Genome Alberta Newsletter GeneSnips - July 20, 2009
Genome Alberta News
Genome Alberta Launches New GenOmics News Site
Forget Generation X, Gen Y, or the Boomer Generation. Genome Alberta is taking on the Omics Generation with GenOmics in Facebook.
This new site features news from a variety of sources, encourages users to post their own stories and comments, and incorporates our old ‘give-a-gene’ application. Users get points for adding new stories, making comments or posting their own blogs and we’ll be offering prizes to users who accumulate the most points.
The new site moves beyond genomics and will incorporate news from many of the other related omics including metabolomics, nutrigenomics, and metagenomics. You don’t have to be a Facebook member to see the site at http://apps.facebook.com/
genomics but you’ll have to sign up to make use of all the features. We encourage you to visit the site, link to it at with the http://apps.facebook.com/genomics and to participate by adding stories and posting comments.Genome Alberta’s outreach in social media is becoming recognized in many areas and Communications Director Mike Spear will be talking about our work at the Social Media For Government conference and workshop in Ottawa on September 29 - October 2. The theme for the event is “How To Engage Your Employees And Citizens By Using The Latest WEB 2.0 Technologies To Drive Communication Results" and you can find more information at http://www.aliconferences.com/
conf/social_media_govt_ canada1009/index.htm
Oral and Poster Programs Set for Age of Personalized Genomics
The selection of oral abstracts and poster presentations has been completed and information about the presenters is available at the APG site at http://genomealberta.ca/APG/
For the oral program there is a rundown of abstracts available right now and over the coming days we will be adding more information about the poster presenters.
Don’t for the early bird deadline for registration is August 14th so go to http://genomealberta.ca/APG/
Registration.aspx to register.
New Alberta Research and Innovation Framework Update
Alberta Research and Innovation Regulation and the Alberta Research and Innovation Act have been approved by the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta. The Regulation establishes the four provincial research and innovation corporations outlined in the Act, which received Royal Assent on June 4. The Regulation sets out the new corporations’ governance framework, objects, roles and responsibilities of the boards, powers, and duties. It also addresses matters related to the funding of these corporations, as well as their operation and administration.
The new corporations will officially come into existence when the following steps have all taken place:
- the Alberta Research and Innovation Act is proclaimed with the Regulation,
- the boards for the new organizations are put in place, and
- the transition plans (including staffing, legal, financial matters) are complete.
The Regulation specifically states that each of the new corporations is charged with supporting research and innovation activities that support both the economic and social well-being of Albertans. The corporations are also responsible for translating the discovery of new knowledge and the application of that knowledge and are supposed to work with other bodies within the system to support the entire research and innovation continuum, from basic research to commercialization.
The four new entities will be known as:
- Alberta Innovates - Health Solutions
- Alberta Innovates - Bio Solutions
- Alberta Innovates - Energy and Environment Solutions
- Alberta Innovates - Technology Futures
As the summer progresses Gene Snips will bring you more information about the Framework and its structure.
New ASRD Mountain Pine Beetle Website
Alberta Sustainable Resource Development has launched a new website to help the public, industry and media keep up with the growing Mountain Pine Beetle problem in Alberta. Go to http://www.mpb.alberta.ca/ where you’ll find links & videos.
New Boss for U.S. National Institutes of Health on the Way
Last week U.S. President Barack Obama announced his nomination of Francis Collins as Director of the National Institutes of Health.
President Obama said, "The National Institutes of Health stands as a model when it comes to science and research. My administration is committed to promoting scientific integrity and pioneering scientific research and I am confident that Dr. Francis Collins will lead the NIH to achieve these goals. Dr. Collins is one of the top scientists in the world, and his groundbreaking work has changed the very ways we consider our health and examine disease. I look forward to working with him in the months and years ahead."
