship in Genome Data Science.

This partnership aims to help solve challenges in genomic epidemiology and statistical genetics, with applications that address infectious diseases being prioritized. This partnership aims to increase capacity in genomic epidemiology and statistical genetics by attracting, retaining, and developing Highly Qualified Personnel (HQP) in Ontario with expertise in quantitative fields such as statistics, computational biology, bioinformatics, computer science, epidemiology, engineering, genetics, or mathematics. This award will support a post-doctoral fellow pursuing research that deepens our understanding of genomic epidemiology and statistical genetics, with applications studying infectious diseases or which uses genomics for pathogen surveillance or host-virus genetic interaction being of special interest.

The Fellowship offers two-year salary support for up to $50,000 per year for postdoctoral fellows undertaking full-time research at a CANSSI Ontario member university or at any of their affiliated research institutes. Candidates are responsible for selecting, contacting, and securing the commitment of two faculty members to jointly supervise them in their project, one being a statistical geneticist or genetic epidemiologist.

Funding Availability
Up to two years.

Maximum Fellowship Value
$50,000 per year for up to $100,000 over 2 years.

Call for applications opens September 15, 2021.

Ontario Genomics is a not-for-profit organization leading the application of genomics-based solutions to drive economic growth, improved quality of life and global leadership for Ontario. Ontario Genomics plays a vital role in advancing projects and programs by supporting the development of their proposals, helping them access diverse funding sources, and finding the right industry partners to take this research out of the lab to apply it to the world’s most pressing challenges. Since its inception in 2000, Ontario Genomics has raised more than $1.27 billion for genomics applied research in Ontario and directly supported more than 9,100 trainees and jobs. We have 110+ active projects, 500+ impactful partnerships and have secured $1.34 billion in follow-on investments.

CANSSI Ontario is the Ontario regional centre of CANSSI–a national institute offering the leadership and infrastructure necessary to increase and further develop statistical sciences research in Canada and promote the discipline. CANSSI Ontario seeks to support data-intensive, interdisciplinary research and strengthen the network of statistical and data scientists in Ontario and across Canada. www.canssiontario.utoronto.ca.

Contact:

Ontario Genomics
Michael Dorrington, Manager, Strategic Partnerships
Telephone: 416.673.6562
Email: mdorrington@OntarioGenomics.ca

CANSSI Ontario
Esther Berzunza, Program Manager
Telephone: 416-689-7271
Email: esther.berzunza@utoronto.ca

Ontario Researchers Receive Over $39 Million to Support Innovative Research and Technology Development in Natural Resources and Environment Sectors

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Toronto, July 27, 2021 – Ontario Genomics announces a total investment of over $39 million into the Large Scale Applied Research Program (LSARP) projects from across Ontario that will help address the impact of climate change and pollution.

Genome Canada announced funding for eight Canadian projects under the Genomic Solutions for Natural Resources and the Environment competition with an overall budget of $58.6 million. Five of the eight projects involve Ontario researchers, with over $39 million of the nationwide budget being received by provincial researchers.

Ontario Genomics plays a vital role in advancing these projects by supporting the development of their proposals, helping them access diverse funding sources, and finding the right industry partners to take this research out of the lab to apply it to the world’s most pressing challenges.

The Global Risks Report 2020 from the World Economic Forum ranked biodiversity loss as one of the top five threats confronting humanity. The University of Guelph’s BIOSCAN-Canada project is harnessing new genomics technologies to make DNA barcoding faster and less expensive. This will help slow biodiversity loss, improve Indigenous relations through consultation, increase the sustainability of our agricultural and forestry sectors, and strengthen Canada’s leadership in global conservation efforts.

“By illuminating biodiversity with genomic approaches, BIOSCAN–Canada will foster environmental sustainability in settings spanning our nation – from agriculture in New Brunswick to forestry in British Columbia and wildlife management in Nunavut.” Dr. Paul Hebert, Director, Centre for Biodiversity Genomics, University of Guelph.

