Organization: Univ of British Columbia

CIHR funds groundbreaking heroin clinical trial

The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) is providing $8.1 million for North America’s first clinical trial of prescribed heroin for chronic addicts. The two-year North American Opiate Medication Initiative (NAOMI) will try to determine ways to improve the health of addicts and reintegrate them back into society. It will enrol 470 participants in Vancouver,…

BC institutions create unique convergence campus

Four British Columbia-based institutions have formed a consortium to create Great Northern Way Campus (GNWC) to foster collaborative research and innovative academic programming at the convergence of science and technology with art, culture and design. The Campus will be located on a 7.6-hectare site just east of downtown Vancouver on land donated in 2001 by…

MDS Nordion brings third cyclotron on line

MDS Nordion Inc has officially launched its third cyclotron at TRIUMF on the campus of the Univ of British Columbia. The TR-30-2 cyclotron has begun commercial production of medical isotopes following authorization by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. The $20-million project, which includes an expansion of the site’s production facility and new development space, will…

Genome research project secures corporate backing

The largest project ever funded by Genome Canada — Functional Patho-genomics of Mucosal Immunity — has netted two corporate sponsors. Inimex Pharmaceuticals Inc of Vancouver and the newly created Pyxis Genomics Canada Inc (a subsidiary of Chicago-based Pyxis Genomics Inc) are contributing a total of $10.5 million for exclusive rights to commercialize discoveries arising from…

Kaiser Foundation donates $4 million to UBC faculty

The Univ of British Columbia’s faculty of applied science has received a $4-million donation from the Kaiser Foundation for Higher Education, the largest private sector donation in the faculty’s history. The money will go towards the development of a new electrical and computer engineering building, which has also received funding from the provincial government. The…

CFI funds new researchers and infrastructure

The Canada Foundation for Innovation has announced awards of more than $22 million for new university faculty and operating funds for research infrastructure. Under the New Opportunities Fund (NOF), $17 million was awarded to 27 universities for 98 projects, bringing funds committed under the program to more than $300 million. NOF allocates funds to universities…

UBC receives $1.4-million gift from HSBC Bank Canada

The Univ of British Columbia has received its largest donation from a bank, with a $1.4-million gift from HSBC Bank Canada. UBC will match the gift, creating a $2.8-million fund to be used for scholarships and bursaries, infrastructure at the university’s new downtown campus and courses offered to Downtown Eastside residents. HSBC Bank Canada is…

Canada Research Chairs program makes more awards

The Canada Research Chairs (CRC) program has announced $83 million in funding for 76 researchers, bringing the total awarded to date to 271. Tier I (experienced) researchers received 50 chairs, while Tier II (rising star) researchers received 26 chairs. The universities receiving the most chairs in this round were all from the west: Univ of…

Vortek receives TPC funding for computer chip R&D

Vortek Industries Ltd, Vancouver, has received $3.9 million in assistance from Technology Partnerships Canada (TPC) for an R&D project relating to its impulse anneal rapid thermal (iRTP) processing technology. The technology is an advancement in the thermal annealing process used in the manufacture of semiconductor computer chips. The iRTP system subjects silicon wafers to a…