Innovation rewarded

Dr. Younes Anini and researcher Mike Morash in the lab. (Pearce photo)

Trying to tackle complex issues such as obesity, vision loss and nationalism requires more than simple initiative. It requires innovative approaches and bold leaders.

Leaders like Dr. Younes Anini, who is researching new treatments for type-2 diabetes and obesity. ÒThe two disorders are linked together,” he explains. ÒThe risk of type-2 diabetes is very high among obese patients. WeÕre trying to find specific hormone targets that we can use to find new treatments.”

Dr. Anini is among 10 Dalhousie researchers receiving awards today from the Leaders Opportunity Fund, a program administered through the Canadian Foundation for Innovation. Dr. Eliot Phillipson, President and CEO of the CFI, along with the Hon. Michael Fortier, Federal Minister of Public Works and Government Services, announced that nine Dalhousie projects are to receive a $1.13 million in funding.

Dr. AniniÕs lab is working on understanding a newly-discovered hormone that is secreted from the stomach and plays an important role in the production of insulin. ÒThese CFI funds will help provide the lab with high-tech molecular endocrinology equipment that will allow us to see how these hormones operate and hopefully discover new hormones in the process,” he says.

The CFIÕs Leaders Opportunity Fund is an ongoing program designed to assist universities in attracting excellent faculty to Canadian institutions, as well as retaining the very best of today and tomorrowÕs leading researchers for Canada. In total, the CFI announced $39.2 million in new funds across Canada to support 261 researchers at 42 institutions.

ÒThe federal governmentÕs investment in Dalhousie research recognizes the key role our innovations and discoveries will play in CanadaÕs future, and builds on our researchersÕ proven abilities as global leaders in a diversity of fields,” said Dalhousie President Tom Traves.

The Dalhousie recipients span the gamut, with researchers in the Faculties of Science, Arts and Social Sciences, Medicine, and Engineering. Dr. Patrice C™tŽ in Biology, for example, is establishing a research program to study the development and regeneration of the retina in mammals, with the hopes of using his findings to understand vision loss in humans.

Ò(The funding) will be a tremendous help, thatÕs for sure,” says Dr. C™tŽ. The award will be used to purchase new imaging equipment for his lab that will better help him visualize protein changes in tissues and cells.

Demonstrating the collaborative nature of research at Dalhousie, Dr. Finn Laursen of the Department of Political Science and Dr. Julia Wright of the Department of English are teaming together to form a state-of-the-art European Studies facility here at Dalhousie, creating a centre of excellence for research on Europe which will be unique in Eastern Canada.

The other projects to receive CFI funding are:

• Dr. Jason Berman, Departments of Pediatrics and Microbiology & Immunology, is pursuing a novel research program studying zebrafish to help understand the links between white blood cell development and acute myeloid leukemia, the most common form of leukemia in adults.
• Dr. Zoheir Farhat, Department of Process Engineering & Applied Science, will form the first nanoindentation system in Atlantic Canada, establishing the fundamental principles in the fabrication and mechanic characterization of advanced materials.
• Dr. Craig McCormick, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, is establishing a Viral Oncology lab to identify therapeutic interventions for KaposiÕs sarcoma, the most common cancer among AIDS patients throughout the developing world.
• Dr. Tetjana Ross, Department of Oceanography, is studying distribution patterns in ocean plankton, helping to predict the abundances and distribution of larger fish and other seafood that depend on them for sustenance.
• Dr. Harm Rotermund, Department of Physics and Atmospheric Science, is working to explain the corrosion onset in stainless steels and other metals and provide directly applicable solutions in corrosion prevention.
• Dr. Nikhil Thomas, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, is working to identify critical mechanisms within enteric human pathogens like E. coli and Salmonella that kill tens of millions worldwide every year, translating his findings into the design of new treatments.