In Canada, 29,000 tonnes of plastic leak into the environment and oceans every year, creating severe environmental problems. Another 2.8 million tonnes of plastic are sent to Canadian landfills, which creates a latent problem for future generations. A Queen’s University project is working to drive a shift to a zero-plastic waste future by harnessing genomics technologies to create a circular economy for plastics. This project will identify and engineer bacteria and enzymes that can break down plastics into recyclable components or into valuable fine chemicals more effectively than chemical conversion-based technologies.

“Through open science our team of 21 investigators from across 6 universities will develop a systems approach to innovate toward a zero-waste plastic future: from genomes to new enzymatic processes, fully integrated with environmental, social, economic, and policy research to facilitate uptake.” Dr. Laurence Yang, Assistant Professor, Queen\’s National Scholar in Systems Biology.

In collaboration with Genome Alberta, the TRIA-FoR project will adopt a state-of-the-art multidisciplinary and integrative approach to develop genomics-informed knowledge, tools and application frameworks that mitigate risk for the present mountain pine beetle epidemic and improve resiliency in future epidemics. The current mountain pine beetle epidemic has killed approximately 20 million hectares of mainly lodgepole pine forests in British Columbia and Alberta and this project aims to use genomics-based solutions to help remedy the situation.

Learn more about these LSARP projects:

LSARP 2020

Sewage Surveillance: Detecting SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Wastewater across Ontario

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Ontario Genomics, University of Guelph, University of Ottawa and CHEO announce a game-changing initiative to analyze COVID-19 in wastewater to improve public health response and better understand outbreaks in communities across Ontario.

June 2, 2021 – Ontario Genomics, Genome Canada, and Illumina are investing in a first-of-its-kind SARS-CoV-2 wastewater surveillance initiative across Ontario. This cutting-edge project will enhance critical province-wide coordination and viral surveillance and support provincial and national efforts to understand how the virus that causes COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, is changing over time.

This project is made possible through an investment of over $338,000 from Genome Canada, Ontario Genomics and Illumina. The funding supports Ontario-wide research efforts, led by Dr. Lawrence Goodridge, University of Guelph, and co-led by Dr. Rob Delatolla, University of Ottawa. It also harnesses the power of an extensive network that consists of members and collaborators from across Ontario and Canada, including the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO), University of Waterloo, University of Windsor, Ryerson University, Health Sciences North Research Institute (HSNRI), Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) among others.

“I am proud of Ontario’s leadership in SARS-CoV-2 surveillance in wastewater. Through a coordinated approach, leveraging the province’s deep genomics resources and capacity, this project will provide early signals of worrisome viral changes and equip public health with evidence for timely decision making,” said Dr. Bettina Hamelin, President and CEO, Ontario Genomics. “Our end-to-end view of Ontario’s genomics ecosystem has enabled Ontario Genomics to break down silos and harness genomics expertise in the fight against COVID-19.”

Since the start of the pandemic, many countries have been using wastewater monitoring to identify potential outbreaks before they are detected in people through clinical testing. SARS-CoV-2 can be recognized in human waste up to a week before individuals develop symptoms and in people who remain asymptomatic but may spread the virus. By collecting fecal matter at key wastewater collection sites (for example, long-term care facilities, schools, universities, etc.), we can get an early warning sign at the population level and pre-empt further spread by local public health interventions.

“Using wastewater surveillance to assist in predicting COVID-19 caseloads in Ontario is an excellent example of how genomics research was adapted in the face of the pandemic. This demonstrates how sustained, long-term investments in genomic research prepare us for the unexpected,” said Dr. Rob Annan, President and CEO, Genome Canada. “Genome Canada looks forward to helping leverage this important initiative into national solutions for future pandemic readiness.”

Several jurisdictions in Canada, including Ontario through it’s wastewater surveillance initiative, have been using a surveillance technology (qRT-PCR) to monitor SARS-CoV-2 levels over time. By leveraging modern genomic techniques (metagenomics), this project will enable researchers to identify known Variants of Concern (VOCs) while also staying ahead of the curve on potential new emerging viral changes that could become concerning. Participation of the research team in the wastewater surveillance initiative and strong partnerships between the research team and public health agencies ensure that the results will be shared for rapid actioning as necessary.