Ontario Genomics Institute Invests in Guelph Research Project
Through its Pre-Commercialization Business Development Fund (PBDF), the Ontario Genomics Institute (OGI) has invested in a research project at the University of Guelph that is developing a set of genetic markers that can be used to monitor the convergence of a selective breeding program on producing pigs that are free of boar taint. This has the potential to enable breeding companies to produce more marketable pig lines without the need for sterilization or castration.
To read the full press release visit: http://www.ontariogenomics.ca/
media-centre/news/2009-7-16/ 385
Latest Edition of Canadian Bioinformatics Help Desk Newsletter
http://gchelpdesk.ualberta.ca/
news/10jul09/cbhd_news_ 10jul09.htm
U of C's Biogeoscience Institute Open House
Why is the Alpine butterfly population on the decline? What’s the latest research on mountain pine beetles and bumblebees? How do climate fluctuations affect lakes and streams as well as animal and plant communities?
Scientists at the University of Calgary’s Biogeoscience Institute are working on these questions and more. They will show off their research at the Barrier Lake Field Station annual Open House on Saturday, July 25, from 10 am to 4 pm.
Researchers will be available to talk about their work on the impact of climate change affecting the survival of alpine butterflies; their understanding of surface water and weather systems in the Canadian Rocky Mountains; how the flowering phenology of orchids affects their reproductive success; alpine plant communities; flying squirrels; mountain pine beetles; bumblebees; golden eagle migration. There will also be a demonstration of the new Google Earth-like program that will help scientists with real-time data management from the ever increasing numbers of wireless sensors.For more information go to http://bgs.ucalgary.ca/
The Canadian Microbiome Initiative - Funding Opportunity
The CIHR Institute of Infection and Immunity is pleased to announce the launch of the Emerging Team Grant: Canadian Microbiome Initiative (CMI). This initiative will provide an opportunity for multidisciplinary teams of Canadian researchers to analyze and characterize the microbes that colonize the human body in order to: understand of the composition and distribution of the microbial flora in different body sites; gain new insights on the function of the normal flora in healthy individuals; and probe the links between the human microflora and disease.. It is expected that successful teams will take advantage of the international microbiome research database where appropriate.
This funding opportunity is supported by:
- the CIHR Institute of Infection and Immunity
- the CIHR Institute of Cancer Research,
- the CIHR Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis,
- the CIHR Institute of Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes,
- the CIHR Ethics Office,
- the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation,
- the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of Canada,
- Genome British Columbia,
- Genome Prairie,
- Institut Rosell – Lallemand Inc.
Collaborators include:
- The Canadian Healthy Infant Longitudinal Development (CHILD) Study,
- The Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA),
- The Canadian Partnership for Tomorrow Project (CPT),
- and the International Human Microbiome Consortium (IHMC)
Total amount available for this initiative is $13.275 million, with the possibility of increased funding through additional partnerships.
Important Dates
- Letters of Intent Deadline – November 2nd, 2009
- LOI Notice of Decision – December 15th, 2009
- Application Deadline – May 3rd, 2010
- Application Notice of Decision – August 15th, 2010
- Funding start date – September 1st, 2010
For more information go to : www.researchnet-recherchenet.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------ca/rnr16/vwOpprtntyDtls.do? or contact David Hartell david.hartell@cihr-irsc.gc.ca or Judith Bray Judith.bray@cihr-irsc.gc.caprog=793&tag=1
GE3LS Digest
Profits and research: A good mix? Industry has a role to play in advancing science, but it must be balanced – June 18, 2009
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/opinion/op-ed/Profits+ research+good/1708397/story. html
Over the past several months the government has been taking steps to reconfigure how research gets funded and done in Alberta. The stated goals of the plan, as summarized in Bill 27, are to make sure that research activities will "meet the research and innovation priorities of the government, including fostering the development and growth of new and existing industries." This sounds like more commercializable research in areas the government deems worthy. Alberta is a world leader in a wide range of research domains--a direct result of entities like the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research. The hope is that Bill 27 will make the Alberta research environment even more efficient and effective. Not a bad idea. But the government must be tremendously careful not to erode the characteristics of academic inquiry that make it a uniquely valuable way to produce knowledge.An Interview with Sandra Soo-Jin Lee on Direct-to-Consumer Genomics and Social Networking – June 23, 2009
