Government of Alberta News Release. February 7, 2001 For Immediate Release. Key research initiatives helping Alberta gain and retain brains

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1 Government of Alberta News Release February 7, 2001 For Immediate Release Key research initiatives helping Alberta gain and retain brains CALGARY - Alberta is getting smarter by the minute, and support for some key research initiatives and projects will likely go a long way towards increasing the province's science and research IQ. "By working with the universities and other leading research organizations, we are gaining and retaining more "brains" than we are losing, thanks to our rock solid commitment to science, research and technology," said Minister of Innovation and Science Lorne Taylor. "Targeted investments in Alberta researchers and specific projects, combined with Alberta's overall quality of life and low tax environment, is making Alberta a magnet for some of the brightest and best minds from across Canada and around the world." Taylor listed a number of individuals who have moved to or stayed in the province in the past year, thanks to funding programs through organizations like the Informatics Circle of Research Excellence, and the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research. Recent announcements regarding the two new Health Research Innovation Centres and the Centres of Excellence in cardiology and joint injury will also help Alberta counteract the so-called "brain drain." To add to that, Taylor joined Chairman of the Alberta Science and Research Authority Bob Church in announcing four new research funding commitments, in addition to the $18.8 million research grants program announced February 1. The new initiatives include: A $5 million one-time equipment grant to Alberta's four universities to support research excellence, and lever federal infrastructure support for the Canada Research Chairs (CRC) program in Alberta. This in essence provides matching funding from the province to ensure Alberta universities can fully leverage and maximize CRC funding. A $10 million commitment to the Alberta Network of Proteomics Innovation (ANPI). This amount consists of $4 million provided earlier this year to assist with some urgent equipment requests, and $6 million in funding committed for other key equipment at the Universities of Alberta, Calgary and Lethbridge for the second stage of the project. A $2 million investment in the Genome Prairie projects, conditional on approval from Genome Canada. Specifically, the funding will go to support three large-scale genome research projects, two of which - Project CyberCell and the Prairie Mammalian Genomics Network - are primarily Alberta projects. A total commitment of $9.8 million to the Canadian Light Source ($6.7 million) and the Alberta Synchrotron Institute ($3.1 million). This funding will be provided over four and five years respectively, with an initial investment this year of $4.5 million. This funding is directed primarily at ensuring, and managing, access for Alberta researchers to Canada's first synchrotron facility that will be housed at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon. "Working closely with Alberta's universities and the provincial research community, we have identified these projects as key ones to help strengthen our on-going research efforts," said Church. "These investments not only give researchers the tools they need to do their jobs, they also represent one more reason why Alberta is fast becoming a place researchers around the world want to be."

2 The Alberta Science and Research Authority is an advisory body made up of leaders in Alberta's research and business community. One of ASRA's main roles is to advise the government on how to invest its annual research budget to ensure it aligns with an overall research and technology strategy, and to ensure that the projects and initiatives funded are based in strong, solid science. To help fulfill that mandate, ASRA also oversees and provides strategic direction for the Alberta Research Council, the Informatics Circle of Research Excellence (icore), the Alberta Energy Research Institute, the Alberta Agricultural Research Institute, and the Alberta Forestry Research Institute which will be established this spring. Additional information on these specific initiatives, the province's research priorities, and the Alberta Science and Research Authority is available on-line at or at For more information, contact: Brains gained; Brains retained Several leading researchers have relocated to Alberta over the last year as a result of research funding programs such as the Informatics Circle of Research Excellence (icore), and the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research (AHFMR). As a result, the attraction and retention of these world-class researchers has also attracted over 70 of the best graduate students in Canada to come to Alberta universities to carry out their ICT research, and AHFMR has provided funding to over 350 trainees in various areas of health research. "Brains gained" Among the researchers who have decided to relocate to Alberta in the past six months: Dr. Norman Beaulieu: An internationally renowned researcher in wireless communications, Dr. University of Alberta Beaulieu recently accepted the icore Chair in Wireless Communication at Dr. Graham Jullien: University of Calgary Dr. Carey Williamson: University of Calgary "Brains retained" the University of Alberta. Consistently classed among the top researchers in his field, Dr. Jullien accepted the icore Chair in Advanced Technology Information Processing Systems at the University of Calgary. A well-established leader and top researcher in the performance evaluation research community, Dr. Williamson has been awarded an icore Senior Research Fellowship in Broadband Wireless Networks, Protocols, Applications, and Performance. Among the existing world-class researchers in Alberta who have chosen to stay as a result of the positive funding climate and quality of life: Dr. Gérard Lachapelle Recognized worldwide for his work in wireless location, Dr. Lachapelle has University of Calgary been awarded the icore Chair in Wireless Location at the University of Calgary.

