CLYDRN - Key Persons
Dr. Adam-Poupart is a Clinical Instructor in the Department of Environmental Health & Occupational Health in the School of Public Health, Université de Montréal. She is apart of the Epidemiology of Zoonoses and Public Health Research Unit (GREZOSP). Read more…
Dr. Adam-Poupart is a Clinical Instructor in the Department of Environmental Health & Occupational Health in the School of Public Health, Université de Montréal. She is apart of the Epidemiology of Zoonoses and Public Health Research Unit (GREZOSP). She is also a Scientific Advisor in the Department of Biological Hazards & Occupational Health at the Institut National de Santé Publique du Québec (INSPQ). She obtained a specialized graduate diploma in Environmental Health & Disaster Management, a MSc degree in Environmental Health & Occupational Health at the Université de Montréal and a PhD in Public Health at the Université de Montréal in 2015. Her primary mandate is to monitor Lyme disease and other tick-borne diseases.
Dr. Adam-Poupart is a Knowledge User on the grant. She will contribute to risk reduction and prevention research activities (Pillar 2). She will offer her expertise in occupational health as part of the establishment of the network of sentinel sites and offer training and support to workers during tick collection.
Job Titles:
- Clinical Research Specialist at the Applied Health Research Centre
Dr. Juandó-Prats is a Clinical Research Specialist at the Applied Health Research Centre (AHRC), the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael's Hospital. She completed her Bachelor of Nursing Science at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, a Master's of Health Care Management at the University of Barcelona and a Master's of Nursing at the University of Edinburgh. Read more…
Dr. Juandó-Prats is a Clinical Research Specialist at the Applied Health Research Centre (AHRC), the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael's Hospital. She completed her Bachelor of Nursing Science at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, a Master's of Health Care Management at the University of Barcelona and a Master's of Nursing at the University of Edinburgh. She worked as a Nurse, Research Nurse, Knowledge Translation Coordinator and Assistant Professor before she returned to school to earn her PhD in Nursing from the University of Toronto.
Dr. Juandó-Prats uses visual methods and critical social theory to study access and utilization to healthcare resources by vulnerable populations in Toronto. The focus of her work at the AHRC has been evaluation of complex interventions, qualitative and mixed methods designs for health research, knowledge translation and health inequities.
Dr. Juandó-Prats is a Co-Applicant on the grant. She will work with Dr. Janet Parsons and others on the Brokered Dialogue process and other patient and community stakeholder engagement activities (Pillar 4).
Job Titles:
- Director of the Scottish Lyme Disease
Dr Sally Mavin is the Director of the Scottish Lyme Disease and Tick-borne infection Reference Laboratory in Inverness, UK. She received her PhD from the University of Aberdeen and has worked on the laboratory diagnosis of Lyme disease as a Clinical Scientist for almost 20 years.
Job Titles:
- FACC, FRPC
- Scientist at Kingston General Hospital ( KGH ) Research Institute
Dr. Baranchuk is a Knowledge User on the grant. Given his specific expertise as a Cardiologist, he will participate in the Training Advisory Committee as well as in knowledge translation and training as it relates to cardiology (Pillar 4).
Dr. Adrian Baranchuk is a Clinician-scientist at Kingston General Hospital (KGH) Research Institute, and a Professor at Queen's University in the School of Medicines Division of Cardiology with cross appointment in the Department of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences. He received his MD from the University of Buenos Aires. After qualifying in Internal Medicine and Cardiology, he completed a Clinical Fellowship in Cardiac Electrophysiology. Read more…
Job Titles:
- Distinguished Professor of Medicine
Dr. Alan Barbour is Distinguished Professor of Medicine, Microbiology & Molecular, and Ecology & Evolutionary Biology at the University of California Irvine (UCI). He received his MD from Tufts School of Medicine in Boston and was an internal medicine resident at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Hanover, New Hampshire. After national service as a public health officer and epidemiologist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, he completed training in Internal Medicine and the subspeciality of Infectious Disease at the University of Utah. Read more…
Job Titles:
- Principal
- Scientist and Director of Health Modeling & Health Economics and Population Health Economics Research at THETA
Dr. Beate Sander is a Scientist and Director of Health Modeling & Health Economics and Population Health Economics Research at THETA (Toronto Health Economics and Technology Assessment Collaborative), University Health Network. She is an Associate Professor and Faculty Lead, Health Technology Assessment program, Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto. Read more…
Dr. Beate Sander is a Scientist and Director of Health Modeling & Health Economics and Population Health Economics Research at THETA (Toronto Health Economics and Technology Assessment Collaborative), University Health Network. She is an Associate Professor and Faculty Lead, Health Technology Assessment program, Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto. She also holds appointments as Adjunct Scientist at Public Health Ontario and the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES). Dr. Sander is a member of Canada's National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) and the incoming Vice President of the Society of Medical Decision Making.
Dr. Sander earned her Bachelors of Nursing Science from the Chemnitz School of Nursing in Germany, a Master's of Business Administration from the Technische Universitat Bergakademie Freiberg, a Master's of Economics of Development from the Australian National University and a PhD in Health Services Research from the University of Toronto.