“I want to thank Genome Canada, Ontario Genomics and Illumina for their leadership in detecting Variants of Concern through this project, which will support Ontario’s wastewater surveillance initiative by enhancing how we track the spread of the virus,” said Hon. Jeff Yurek, Ontario Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks. “It is through investments and partnerships like this one, in addition to the government’s COVID-19 wastewater surveillance initiative, that we are able to expand wastewater sampling and analysis provincewide and enable more timely decisions about how and where to mobilize resources in response.”

“Only a small percentage of clinical samples in Ontario are being sequenced to identify VOCs,” said Dr. Lawrence Goodridge, who holds the Leung Family Professorship in Food Safety and is the director of the University of Guelph\’s Canadian Research Institute for Food Safety. “This timely funding from Ontario Genomics and Genome Canada, and Illumina will allow for surveillance of VOCs in wastewater, increasing our knowledge regarding which VOCs are circulating in the general population.”

“We will now have a province-wide proven epidemiological tool to identify signs of viral prevalence ahead of an outbreak,” said Dr. Robert Delatolla, Associate Professor, uOttawa Faculty of Engineering and project co-lead. “It will prove to be an asset to local public health units in our shared fight against SARS-CoV-2.”

“With this investment, public health officials and researchers will be able to better interpret the wealth of public health data that we flush down the toilet every day,” said Dr. Tyson Graber, Research Associate, CHEO Research Institute. “It\’s amazing how quickly this scientific field has matured since the beginning of the pandemic; starting from basic research projects in university labs to a surveillance programme used by public health units across Ontario, providing a clearer picture of how COVID-19 is affecting their community. It is a stellar example of how open science and collaboration across disciplines can benefit all Ontarians.”

Key Facts

    • Wastewater surveillance can provide critical information about COVID-19 community spread sooner than individual test results or reports of illness.
    • Genomics, the study of DNA for innovation-driven solutions, plays a critical role in developing COVID-19 surveillance, diagnostics, vaccines, and public health responses.
    • Variants of Concern or VOCs have mutations that make them more transmissible and/or more likely to cause severe disease with a higher mortality rate.
    • Metagenomics enables the detection of all variants of SARS-CoV-2 in a mixed sample, such as that found in wastewater, allowing for population-level surveillance of the variants circulating in a population or community.
    • This $338,000 investment supports the coordination of COVID-19 wastewater surveillance metagenomic resources across nine partner research centres and institutions across Ontario, in addition to the national Public Health Agency of Canada (National Microbiology Laboratory).
    • Funding partners include Genome Canada, Ontario Genomics, and Illumina.

Additional Quotes

“Illumina is proud to take part in supporting this effort to empower researchers and public health experts with the sequence data of SARS-CoV-2 genomes. The added detail provided by Illumina-enabled whole genome pathogen sequencing approaches will better inform Ontario’s infectious disease surveillance strategies and prime the network for a longer-term strategy for broader pathogen surveillance.” – Michael Gallad, Senior Director, Canada and Latin America, Illumina.

“The University of Guelph is delighted and grateful to Ontario Genomics, Genome Canada, and Illumina for the generous support for this incredibly timely, cutting-edge viral surveillance partnership. This wise investment will reinforce our strong partnership with University of Ottawa and enable Professors Goodridge and Delatolla to conduct vital genomics-based surveillance for viral pathogens, and thereby safeguard public health and improve life.” – Dr. Malcolm Campbell, vice-president (research), University of Guelph.

“The University of Ottawa is extremely grateful for this funding from Ontario Genome, Genome Canada, and Illumina, which will allow the expansion of wastewater surveillance across the province. This novel project has shown how strong multi-site research collaborations can have a relevant impact in our communities.” – Dr. Sylvain Charbonneau, Vice-President, Research, University of Ottawa.