3 Dr. Jonathan Lakey University of Alberta Dr. Jonathan Schaeffer: University of Alberta For more information, please contact: Calgary. An Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research Scholar and Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Alberta, Dr. Lakey is a member of the islet transplantation team. Considered by many to be the world leader in his field, Dr. Schaeffer has been awarded the icore Chair in Building High-Performance Artificial Intelligence Systems. Canada Research Chairs (CRC) Funding In its 2000 budget, the federal government announced it would provide $900 million over five years through its granting councils to establish and sustain 2,000 Canada Research Chairs by The program's key objective is to attract and retain a critical mass of world-class researchers in Canada. Alberta universities are projected to receive a total of 204 Chairs. The provincial investment of $5 million to support equipment for Research Chairs will help leverage some of the total $25.5 million in Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) funding that Alberta could be eligible for in association with the Chairs program. It will also help ensure Alberta universities have the ability to successfully compete for star researchers through this program, and that support maximizes Alberta's share of the CFI infrastructure funding allocated to support the Canada Research Chairs program. Over a period of approximately 5 years, 126 Chairs have been awarded to the University of Alberta, 69 to the University of Calgary, 7 to the University of Lethbridge and 2 to Athabasca University. The $5 million commitment under the Alberta Science and Research Authority Innovation and Science Research Investments Program (ISRIP) provides Alberta universities with the support needed to leverage research equipment support for Canada Research Chair (CRC) holders and other promising researchers. Approximately 70 per cent, or $3.5 million, of the total amount has been allocated according to the established formula for the Intellectual Infrastructure Partnership Program Equipment Grant, which is based on success in obtaining federal granting council awards and number of faculty. The remaining $1.5 million has been allocated between the Universities of Alberta and Calgary according to their proportionate share of Canada Research Chairs. The University of Lethbridge and Athabasca University are exempt from meeting CFI matching requirements for infrastructure funds directed towards Chairs. The universities will direct the support towards Canada Research Chair recipients and recipients of Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) New Opportunities awards. For more information, contact:

4 Canadian Light Source/Alberta Synchrotron Institute Alberta Science and Research Authority (ASRA) funding for the Canadian Light Source/Alberta Synchrotron Institute will ensure access for Alberta researchers to Canada's first synchrotron facility at the University of Saskatchewan. Synchrotron Technology A synchrotron is a large device that uses strong magnets to accelerate electrons traveling near the speed of light. Different magnets produce different types of light that are transferred to workstations by powerful light sources called "beamlines." Light produced is 1,000 times more powerful than conventional x-ray machines, and has many unique qualities. Synchrotron light can provide information previously unattainable to researchers. It can be focused on microscopic areas, or inside mineral samples or living organisms, and allows the scientific community to better study areas previously unreachable, such as corrosion cracks, protein structures, catalyst mechanisms and other problems requiring high-intensity light. Two types of beamlines will be developed: protein crystallography, which directly applies to biomedical and pharmaceutical advancements, and x-ray microprobe, for use by the oil and gas industry. Canadian Light Source Canadian Light Source (CLS) is a state-of-the-art synchrotron facility - the first of its kind in Canada. Once operational, researchers - including ones from Alberta - will use this advanced technology for analysis of samples and for proprietary research, with benefits for research in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, advanced materials, telecommunications and electronic industries. CLS will be located at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, and is expected to be fully operational by National and international interest in this project is high - and long waiting lists are anticipated once the centre is operational. The Alberta Synchrotron Institute The Alberta Synchrotron Institute (ASI) is sponsored by ASRA, the Universities of Alberta, Calgary and Lethbridge, and Western Economic Diversification. The ASI will remain in operation until the Canadian Light Source is fully established, and will manage projects throughout Alberta requiring synchrotron technology. The institute will also train the province's top academic and industrial researchers to ensure they are able to incorporate this new technology into their work. For more information, please contact:

5 Alberta Network for Proteomics Innovation (ANPI) The creation of the Alberta Network for Proteomics Innovation (ANPI) was proposed and developed by Western Economic Diversification (WED), Alberta Innovation and Science, the Universities of Alberta, Calgary and Lethbridge, and other key partners including the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research (AHFMR). The network was established to bring together the province's research strengths in this emerging area, which will impact a wide range of evolving research themes in Alberta, including those within health sciences, biotechnology, agriculture, forestry and the environment. The ANPI strategic request to Innovation and Science and the Alberta Science and Research Authority (ASRA) for start-up equipment was peer reviewed and approved in two stages: Stage 1: Approval of $4 million in mid-2000 for urgent equipment requests. Stage 2: Approval of $6 million in February 2001 for other key equipment at these three universities. The funding will enable the first phases of establishing Alberta as a leader in post-genomics or proteomics research. It is expected that the ANPI initiative will lead to the hiring of an additional 45 research faculty within Alberta over the next five years. What is proteomics? The genetic code contains the information that orchestrates the life, death and characteristics of all living organisms. The entire genetic code for an organism is called the genome. The genome is comprised of thousands of genes. Genes specify individual traits. The human genome consists of approximately 100,000 genes. Identification and characterization of the genes is called genomics. In recent years, scientists have undertaken to determine the sequence of information ("the blueprint") within the genomes of humans and other scientifically and medically important organisms. The "easy" part of genomics - producing the blueprints - is nearing completion. The next challenge will be to learn how to read the blueprints so scientists can correlate genes with function. Most genes contain the information for the production of proteins, which determine how cells and organisms function. Virtually every property of the organism is dependent upon protein function. When something goes wrong with a protein, it can cause disease. So identifying the proteins and protein complexes associated with all processes in healthy and diseased organisms is critical to an understanding of human biology. It is a gargantuan task, particularly because proteins are far more complex than the genes that code for them. Now the task of characterizing proteins has acquired a new name - proteomics - and is rapidly becoming the focus of modern biomedical and related research areas. For more information, contact:

6 Genome Prairie Projects The vision of Genome Prairie, a non-profit corporation established under the Canada Corporations Act, is to be a world leader in genomic research, to contribute to infrastructure development of strategic importance to the prairies and Canada, and to establish networks amongst academic, government and industry researchers for collaborative, multidisciplinary leading edge genomics research. Genome Prairie is focusing its initial efforts on three large-scale scientific projects, two of which - Project CyberCell and the Prairie Mammalian Genomics Network - are primarily Alberta projects. In accordance with its focus on life sciences, the Government of Alberta through the Alberta Science and Research Authority is providing Genome Prairie with $2 million in support, conditional on approval by Genome Canada. Both projects were highly rated by the international peer review team used by Genome Prairie. Project CyberCell The vision of Project CyberCell is to develop a virtual cell that can be manipulated at different levels of molecular resolution and that can respond, adapt and evolve to fit its virtual environment. E. Coli will serve as the model that will generate the concepts and technology for extending the CyberCell to more complicated cell types and eventually, multi-cellular organisms. Project Leaders: Dr. Michael James and Dr. Mike Ellison, Department of Biochemistry, University of Alberta The Prairie Mammalian Genomics Network (pmagnet) The objectives of the pmagnet can be broadly defined as follows: To identify genes that underpin a wide number of human diseases through primary gene discovery and mutation analysis in unique human populations indigenous to Western Canada, genome-wide screens of mouse embryonic stem cells and the generation of animal models of disease. To evaluate diagnostic and therapeutic potential of genes/gene products through their development of animal models of human genetic disease. To elucidate genomic networks and additional targets for therapeutic intervention through the use of functional genomics approaches. A key mandate of pmagnet will be to develop, evaluate and test predictive and diagnostic interventions for use in human population screening in a manner that empowers the studied populations as important partners and stake holders in the process. Project Leaders: Dr. Torben Bech-Hansen, Dr. Frank Jirik and Dr. Floyd Snyder of the University of Calgary. Both projects' research teams are primarily made up of Alberta researchers - demonstrating the Alberta Government's commitment to keeping leading researchers in the province.

7 For more information, please contact: Alberta Index Dept Index Innovation and Science Home Page News Releases Top of Page Comments regarding presentation should be forwarded Technical and service related questions should be forwarded Copyright(c); 2001 Government of Alberta Return to Government Home Page