Dr. Sander's areas of expertise include health economics, decision analysis and simulation, infectious disease epidemiology and population health decision-making. Her current research focuses on economic evaluation, ranging from methods development to applied research on infectious diseases. She has spearheaded the linkage of laboratory and reportable disease data with administrative data, enabling novel approaches to study the burden of infectious diseases. Recent work on Lyme disease include systematic reviews on health outcomes, quality of life and economic evaluations for Lyme disease as well as a costing study, determining healthcare resource utilization attributable to Lyme disease.
Dr. Sander is a Principal Applicant on the grant and will act as the Network's Scientific Co-Director. She will direct the health services research theme (Pillar 3), including determining long-term outcomes and burden of disease, and conducting economic evaluation. She will also have involvement in risk reduction and prevention activities (Pillar 2) and patient and community engagement strategy (Pillar 4).
Job Titles:
- Research Scientist at St. Michael 's Hospital
Dr. Billie-Jo Hardy is a Research Scientist at St. Michael's Hospital. She has a PhD in Medical Sciences from the University of Toronto. She has expertise in research ethics, stakeholder analysis and community engagement and has experience in both global and Indigenous health research. Read more…
Dr. Billie-Jo Hardy is a Research Scientist at St. Michael's Hospital. She has a PhD in Medical Sciences from the University of Toronto. She has expertise in research ethics, stakeholder analysis and community engagement and has experience in both global and Indigenous health research. Her current work focuses on consensus building with a cross-national Indigenous-led public health network regarding public health implementation systems, and cultural safety training of health professionals at the Well Living House, St. Michael's Hospital. She has conducted research on behalf of the Sandra Rotman Centre for Global Health Research, the Centre for Ethical Social and Cultural Risk, the Institute for Ethics, Policy and Innovation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Dr. Hardy is a Co-Applicant on the grant. She will work closely with the Patient and Community Engagement team (Pillar 4). She will share her knowledge and expertise in stakeholder engagement, trust and consensus building and community engagement towards building and sustaining a network of diverse stakeholders with interests on Lyme disease.
Dr. Catherine Bouchard is a Veterinary Epidemiologist for the Public Health Agency of Canada and Adjunct Professor in the Department of pathology and microbiology at the Université de Montréal. Read more…
Dr. Catherine Bouchard is a Veterinary Epidemiologist for the Public Health Agency of Canada and Adjunct Professor in the Department of pathology and microbiology at the Université de Montréal. Her research focuses on developing integrated social-behavioral/ecological risk models, spatiotemporal modelling, forecasting of tick-borne diseases, optimizing tick-borne surveillance and strengthening public health practice.
Job Titles:
- Family Physician With the Lunenburg Family Health Collaborative Clinic
Dr. Cecilia Newton is a Family Physician with the Lunenburg Family Health Collaborative Clinic in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. She received her MD and completed a residency in Family Medicine from the Dalhousie University Faculty of Medicine. She is certified as a Family Physician by the College of Family Physicians of Canada.
Dr. Newton is a Co-Applicant on the grant. She will encourage the physicians at the Lunenburg clinic (an area which has a high incidence of Lyme disease) to participate in collection of data and specimen collection or any other activities to ensure the success of establishing a local patient cohort and biobank.
Dr. Cecilia Newton is a Family Physician with the Lunenburg Family Health Collaborative Clinic in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. She received her MD and completed a residency in Family Medicine from the Dalhousie University Faculty of Medicine. She is certified as a Family Physician by the College of Family Physicians of Canada. Read more…
Dr. Claire Jardine is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pathobiology at the Ontario Veterinary College at the University of Guelph. She is also the Regional Director of the Canadian Wildlife Health Cooperative for Ontario and Nunavut. Dr. Jardine completed a MSc in Ecology at the University of British Columbia. Read more…
Dr. Claire Jardine is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pathobiology at the Ontario Veterinary College at the University of Guelph. She is also the Regional Director of the Canadian Wildlife Health Cooperative for Ontario and Nunavut. Dr. Jardine completed a MSc in Ecology at the University of British Columbia. Following this she earned her DVM and PhD at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan.
Research in the Jardine Lab is focused on understanding the ecology of zoonotic pathogens in wildlife populations and ticks and tick-borne pathogens. In particular they are looking at the ecology of ticks and tick-borne pathogens including Borrelia burgdorferi.
Dr. Jardine is a Co-Applicant on the grant and will contribute to prevention and risk reduction activities (Pillar 2). In particular she will assist with vector surveillance activities in the Guelph region.
Job Titles:
- Senior Program Specialist With the Enteric
Dr. Curtis Russell is a Senior Program Specialist with the Enteric, Zoonotic, and Vector-Borne Diseases team at Public Health Ontario. Dr. Russell has spent the last 14 years working on vector-borne diseases in Ontario and has an interest in both the human and tick side of Lyme disease. In his role, he provides expert advice and consultative services to Ontario's public health units on vector-borne diseases such as West Nile virus and Lyme disease. He received his PhD in Biology from Brock University.
Dr. Russell is a Co-Applicant on the grant. He will assist with blacklegged tick surveillance and contribute to various Network databases.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor at the Université De Montréal
Dr. Cécile Aenishaenslin is an Assistant Professor at the Université de Montréal where she is apart of the Research Group in Epidemiology of Zoonoses and Public Health (GREZOSP). She received her DVM and PhD in Epidemiology (Veterinarian Sciences) from the Université de Montréal. She recently completed a post-doctoral position in the Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics & Occupational health at McGill University.