“This province-wide program to monitor for COVID-19 variants of concern is a testament to the pioneering multidisciplinary scientific work of the team at the CHEO Research Institute and University of Ottawa in partnership with Ottawa Public Health. Together they have made wastewater numbers a commonly reported metric and have helped people predict the prevalence of disease in the community.” – Dr. Jason Berman, CEO and Scientific Director, CHEO Research Institute.

About Ontario Genomics

Established in 2000, Ontario Genomics (OG) is a not-for-profit organization leading the application of genomics-based solutions to drive economic growth, improved quality of life and global leadership for Ontario. Ontario Genomics plays a vital role in advancing projects and programs like wastewater surveillance by supporting the development of their proposals, helping them access diverse funding sources, and finding the right industry partners to take this research out of the lab to apply it to the world’s most pressing challenges. Since its inception in 2000, Ontario Genomics has raised more than $1.27 billion for genomics applied research in Ontario and directly supported more than 9,100 trainees and jobs. We have 110+ active projects, 500+ impactful partnerships and have secured $1.34 billion in follow-on investments.

About the University of Guelph

One of Canada\’s top comprehensive and research-intensive universities, the University of Guelph spans urban hubs and rural communities. Established in 1964, the University enjoys a reputation for innovation and excellence dating back more than 150 years to its founding colleges: Ontario Veterinary College, Ontario Agricultural College and Macdonald Institute. Today U of G’s seven colleges conduct leading-edge teaching and research in the physical and life sciences, business, arts, social sciences, and agricultural and veterinary sciences. We have nearly 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students at campuses in Guelph, Toronto and Ridgetown and 185,000 alumni in more than 160 countries worldwide. The University of Guelph, and everyone who studies here, explores here, teaches here and works here, is committed to a simple, shared purpose: to Improve Life.

About the University of Ottawa

A crossroads of cultures and ideas
The University of Ottawa is home to over 50,000 students, faculty and staff, who live, work and study in both French and English. Our campus is a crossroads of cultures and ideas, where bold minds come together to inspire game-changing ideas. We are one of Canada’s top 10 research universities—our professors and researchers explore new approaches to today’s challenges. One of a handful of Canadian universities ranked among the top 200 in the world, we attract exceptional thinkers and welcome diverse perspectives from across the globe.

About CHEO

Dedicated to the best life for every child and youth, CHEO is a global leader in pediatric health care and research. Based in Ottawa, CHEO includes a hospital, children’s treatment centre, school and research institute, with satellite services located throughout Eastern Ontario. CHEO provides excellence in complex pediatric care, research and education. We are committed to partnering with families and the community to provide exceptional care — where, when and how it’s needed. CHEO is a partner of the Kids Come First Health Team, a network of partners working to create a high quality, standardized and coordinated system for pediatric health care that is centred around children, youth and their families. Every year, CHEO helps more than 500,000 children and youth from Eastern Ontario, western Quebec, Nunavut and Northern Ontario.

 

Download the Press Release pdf – Sewage Surveillance: Detecting SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Wastewater across Ontario

Ontario Agriculture & Agri-Food Sector to Benefit from Provincial Investment

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May 3, 2021 – The Government of Ontario and other partners are investing nearly $27 million into five Ontario Genomics-led and co-led projects in the Large Scale Applied Research Program (LSARP) with applications in the agriculture and agri-food sector. This Genome Canada program supports large-scale genomics applied research projects using genomics approaches to address challenges in Canada’s key economic sectors and create socio-economic benefits for Canada. The provincial government invested over $4 million with additional funding from Genome Canada ($9.7 million) and industry and research partners for a total of $27 million in support for these job-creating projects.

Ontario Genomics plays a vital role in advancing these projects by supporting the development of their proposals, helping them access diverse funding sources, and finding the right industry partners to take this research out of the lab to apply it to the world’s most pressing challenges. Since its inception in 2000, Ontario Genomics has raised more than $1.27 billion for genomics applied research in Ontario and directly supported more than 9,100 trainees and jobs. We have 110+ active projects, 500+ impactful partnerships and have secured $1.34 billion in follow-on investments.