http://www.scienceprogress.org/2009/06/personal- profiling/
Spit in a cup, send it off, and get your genetic profile delivered to your inbox. Direct-to-consumer genetic testing is that simple, right? Maybe, but understanding what it means is far more complex, says bioethicist Sandra Soo-Jin Lee, because much of the research on the connections between our DNA and our health remains uncertain. But even if the genome-wide association studies that form the basis for these genetic profiles are imprecise, don’t consumers still have a right to know about their own genes? Should they expect a certain level of validity for information they’re buying? For the moment DTC genetic testing falls, in Lee’s words, in a “regulatory no-man’s land, with little oversight by federal agencies.” And the question remains, do we need health professionals act as gatekeepers and help interpret this new information?Cheerleader or watchdog? Science journalism is under threat. What can scientists do to help?—June 25, 2009
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v459/n7250/full/ 4591033a.html
Science journalism may be under threat but scientists can still help ensure that reporting is informed and accurate, says an editorial in Nature. Some scientists see the media as a public relations service to explain new science, shape public understanding and highlight a blooming research sector to politicians.
But journalism plays a more important role — in scrutinising, not just regurgitating, science — says the editorial. Science journalists in particular often understand the subject they are writing about and know who to contact to provide context and criticism.To subscribe to the GE3LS Digest, visit http://www.genomealberta.ca/ge3ls/subscribe.aspx
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Found on Twitter
We’ve added a new section to Gene Snips that we hope will help you gain a little insight into how science and scientists are making use of Twitter. You’ve can open a news paper or a magazine today without hearing about how Twitter is influencing the way we communicate in 140 characters and on a global scale. You can find Genome Alberta on Twitter as @mikesgene but if you don’t have an account here is a sample. The @ names will only be of use to you if you have an account on Twitter but the http:// url link are accessible to anyone and are an example of what the science and social media community are all ‘twittering’ about.
@sciencebase RT @jobrodie Twitter for Scientwists - http://sciscoop.com/mF (superb SciScoop guest post intro to Twitter)
@wyattsgirl Medical profiling & online medicine: Ethics of 'personalised' health care in a consumer age (via google alerts & @Berci ) http://bit.ly/Z53Uj
@IamBiotech TAKE ACTION! Future cures at risk if Congress makes wrong choice on biosimilars. Pls take action & spread the word http://iambiotech.org/
@DaveHancock MLANanyang Technological University - Pres is UofA'71 Engineering grad. GR officer from Nfld. Doing collaborative work with NINT #abed
@govloop RT @marquiscote: Register today for this fall's Social Media for Gov't Conference in Ottawa #ali #goc #gov20 #opengov http://bit.ly/on6Gy
@davidalston
Great post form @rhappe: Why
organizations need social labs - http://bit.ly/qgAYI
@dgmacarthur RT @bmahersciwriter: RT @RibogeniX Grass Roots Genetic Movement http://is.gd/1tx5J
@genomicslawyer Next up for Francis Collins and the NIH: "Disease-Related Omics at Unprecedented Scale"? http://bit.ly/eWoPO
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Genome Alberta in Pictures
The Applied Computational Genomics Course is a bioinformatics training course, teaching tools and programs such as BioMoby, the Genome Canada Help Desk, BIRCH, BioLegato, BlueJay, and more. This summer the course is running from July 14th through to July 20th. Forty-three participants, including professors, post docs, graduate students, and industry membersregistered for the course taught by some of the most reputable bioinformatics scientists across Canada, including Dr. Brian Fristensky, Dr. Christoph Sensen, Dr. David Wishart, and Dr. Mark Wilkinson.
Here is a picture of some of the
participants. You can find more pictures from the course and from the Bioinformatic
Platform team at http://picasaweb.google.com/
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