Job Titles:
- Medical Microbiologist and Infectious Diseases Consultant
Dr. Daniel Gregson is a Medical Microbiologist and Infectious Diseases Consultant, for Alberta Health Services, Calgary Zone and an Associate Professor of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine and Medicine at the University of Calgary. He is a former President of the Association of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases(AMMI) Canada.
Dr. Gregson is a Knowledge User on the grant.
Dr. Dongmei Chen is a Professor in the Department of Geography & Planning at Queen's University with cross-appointment to the Department of Environmental Studies. She has over 20 years of experience in GIS and remote sensing application and software development programming and is a consultant and research collaborator for the the Ontario Ministry of Environment, Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care, Public Health Agency of Canada, among other academic and public health institutions. Read more…
Dr. Dongmei Chen is a Professor in the Department of Geography & Planning at Queen's University with cross-appointment to the Department of Environmental Studies. She has over 20 years of experience in GIS and remote sensing application and software development programming and is a consultant and research collaborator for the the Ontario Ministry of Environment, Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care, Public Health Agency of Canada, among other academic and public health institutions. She has a Masters in GIS and remote sensing application from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and a PhD in Geography from San Diego State University/University of California at Sanata Barbara.
Dr. Chen's Lab, the Laboratory of Geographic Information and Spatial Analyst focuses on developing a stimulating environment for research and training on geographic data collection, management, mapping, visualization, analysis, and modeling. The core techniques in the lab include geographic information science, remote sensing, spatial analysis and environmental modelling. the understanding and modeling of interactions between human activities and the physical environment by using GIS and remote sensing techniques and spatial modeling approaches from local to regional scales. Her research group have worked on spatio-temporal mapping and modeling of Lyme disease risk in eastern Ontario for over eight years.
Dr. Chen is a Co-Applicant on the grant. She will contribute to risk reduction and prevention research activities. Specifically she will participate in Lyme risk characterization through linking tick surveillance and human case data to environmental/climate factors and social determinants and contribute to the better understanding of how climate and land use change impact the tick and its host habitats and human Lyme risk.
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Medicine at Dalhousie University
Dr. Elizabeth Stringer is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Medicine at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She is a pediatric rheumatologist and clinical researcher at the IWK Health Centre, the tertiary care pediatric hospital for the Maritime provinces. Read more…
Dr. Elizabeth Stringer is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Medicine at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She is a pediatric rheumatologist and clinical researcher at the IWK Health Centre, the tertiary care pediatric hospital for the Maritime provinces. Dr. Stringer completed her medical training and pediatric residency at Dalhousie University, followed by 3 years in Toronto completing her pediatric rheumatology fellowship and a master's degree in Clinical Epidemiology. Dr. Stringer joined the Division of Pediatric Rheumatology in 2008. Dr. Stringer's interest in Lyme disease began early in her career when the Pediatric Rheumatology Clinic at the IWK Health Centre began seeing increasing numbers of children with Lyme arthritis. She published a study describing the clinic's early observations of outcomes of Lyme arthritis. Her present work involves collaboration with orthopedic, infection disease and microbiology colleagues aimed at earlier diagnosis of Lyme arthritis, particularly differentiating Lyme arthritis from septic arthritis.
Dr. Stringer has recently joined the network and will oversee and coordinate patient recruitment for the biobank and clinical cohort in Nova Scotia.
Dr. Erin Fraser is Public Health Veterinarian in the Communicable Disease and Immunization Service at the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC). She has 20 years of experience as an Epidemiologist, Public Health Veterinarian and Researcher. She has 10 years of leadership and management experience founding and building an international development agency, Veterinarians without Borders-Canada. She has worked across Canada and internationally with interdisciplinary, multicultural teams to develop programs and projects that address locally relevant public and animal health issues. Dr. Fraser received her BSc, DVM and MSc in Epidemiology from the University of Guelph.
Dr. Fraser is a Co-Applicant on the grant. She will contribute to risk reduction and prevention research activities (Pillar 2). More specifically, she will contribute to sentinel surveillance and epidemiology research activities with a focus on integrating BC data and evidence from multiple sources (human, animal and environment).
Dr. Erin Fraser is Public Health Veterinarian in the Communicable Disease and Immunization Service at the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC). She has 20 years of experience as an Epidemiologist, Public Health Veterinarian and Researcher. Read more…
Dr. Francois Milord is an Associate Professor in the Department of Community Health Sciences at the Universit é de Sherbrooke and a Medical Consultant at the Mont ér égie Public Health Department. After receiving his MD from the Universit é de Sherbrooke, he completed a MSc in Community Health and a specialization in the same field at the Université de Montréal. Read more…
Dr. Francois Milord is an Associate Professor in the Department of Community Health Sciences at the Universit é de Sherbrooke and a Medical Consultant at the Mont ér égie Public Health Department. After receiving his MD from the Universit é de Sherbrooke, he completed a MSc in Community Health and a specialization in the same field at the Université de Montréal.
Dr. Milord has expertise in the surveillance and control of infectious diseases, especially those that are zoonotic and vector-borne. His current research focuses on Lyme disease and infection prevention among international travelers. He is a member of a group of experts on tick-borne diseases of the National Institute of Public Health of Qu ébec.
Dr. Milord is a Knowledge User on the grant. He will apply research results to public health practice.