Ontario’s agriculture and agri-food sector supports one in eight Ontario jobs and accounts for over 30% of Canada’s total GDP.

“While Ontario’s agriculture and agri-food sector is strong and growing, its demands and challenges are also rising. Global food insecurity, competition, and technological disruptions are on the rise because of epidemics, climate change, and economic constraints. Fortunately, genomics-based innovations and technologies provide significant opportunities to advance and modernize Ontario’s agriculture and agri-food sector for a critical competitive advantage.” – Dr. Bettina Hamelin, President and CEO, Ontario Genomics.

“As we recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, our government is committed to investing in projects that support research and innovation in the agri-food and agriculture sectors. By investing in projects supported by Ontario Genomics, our government is supporting research and technological advances in the sector to ensure the sustainability of the agriculture and agri-food sectors.” – Ross Romano, Ontario’s Minister of Colleges and Universities.

One of the projects funded in this round, the “GEN-FISH” project, led out of the University of Windsor, is using genomic approaches to develop toolkits based on so-called environmental DNA (eDNA) from water samples that will provide quantitative assessments of the health of fish and the stressors they face. Collectively, these toolkits will enable a complete and accurate assessment of the status of Canada’s freshwater fish resources. This will save millions of dollars in fish survey costs and will result in additional indirect savings through more effective and directed management action. Furthermore, and most importantly, this project will ensure the sustainability of Canada’s freshwater fish resources for generations to come. This project has already piqued the interest of numerous industries in the environmental sector.

“Despite freshwater fishes being critical for Ontario’s economy, food security and aquatic ecosystem health, over 25% of its freshwater fish species are considered “at risk.” The Genomic Network for Fish Identification, Stress and Health (GEN-FISH) brings together 25 experts from across Canada to address the startling loss of fish biodiversity using genomic tools integrated with cutting-edge social science methods. Our work will help stakeholders effectively conserve and manage fish stocks through assessment of fish community composition and health, facilitated by extensive collaboration and consultation with fishery professionals.” – Dr. Daniel Heath, Project Lead & Professor, University of Windsor.

“The project strives to enhance local capacity by supporting traditional ecological knowledge preservation and inclusion to ensure outcomes address local research priorities, specifically food security and subsistence fisheries, and potential opportunities for sustainable economic development options. FISHES will work closely together with traditional knowledge holders and scientists, local and regional governments, Ministère des Forêts, de la Faune et des Parcs and Fisheries and Oceans Canada on seven species of fish across the North (including Northern Ontario) to establish new methods for stock identification and delineation of mixed stocks to enhance sustainable co-management for communities.” – Dr. Stephan Schott, Project Co-Lead & Associate Professor, Carleton University.

Another project that has been funded, aims to use genomic tools to develop BeeCSI – a new health assessment and diagnosis platform powered by stressor-specific markers. “Our Ontario and Genome Canada funded project will help us develop tools that beekeepers can use to understand the stressors affecting their colonies. This will be of great benefit to beekeepers who are losing a large number of their colonies every winter to unknown causes. The funding is also very timely as COVID-19 has hit beekeepers particularly hard.” – Dr. Amro Zayed, Project Lead & Professor, York University.

Our 4DWheat project is important because wheat alone provides 20% of the proteins and 20% of the calories of the world’s population. Canada is one of the largest wheat exporters of the world. With 1 million acres planted to wheat in Ontario and a farm-gate value of $440 million, Ontario is incontestably an important contributor. “This is why Canada, and Ontario, feed the world. However, in order to continue to be the leader that we are, we must address the yield gap. Indeed, there is a disparity between population growth and food production prediction for the next 30 years. To address such gap, 4DWheat is exploring the potential to improve wheat by accessing genetic diversity from wild relatives. 4DWheat is a ‘thinking outside the box’ project that aims to harness Diversity, advance Domestication, enable Discovery and expedite Delivery.” – Dr. Sylvie Cloutier, Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) Co-lead of the 4DWheat project.

