Grants and Contributions

Light-headedness and fainting occurs when the cardiovascular system is unable to maintain arterial pressures during rapid changes in posture, such as standing up from a horizontal position. Some astronauts experience such symptoms after returning to Earth from space and the underlying factors are still poorly understood. The research team will analyze data from the recent CIHR-based Bed Rest Study of 55-65-year-old men and women wich they propose can provide information on how the blood supply to the brain is related to fainting. The results will be an important step towards the prevention of fainting in astronauts and people on Earth.

Findings from Viking and Phoenix Mars landers have revealed the widespread presence of perchlorates in Mars regolith at concentrations that are toxic to humans and plants. The MARSCROP project will explore the use of perchlorate reducing bacteria associated with willow roots to mitigate regolith toxicity as well as determine the potential for co-cropping of willow with tomato and soybean to produce safe fresh food for astronauts on the surface of Mars. The project findings will hope to exploit multisystem biology which has evolved on earth to help solve complex challenges and safeguard astronaut health on the Martian surface.

Vision loss due to Space Associated Neuro-Ocular Syndrome (SANS) is observed in many astronauts, is poorly understood, and remains one of the most feared hazards of space flight. The loss of gravity causes shift of fluids, including blood to the upper body, and these disturbances around the eye, especially in the choroid, the most vascularized tissue in the body, may be an important piece of the puzzle. Novel non-invasive eye imaging techniques will be used to examine blood vessel changes in the choroid for the first time in a model of SANS. Discovering biomarkers of excess and persistent blood and fluid entry into the eye will be an important step toward understanding and predicting SANS and preventing vision loss from SANS in astronauts.

Space’s low gravity leads to bone and muscle loss which can compromise astronauts’ missions. Previous work showed that the knee cartilage of mice breakdown after a period in space’s low gravity. But little is known about the effect of low gravity on human cartilage. The research team will use human stem cells from adult females and males to make cartilage to study the effect of low gravity on cartilage. They will use an instrument designed by NASA to replicate low gravity. They hope their work will shed new light into osteoarthritis, a common disease in Canadians with cartilage breakdown at its core.

This project addresses the needs of Venezuelan migrant women and girls in Guyana impacted by Gender-Based Violence (GBV). The project achieves this by improving the quality, and increasing the availability and awareness, of services that address GBV in collaboration with government and other civil society organizations. Project activities include: (1) training law enforcement officers, immigration officers, and health care workers in three regions of Guyana to provide high-quality, dignified care and services to GBV survivors; (2) conducting a campaign to effect changes in beliefs, attitudes, and behaviours around GBV and ensure that migrants know f their rights and the services available to them; (3) providing legal and administrative services in clinics in two regions and psychosocial support in four regions for GBV survivors; and (4) training partners and service providers on referral pathways and monitoring and coordinating the delivery of GBV support services in six regions of Guyana.

This project is part of the Local Engagement and Action Fund (LEAF) that supports civil society and local organizations across the Caribbean to implement initiatives that respond to local needs and advance the aims and strategic objectives of Canada’s Caribbean Regional Development Program.

Footprints on the Land - Cheslatta Carrier Nation Guardianship Program

Membrane Dehydration of Sieve Regen Steam

Knowledge Mobilization of an Inuvialuktun Glossary of Terms Related to Climate Change, Clean Energy, and the Environment

Matawa Carbon Assessment

River Restoration 2023