Job Titles:
- Medical Consultant in the Health Protection Department of the Estrie Health
Dr. Geneviève Baron is a Medical Consultant in the Health Protection Department of the Estrie Health and Social Services Agency in the field of Infectious Diseases. She is responsible for immunization dossiers and infection prevention and control. She is also an Associate Professor in the Department of Community Health Sciences at the Université de Sherbrooke. Read more…
Dr. Geneviève Baron is a Medical Consultant in the Health Protection Department of the Estrie Health and Social Services Agency in the field of Infectious Diseases. She is responsible for immunization dossiers and infection prevention and control. She is also an Associate Professor in the Department of Community Health Sciences at the Université de Sherbrooke. She earned her MD, a specialized degree in Community Health and a MSc in Clinical Sciences from the Université de Sherbrooke.
Dr. Baron carries out studies in the field of evaluation of cancer screening program, immunization programs, preventive clinical practices and the evaluation of public health programs in general. She has also practiced as a public health consultant in the planning, evaluation and research services, as well as in the health status monitoring service off the Montérégie Health and Social Services Agency.
Dr. Baron is a Co-Applicant on the grant. She will contribute to research activities on risk reduction and prevention, where she will provide expertise on population health approaches.
Dr. George Chaconas is a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and Microbiology, Immunology & Infectious Diseases at the University of Calgary. He completed his PhD in Medical Biochemistry at the University of Calgary and completed post-doctoral studies in Cold Spring Harbour Laboratory. He held the position of Canada Research Chair in Molecular Biology of Lyme Borreliosis from 2003-2017.
Work in his laboratory is focused on Borrelia burgdorferi, the spirochete causing Lyme disease. His research includes studies on a variety of processes in this organism including telomere resolution, antigenic variation, genome dynamics, regulation of global gene expression by an RNA helicase, intravital microscopy to study B. burgdorferi dissemination in a living host and a new approach to screen for Borrelia species. Most recently he has begun collaborating with his University of Calgary colleague, Dr. Ian Lewis, in developing metabolomics-based tools detecting bloodstream pathogens, in particular Borrelia Burgdorferi.
Dr. Chaconas is a Principal Applicant on the grant. He will contribute to research activities involving detection and diagnosis (Pillar 1).
Dr. George Chaconas is a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and Microbiology, Immunology & Infectious Diseases at the University of Calgary. He completed his PhD in Medical Biochemistry at the University of Calgary and completed post-doctoral studies in Cold Spring Harbour Laboratory. He held the position of Canada Research Chair in Molecular Biology of Lyme Borreliosis from 2003-2017. Read more…
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Division of Infectious Diseases
Dr. Gerald Evans is the Chair of the Division of Infectious Diseases and a Professor in the Departments of Medicine, Biomedical & Molecular Sciences, and Pathology & Molecular Medicine at Queen's University. He is also an Attending Physician in Infectious Diseases and Internal Medicine at the Kingston Health Sciences Center (KHSC). Read more…
Dr. Gerald Evans is the Chair of the Division of Infectious Diseases and a Professor in the Departments of Medicine, Biomedical & Molecular Sciences, and Pathology & Molecular Medicine at Queen's University. He is also an Attending Physician in Infectious Diseases and Internal Medicine at the Kingston Health Sciences Center (KHSC). Lastly, he is a Scientist with the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES). Dr. Evans received his MD from the University of Ottawa School of Medicine and completed his training in Internal Medicine with residencies at the University of Toronto and Ottawa. He completed a fellowship in Infectious Diseases at the University of Calgary.
Dr. Evans is the past president of the Association of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Disease (AMMI) Canada. He is a member of the Ontario Anti-infective Review Panel, and former chair of the Guidelines Committee of AMMI Canada. He is past chair of the Committee to Evaluate Drugs of the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care(MOH LTC), the Ministry's expert advisory committee on optimal drug utilization for the province of Ontario. He is a Co-investigator with the Ontario Drug Policy Research Network. He also serves as a member of the Committee to Evaluate Drugs-Cancer Care Ontario Subcommittee and is Chair of the Working Group on Drugs for Rare Diseases for the MOH LTC. Dr. Evans routinely evaluates, diagnoses and treats individuals with Lyme disease in his role as Infectious Disease Consultant at KHSC and has published in the area of Lyme disease diagnostic testing.
Dr. Evans is a Co-Applicant on the grant and will assist in recruitment of individuals with Lyme disease for the national patient cohort/biobank, the clinical assessment and longitudinal follow up of persons diagnosed with Lyme disease and contribute towards the creation of knowledge resources to help health care professionals and the public better understand the risks, diagnosis and management of Lyme disease in Canada (Pillar 4).
Job Titles:
- Full Professor
- Principal Investigator of ETick
Dr. Jade Savage is a Full Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Bishop's University. She completed her BSc in Biology and PhD in Entomology both at McGill University. She has experience in electronic surveillance of ticks, especially Ixodes scapularis. Read more…
Dr. Prameet Sheth is a Clinical Microbiologist at the Kingston General Hospital. In his role at KGH, he oversees all the microbiological testing for patients that present to KGH and surrounding hospitals. He is also a Researcher and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pathology & Molecular Medicine at Queen's University. Read more…
Dr. Jade Savage is a Full Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Bishop's University. She completed her BSc in Biology and PhD in Entomology both at McGill University. She has experience in electronic surveillance of ticks, especially Ixodes scapularis.