The dairy cattle resilience project led by Dr. Christine Baes is making strides in the agri-food industry. “The Resilient Dairy Genome Project addresses a number of important issues related to human and animal health, environmental impacts, sustainability and social acceptability, while responding to the growing need for safe, affordable, nutritious and high-quality protein. The genetic selection index for resilience under development will allow more accurate selection for fertile, disease resilient and environmental efficient animals. This approach will result in wider benefits to Canadian society, like reduced reliance on antibiotics, better animal welfare, reduced methane emissions and reduced land required for feed production. The strong partnership between academia and industry, including over 40 national and international partners, will ensure the collection of new data, and broad application of project outputs for the benefit of Canadian and global food security and sustainability.” – Dr. Christine Baes, Project Lead & Associate Profession, University of Guelph.

Learn more about these five funded LSARP projects:

Major Investment in Genomics Research and Industry to Improve Ontario Healthcare and Environment

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May 3, 2021 – The Government of Ontario is investing nearly $3 million in three Ontario Genomics-led projects as part of the Genomic Applications Partnership Program (GAPP). This program funds industry-partnered projects that use genomics tools and technologies to address real-world challenges and opportunities with the intent to create numerous downstream impacts for Ontario, such as job creation and revenue generation. Additional funding from Genome Canada ($4.2 million), industry and research partners brings the total investment into these projects to $13 million.

Ontario is a world leader in genomics research, producing breakthroughs in science and transforming our understanding of the world around us. Genomics technologies and applied research are already being used to tackle important challenges and develop innovative solutions across diverse sectors of the economy, including human health and the environment.

Ontario Genomics plays a vital role in advancing these projects by supporting the development of their proposals, helping them access diverse funding sources, and finding the right industry partners to take this research out of the lab to apply it to the world’s most pressing challenges. Since its inception in 2000, Ontario Genomics has raised more than $1.27 billion for genomics applied research in Ontario and directly supported more than 9,100 trainees and jobs. We have 110+ active projects, 500+ impactful partnerships and have secured $1.34 billion in follow-on investments.

This investment will support researchers at the University of Toronto and The Hospital for Sick Children. In collaboration with industry partners, including Bright Angel Therapeutics and Nanostring, these genomics-based projects will have real, positive impacts on our healthcare system, as well as the environment and well-being of Canadians.

“Partnerships between the researchers and industry are the cornerstone of Ontario’s thriving innovation community. By supporting the development and uptake of new technologies that provide game-changing solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges, Ontario Genomics is helping to nurture healthy people, a healthy economy, and a healthy planet for generations to come.” – Dr. Bettina Hamelin, President and CEO, Ontario Genomics

“Our government is dedicated to improving the health and wellbeing of Ontarians. By investing in Ontario Genomics, we’re supporting significant advancements in research and innovation in the healthcare sector to ensure Ontarians have access to state-of-the-art healthcare services and technologies. These projects aren’t only aimed at improving the healthcare and wellbeing of Ontarians, but also putting Ontario on the map as a global leader in research and innovation in the healthcare sector. ”- Ross Romano, Ontario’s Minister of Colleges and Universities.

“With GAPP funding, in partnership with NanoString and SickKids, we are excited to be developing a novel diagnostic test that will allow us to uncover the molecular pathways that are driving each patient’s cancer. This test is the first of its kind and will help us to optimize targeted therapy for cancer patients from across Ontario,” said Dr. Cynthia Hawkins, Project Lead & Neuropathologist, The Hospital for Sick Children.

“SickKids is pioneering the development of diagnostics that utilize both protein and mRNA biomarkers to identify patients who will respond to targeted therapies. Their selection of nCounter® as the platform of choice for this effort shows its unique potential to gather meaningful, high-quality multi-modal data to advance precision medicine for kids with cancer,” said Sean Ferree, Vice President of Customer Experience, NanoString. “It\’s an honour to receive GAPP support and to work together to better understand the characteristics that make treatments effective.”