Dr. Savage is the principal investigator of eTick (www.etick.ca), an electronic public platform for image-based identification and population monitoring of ticks in Canada. The citizen science project invites the public to participate in the monitoring of ticks in Canada by submitting tick photos on the eTick app or website for identification by a professional.
Dr. Savage is a Co-Applicant on the grant. She will share the tick surveillance data collected through eTick and use the network to constantly improve and update the province-specific public health messages disseminated through the platform.
Job Titles:
- Principal
- Research Scientist at the Applied Health Research Centre
Dr. Janet Parsons is a Research Scientist at the Applied Health Research Centre (AHRC), the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael's Hospital. Additionally, she is an Associate Professor in the Department of Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Sciences Institute at the University of Toronto. Read more…
Dr. Janet Parsons is a Research Scientist at the Applied Health Research Centre (AHRC), the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael's Hospital. Additionally, she is an Associate Professor in the Department of Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Sciences Institute at the University of Toronto. She is also an Associate Member for the University of Toronto's School of Graduate Studies and a CQ Fellow for the Centre for Critical Qualitative Health Research in the Dalla Lana School of Public Health. Dr. Parsons practiced as a physiotherapist for 18 years in acute-care teaching hospitals before completing a MSc and PhD both in Medical Sciences at the University of Toronto.
Her research is focused on applying qualitative methodologies to a variety of health care issues. Most recently, she has developed a new film-based method (Brokered Dialogue) with Dr. Jim Lavery. Her main interests include patients' experiences of cancer and other illnesses, health services delivery, drug policy, health disparities, and the sociology of health and illness. Additional interests include arts-based research, knowledge translation, and public engagement in health care.
Dr. Parsons is a Principal Applicant on the grant. She will lead the patient and community engagement strategy, including the planned Brokered Dialogue process (Pillar 4).
Job Titles:
- Professor and Researcher at the Department of Animal Health
Dr. Jean-Philippe Rocheleau is a professor and researcher at the Department of Animal Health at Cegep de Saint-Hyacinthe and adjunct professor at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of the Université de Montréal. He is a member of the Research Group on Zoonoses Epidemiology and Public Health (GREZOSP). Read more…
Dr. Jean-Philippe Rocheleau is a professor and researcher at the Department of Animal Health at Cegep de Saint-Hyacinthe and adjunct professor at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of the Université de Montréal. He is a member of the Research Group on Zoonoses Epidemiology and Public Health (GREZOSP). Dr. Rocheleau received his DVM and PhD in Veterinary Sciences / Epidemiology both from the Université de Montréal.
Dr. Rocheleau specializes in public health issues at the human-animal-environment interface, with a special focus on vector-borne diseases. His research interests include zoonoses, epidemiology and education to One Health approaches.
Dr. Rocheleau is a Co-Applicant on the grant. He will contribute to research activities on risk reduction and prevention (Pillar 2), mostly by a research program focusing on rodent-targeted interventions. He currently co-leads the Risk reduction innovation working group of Pillar 2.
Job Titles:
- Founding Director of the Laboratory for Industrial
- Professor
Dr. Jianhong Wu is a Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at York University. He holds the life-long title of Distinguished Research Professor (2011), the Canada Research Chair in Industrial and Applied Mathematics since 2001, the NSERC/Sanofi Industrial Research Chair in Vaccine Mathematics, Modelling and Manufacturing, and serves as Editor-in-Chief of Infectious Disease Modelling. Read more…
Dr. Jianhong Wu is a Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at York University. He holds the life-long title of Distinguished Research Professor (2011), the Canada Research Chair in Industrial and Applied Mathematics since 2001, the NSERC/Sanofi Industrial Research Chair in Vaccine Mathematics, Modelling and Manufacturing, and serves as Editor-in-Chief of Infectious Disease Modelling. He is recognized internationally for his expertise in nonlinear dynamics and delay differential equations, neural networks and pattern recognition, mathematical ecology and epidemiology and big data analytics. Dr. Wu received his PhD from Hunan University in China, he was the first G. Kaplan Award Post-doctoral fellow at the University of Alberta.
Dr. Wu is the founding director of The Laboratory for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (LIAM) at York University. The LIAM serves the educational and training needs in industrial and applied mathematics while fostering an interdisciplinary research environment. The lab aims to develop both fundamental theories and cutting-edge techniques of non-linear analysis, dynamical system and data analytics to resolve complex issues arising from "real-world" applications in ecology, epidemiology, data processing, and neural dynamics.
Dr. Wu is a Co-Applicant on the grant. He will contribute to research activities in risk reduction and prevention (Pillar 2), where he will use integrative data to develop climate and landscape change modeling.
Job Titles:
- Director of the John Hopkins Lyme Disease Clinical Research Center
Dr. John Aucott is the Director of the John Hopkins Lyme Disease Clinical Research Center and an Associate Professor of Medicine at John Hopkins University. Dr. Aucott received his medical degree from the John Hopkins University School of Medicine. He completed his residency in Internal Medicine at the University Hospitals of Cleveland and is fellowship-trained in Infectious Disease and Geographic Medicine. Read more…
Dr. John Aucott is the Director of the John Hopkins Lyme Disease Clinical Research Center and an Associate Professor of Medicine at John Hopkins University. Dr. Aucott received his medical degree from the John Hopkins University School of Medicine. He completed his residency in Internal Medicine at the University Hospitals of Cleveland and is fellowship-trained in Infectious Disease and Geographic Medicine.
Dr. Aucott has more than 15 years of research experience on the crippling effects of Lyme disease, he has published studies focusing on characteristics of early Lyme disease differences in males and females with an emphasis on prospects for prevention, diagnosis and treatment. With his colleague at the John Hopkins Lyme Disease Research Center, Alison Rebman, he has overseen the design and implementation of the Studies of Lyme Immunology and Clinical Events (SLICE), an on-going translational clinical research program which gathers data and biosamples from well characterized patients. As a result of this and other collaborations, they have published over 25 peer-reviewed manuscripts from a diverse range of disciplines related to Lyme disease and post-treatment Lyme disease. Dr. Aucott is renowned for his expertise in this field, and is the current chairperson for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Tick-Borne Disease Working Group.
Dr. Aucott is a Co-Applicant on the grant along with his colleague and Co-director at the Lyme Disease Research Center, Alison Rebman. They will advise on the creation and maintenance of the national patient cohort and biobank, collaborate on the analyses of clinical data and biobank samples and serve as International members on the Scientific Advisory Committee.
Dr. Frampton is a Co-Applicant on the grant. He will contribute to research activities in detection and diagnostics (Pillar 1).
Dr. John Frampton is an Assistant Professor in the School of Biomedical Engineering at Dalhousie University. He is a Tier II Canada Research Chair in Cellular, Biomaterial and Matrix Interaction. Dr. Frampton earned his PhD in Biomedical Sciences in the School of Public Health at The State University of New York -Albany before completing a post-doctoral fellowship in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Michigan. Read more…
Job Titles:
- Family Physician at the Lunenburg Health Collaborative Clinic
Dr. John Jenkins is a Family Physician at the Lunenburg Health Collaborative Clinic, the Nova Scotia Health Authority Site Head at Fishermen's Memorial Hospital as well as the Head of Emergency Services. He earned his MD from Dalhousie University.
Dr. Jenkins is a Co-Applicant on the grant. He will encourage the ER physicians in Luneburg, Nova Scotia (an area which has a high incidence of Lyme disease) to participate in collection of data and specimen collection or any other activities to ensure the success of establishing a local patient cohort and biobank.
Dr. John Jenkins is a Family Physician at the Lunenburg Health Collaborative Clinic, the Nova Scotia Health Authority Site Head at Fishermen's Memorial Hospital as well as the Head of Emergency Services. He earned his MD from Dalhousie University. Read more…
Dr. John Queenan completed both his MSc and PhD in Clinical Epidemiology at Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario with an additional focus on Transdisciplinary Research. Read more…
Dr. John Queenan completed both his MSc and PhD in Clinical Epidemiology at Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario with an additional focus on Transdisciplinary Research. Dr. Queenan has also completed two fellowships in Primary Care Research Methodology: TUTOR at Western University, London, Ontario, Canada and the Practice-Based Research Methods fellowship programme at Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA. He is currently the Senior Epidemiologist for the Canadian Primary Care Sentinel Surveillance Network (CPCSSN) and an Assistant Professor (adj.) in both the Departments of Family Medicine and Public Health Science at Queen's University. His research interests include using a Transdisciplinary lens to focus on the clinical and psychosocial experiences of symptomatic illness and the creation and validation of disease case definitions in electronic medical records. Dr. Queenan led a multisite non-randomized intervention study entitled "The implementation of the CPCSSN Data Presentation Tool (CPCSSN-DPT) in primary care clinics to enhance the surveillance, prevention and management of chronic disease". He was also a co-lead investigator for a proof-of-concept study entitled. "Tracking Lyme disease cases and Tick bites using Electronic Medical Records. Both studies were funded by Public Health Agency of Canada.
Job Titles:
- Head
- Clinical Specialist in Medical Biology
Dr. Karine Thivierge is a Clinical Specialist in Medical Biology responsible for parasitology and tick-borne diseases at the Québec Public Health Laboratory (LSPQ). She is also an Adjunct Professor in the Institute of Parasitology at McGill University. She has a MSc in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry and PhD in Virology both from McGill University. Read more…
Dr. Karine Thivierge is a Clinical Specialist in Medical Biology responsible for parasitology and tick-borne diseases at the Québec Public Health Laboratory (LSPQ). She is also an Adjunct Professor in the Institute of Parasitology at McGill University. She has a MSc in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry and PhD in Virology both from McGill University. She also completed her post-doctoral research in Medical Parasitology and Immunology at McGill University.
The Parasitology Laboratory for which Dr. Thivierge is the Head, acts as the provincial reference laboratory in microbiology and quality assurance. The laboratory offers a wide range of analytical services for the detection and identification of enteric parasites. It is also in charge of the provincial blacklegged tick and Lyme disease surveillance program. Dr. Thivierge's research interests focus on the development of new molecular-based diagnostic tests for detection of intestinal parasites and on surveillance of emerging vector-borne diseases including Lyme disease.