“Bright Angel Therapeutics is very grateful for the support from Ontario Genomics in securing the GAPP investment.   The partnership with the University of Toronto gives the company access to state-of-the-art genomic tools, expertise and resources to assist us in advancing our lead antifungal drug development program from the bench to the bedside.  Government investments, such as this one, provide vital resources to early-stage companies that enable them to build out their technology platforms, position themselves for subsequent private investment rounds and build out the innovation ecosystem.” – Dr. Dominic Jaikaran, President & CEO Bright Angel Therapeutics

“This investment will catalyze the translation of genomics-driven fundamental science focused on discovery of vulnerabilities in fungal pathogens into new strategies to overcome drug resistance and treat life-threatening fungal infectious disease.” – Dr. Leah Cowen, Associate Vice President, Research, University of Toronto.

Learn more about the three funded GAPP projects:

  • Targeting fungal stress responses to provide first-in-class treatment for drug-resistant fungal pathogens (Receptor – Bright Angel Therapeutics): This project will develop a novel anti-fungal drug that will tackle drug resistance at its root. This new treatment option would help fill an urgent, unmet clinical need, reduce morbidity and mortality caused by fungal infections, and provide significant savings to the Canadian healthcare system, which currently spends $345 million on treating invasive fungal infections.
  • Field Validation of Technologies for Anaerobic Benzene and Alkylbenzene Bioremediation (Receptor – SiREM): This project aims to demonstrate the efficacy of a broad set of novel and specialized anaerobic bioaugmentation cultures in pilot trials at three different benzene contaminated sites. The team will use metagenome-enabled analysis, groundwater modelling, and tracking of the microbial populations and functional genes to improve overall remediation outcomes and restore ecosystem health.
  • NanoString nCounter® Vantage 3D platform-based complementary diagnostic tests for precision medicine in pediatric cancers (Receptors – The Hospital for Sick Children and Nanostring): To best guide therapeutic choices, this project aims to amalgamate proteomic data with genomic and transcriptomic information to create laboratory-developed (LDT)-complementary diagnostics for the most common pediatric cancers. Additionally, this project has international (NanoString) and Ontario-based (SickKids) co-receptors deriving benefits from this diagnostic technology. 

Breakthrough Ontario Projects Receive Over $28 Million to Advance Genomics Innovations

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May 3, 2021 – The Government of Ontario is investing over $5.7 million in eleven Ontario Genomics-led projects as part of the Bioinformatics and Computational Biology (B/CB) Competition and the Disruptive Innovations in Genomics (DIG) Funding Competition. These programs aim to support transformative, made-in-Ontario genomics technological development to improve human health, agriculture, and natural resources for social and economic benefits for Canada. Additional funding from Genome Canada (over $10 million) and industry and research partners provide a total of $28 million to support these impactful and innovative projects.

Ontario Genomics plays a vital role in advancing these projects by supporting the development of their proposals, helping them access diverse funding sources, and finding the right industry partners to take this research out of the lab to apply it to the world’s most pressing challenges. Since its inception in 2000, Ontario Genomics has raised more than $1.27 billion for genomics applied research in Ontario and directly supported more than 9,100 trainees and jobs. We have 110+ active projects, 500+ impactful partnerships and have secured $1.34 billion in follow-on investments.

“This funding takes these projects to the next level,” says Dr. Bettina Hamelin, President and CEO, Ontario Genomics. “By tackling important challenges and developing innovative solutions across diverse sectors of the economy, we ensure Ontario has a thriving innovation and research community and made-in-Ontario genomics tools and technologies.”

“The Ontario government is committed to supporting “Ontario made” innovations, ideas and products. As our government continues to focus on recovering from the economic impacts of COVID-19, we’re proud to support Ontario Genomics as they fund research and innovation projects that can improve human health and wellbeing, agriculture and natural resources. By investing in these projects now, our government is supporting ideas that will have significant social and economic benefits for the province in the future.” – Ross Romano, Ontario’s Minister of Colleges and Universities.

“We are thrilled to be working with the government of Ontario and Ontario Genomics to develop a truly disruptive technique for non-invasive prenatal diagnostics.” – Dr. Aaron Wheeler, Project Lead & Professor, University of Toronto.