Dr. Thivierge is a Co-Applicant on the grant. She will be involved with a number of different research Pillars. She will oversee and coordinate with patient recruitment in Québec for the national biobank and cohort, initial processing of Québec samples and coordinate bacterial cultures on Québec samples. She will also share provincial passive blackleged tick surveillance database (contributing to Pillar 2) and contribute to research activities on detection and diagnosis (Pillar 1)
Dr. Kate Zinszer is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Preventive & Social Medicine in the School of Public Health at the Université de Montréal and a researcher with the Institute de Recherche en Santé Publique. She has a MSc of Epidemiology from Dalhousie University and a PhD of Epidmeiology from McGill University. She completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard Medical School.
Job Titles:
- Fellow
- Assistant Professor in One Health
Dr. Katie Clow is an Assistant Professor in One Health in the Department of Population Medicine at the Ontario Veterinary College (OVC), University of Guelph. Her research focuses on the ecology and epidemiology of vectors and vector-borne zoonoses, with a specific emphasis on the blacklegged tick and Lyme disease. Read more…
Dr. Katie Clow is an Assistant Professor in One Health in the Department of Population Medicine at the Ontario Veterinary College (OVC), University of Guelph. Her research focuses on the ecology and epidemiology of vectors and vector-borne zoonoses, with a specific emphasis on the blacklegged tick and Lyme disease. She holds both a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree (OVC, 2011) and PhD (OVC, 2017). Dr. Clow has worked in private small animal practice as well as at the national and international level in One Health through internships at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Department of Food Safety, Zoonoses and Foodborne Disease at the World Health Organization, and the Global Disease Detection Branch of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. She regularly collaborates with public health professionals and veterinarians in private practice and industry. She is also the chair of the board of directors for the non-profit organization Veterinarians without Borders-Canada.
Dr. Clow is a Co-Applicant on the grant. She will contribute to the Network's research activities and provide insight into veterinary and tick aspects that will relate to human Lyme disease surveillance and education.
Job Titles:
- Director of the Pediatric Residency Program at Queen 's University
Dr. Kirk Leifso is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics and the Director of the Pediatric Residency Program at Queen's University. He is also a Pediatric Infectious Diseases Consultant at the Kingston Health Sciences Centre. He has a BSc and MSc both in Biology from the University of Victoria. Read more…
Dr. Lucie Richard is a Professor in the Faculty of Nursing at the Université de Montréal. She is currently affiliated with the Centre de recherche en santé publique de l'Université de Montréal et du CIUSSS du Centre-Sud-de-l'île-de-Montréal (CReSP). Read more…
Dr. Lucie Richard is a Professor in the Faculty of Nursing at the Université de Montréal. She is currently affiliated with the Centre de recherche en santé publique de l'Université de Montréal et du CIUSSS du Centre-Sud-de-l'île-de-Montréal (CReSP). From 2013 to 2017, she was lead of the Institut de recherche en santé publique de l'Université de Montréal (IRSPUM). Her research interests lie in health promotion and disease prevention. In the last twenty years, she received continuous funding as research scholar which allowed the development of a vast research program on the ecological approach in public health and in health promotion (Funding CIHR, CHSRF, FRSQ, MRC). On the whole, her work have traversed many perspectives, from etiological analysis to evaluative research, and a wide range of health issues and populations.
Dr. Maarten Voordouw is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Veterinary Microbiology at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan. From 2011 to 2018, he was an Assistant Professor in the Institute of Biology at the University of Neuch tel in Neuch tel, Switzerland where his research was focussed on the ecology of Lyme disease.
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor
- Principal
- Director of the Interdisciplinary Spatial Informatics for Global Health
Dr. Manisha Kulkarni is an Associate Professor in the School of Epidemiology & Public Health at the University of Ottawa. She holds a PhD in Entomology and brings over fifteen years of experience in characterizing vector-borne disease risk in global settings, with an interest in the impacts of environmental changes on disease emergence and transmission. Read more…
Dr. Manisha Kulkarni is an Associate Professor in the School of Epidemiology & Public Health at the University of Ottawa. She holds a PhD in Entomology and brings over fifteen years of experience in characterizing vector-borne disease risk in global settings, with an interest in the impacts of environmental changes on disease emergence and transmission. Prior to joining the University of Ottawa in 2014, Dr. Kulkarni completed a post-doctoral fellowship at the Canadian Facility for Ecoinformatics Research at the University of Ottawa, and held positions as an Epidemiologist at the Centre for Food-Borne, Environmental and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases at the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) and Health Specialist at the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). She currently leads the CIHR-funded project Public Health Risk Assessment Tools for Emerging Vector-borne Diseases 2.0 which aims to develop practical risk maps and models to inform public health action on Lyme and other tick-borne diseases in Ottawa, in addition to funding from the PHAC Infectious Diseases and Climate Change Fund, NSERC, and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC).
Dr. Kulkarni is the Director of the Interdisciplinary Spatial Informatics for Global Health (INSIGHT) research lab. INSIGHT is uniquely equipped to identify pathogens in disease vectors using molecular diagnostic approaches, conduct epidemiological studies, and perform geospatial analysis of health and environmental data. Their current research applies population survey methods, entomological field sampling, molecular analyses, and GIS to examine seasonal and spatial patterns of disease transmission, identify populations at risk, and evaluate the impact of interventions.
Dr. Kulkarni is a Principal Applicant on the grant. She will Co-lead research activities in risk reduction and prevention. She will especially oversee Ottawa site activities.