The SYNERGxDB web application, whose development was supported by Ontario Genomics, will enable researchers to efficiently mine the large-space of drug combinations, speeding up the development of new therapeutic strategies that are much needed for aggressive cancer types. SYNERGxDB provides researchers with easy access to data that have been curated, annotated and processed using the best standards in the field. This rich resource will continue to grow as new data are released and integrated, supporting the future of cancer research.” – Dr. Benjamin Haibe-Kains, Project Lead, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre.

Here are snippets of three of the eleven funded projects:

  • SYNERGx: a computational framework for drug combination synergy prediction: This project is developing SYNERGx, a new computational platform that will integrate multiple pharmacogenomic datasets. The platform will implement analytic tools to improve modelling of synergistic drug effects. SYNERGx will provide an efficient way to design new therapeutic strategies to treat cancer.
  • CReSCENT: CanceR Single Cell ExpressioN Toolkit: This project aims to develop CReSCENT, a scalable and standardized set of novel algorithmic methods and tools, deployed on cloud computing infrastructure, to allow comparison of cells in cancerous and healthy tissues. CReSCENT will bring together researchers across a broad spectrum of scientific areas and disease types. In the long term, this system will pave the way for novel single-cell diagnostics and the discovery of new drug strategies for improved health care.
  • Development of a digital microfluidic platform to identify and target single cells from a heterogeneous cell population for lysis in an ultra-low volume for non-invasive prenatal diagnosis: This project is using a digital microfluidics and genomic analysis platform to provide a safe, non-invasive, and inexpensive prenatal diagnostic test. With no other test like it available, it will compete in the multi-million-dollar global market and save the healthcare system hundreds of millions of dollars. The technique will be commercialized through a start-up company that will attract investment and create job opportunities in Canada’s burgeoning high-tech/biotech sector.

Congratulations to all 11 projects on successful proposals to the Government of Ontario to continue promising applied research that leads to novel solutions.

Learn more about the funded B/CB projects:

Learn more about the funded DIG projects:

The Future of Biomanufacturing Series

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Ontario Genomics is excited to partner with TheFutureEconomy.ca for an interview series on . In this six-part series experts explore the development and application of biomanufacturing and bioengineering to advance Canada’s knowledge-based economy in the areas of low-carbon manufacturing, food security and advanced engineering health technologies.

This series will highlight developments and necessary improvements in Canada’s biology innovation system; the skills and talent required to prepare our future workforce; and the collaborations and investments needed to make Canada globally competitive in biomanufacturing and bioengineering.

Watch the series:


The inaugural video of this series features Dr. Bettina Hamelin, President & CEO of Ontario Genomics and Dr. Rob Annan, President & CEO of Genome Canada. They discuss the role of collaboration and the transformative power of genomics, bioengineering, and biomanufacturing in the Canadian bio-revolution that will reshape economies, societies, and our lives.


Dr. Keith Pardee, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto, discusses the intersections of synthetic biology, bioengineering, and biomanufacturing and how Canada can benefit from its innovations and solutions, from health to food security and environment.


Dr. Vardit Ravitsky, Professor of Bioethics, Université de Montréal and President of the International Association of Bioethics, speaks to the importance of bioethics and social science research in the fields of bioengineering and biomanufacturing, to ensure that breakthroughs in the field of genomics can be applied successfully and ethically in Canada.


Dr. Steven Webb, Executive Director and CEO, Global Institute for Food Security (GIFS), talks about Canada’s biggest opportunities in using biomanufacturing and bioengineering in agri–food production and how their applications are critical to the development of value-added food products made throughout Canada.


Dr. Radhakrishnan Mahadevan, Professor, University of Toronto, shares insights on how multi-disciplinary research, that utilizes biology, robotics, machine learning, and AI, is key to technological developments to advance bioengineering.


In the last video of ‘The Future of Biomanufacturing’ series, Dr. Lakshmi Krishnan, Vice President, Life Sciences, National Research Council (NRC), shares the importance of increased investment in early-stage R&D to develop Canada’s bioinnovation pipeline.