Dr. Maria Gomes-Solecki is an Associate Professor in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Biochemistry at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. She received her DVM from the University of Lisbon, completed a fellowship at the National Institute of Technology in Lisbon, and Post-doctoral training at the State University of New York-Stony Brook. Read more…
Job Titles:
- Senior Program Specialist With the Enteric
Dr. Mark Nelder is an Entomologist and Senior Program Specialist with the Enteric, Zoonotic, and Vector-Borne Diseases team at Public Health Ontario (PHO). He has a MSc in Entomology and Ecology from the University of South Alabama and a PhD in Entomology from Clemenson University.
Dr. Nelder is a Co-Applicant on the grant. He will contribute to the Network by bringing his expertise in entomology, blacklegged tick surveillance, data sources and database development and is also interested in developing new tools that can improve tick surveillance in Ontario.
Job Titles:
- Principal
- Program Head of Zoonotic Diseases and Emerging Pathogens at the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control
Dr. Muhammad Morshed is a Clinical Microbiologist and Program Head of Zoonotic Diseases and Emerging Pathogens at the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC). He is also a Clinical Professor in the Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia. He has a MSc of Microbiology from the University of Dhaka-Bangladesh and a PhD in Medical Microbiology from the Yamaguchi University in Japan. He completed specialty training at the Research Institute of Tuberculosis in Tokoyo, Japan and the College of Natural Resources at the University of California, Berkeley. Dr. Morshed holds memberships in the American Society for Microbiology, Canadian Association for Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Japan Anti-Tuberculosis Association and is a registered member of the Canadian College of Microbiologists.
His laboratory at the BCCDC is responsible for specialized serology testing, molecular testing and microbial fingerprinting, program evaluation and research. His research focuses on surveillance of zoonotic and emerging pathogens (including Borrelia burgdorferi). His laboratory is also involved with field studies on zoonotic and vector-borne disease (mice, ticks and mosquitoes) across BC. Dr. Morshed is recognized by the national and international research community for his expertise on Lyme disease and syphilis. He is a member of many provincial, national and international working groups and networks in the area of zoonotic and emerging pathogens.
Dr. Morshed is a Principal Applicant on the grant. He will Co-lead research activities involving risk reduction and prevention with particular focus on activities in BC (Pillar 2). He is also involved in the establishment of foundational resources (national cohort and biobank) and will advise on detection and diagnostic research activities (Pillar 1).
Dr. Muhammad Morshed is a Clinical Microbiologist and Program Head of Zoonotic Diseases and Emerging Pathogens at the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC). He is also a Clinical Professor in the Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia. Read more…
Dr. Nick Ogden is a UK-trained veterinarian (University of Liverpool, 1983). After 10 years of mixed clinical practice, he then completed a doctorate in Lyme disease ecology at the Department of Zoology, University of Oxford. During the six years he spent as a professor at the Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Liverpool, he continued his research into the ecology and epidemiology of tick-borne diseases of public health importance in Europe and those of importance to livestock production in Africa. In 2002 he moved to Canada, where he continued research on the ecology of Lyme disease and other zoonoses and climate change as a research scientist at the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC). As interim Director of the Environmental Issues Division of PHAC he directed a program on climate change and vector- and water-borne disease risks, and community adaptation to these risks. As Director of the Zoonoses Division he directed programs on national coordination, surveillance and prevention of zoonoses including Lyme disease. He is now a senior research scientist and Director of Public Health Risk Sciences division within the National Microbiology Laboratory of PHAC focusing on assessing risk by study of the ecology, epidemiology and genetic diversity of vectors and zoonotic and vector-borne micro-organisms (in particular the agent of Lyme disease), assessing impacts of climate change on zoonoses and vector-borne diseases, and developing tools for public health adaptation.
Dr. Nick Ogden is a UK-trained veterinarian (University of Liverpool, 1983). After 10 years of mixed clinical practice, he then completed a doctorate in Lyme disease ecology at the Department of Zoology, University of Oxford. During the six years he spent as a professor at the Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Liverpool, he continued his research into the ecology and epidemiology of tick-borne diseases of public health importance in Europe and those of importance to livestock production in Africa. Read more…
Job Titles:
- Principal
- Associate Professor of Epidemiology & Public Health
Dr. Patrick Leighton is an Associate Professor of Epidemiology & Public Health in the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the Université de Montréal. He is an active member of the Research Group on Epidemiology of Zoonoses and Public Health (GREZOSP), his research focuses on the ecology and epidemiology of zoonotic diseases, with an emphasis on vector-borne diseases (West Nile Virus, Lyme disease). Read more…
Dr. Patrick Leighton is an Associate Professor of Epidemiology & Public Health in the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the Université de Montréal. He is an active member of the Research Group on Epidemiology of Zoonoses and Public Health (GREZOSP), his research focuses on the ecology and epidemiology of zoonotic diseases, with an emphasis on vector-borne diseases (West Nile Virus, Lyme disease). He earned his PhD in Biology from McGill University and completed post-doctoral training in Epidemiology of Zoonotic Disease and Spatial Epidemiology at the Université de Montréal and University of Toronto, respectively. His training as a researcher focused on the ecology of wild animal populations, with specific applications to predicting the spread of Lyme disease in Canada. His extensive experience designing and carrying out field studies has included co-coordinating field operations for active surveillance of emerging Lyme disease foci in southern Québec from 2009-present in collaboration with the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) and the Institut National de Santé Publique du Québec (INSPQ). His specific expertise in statistical and mathematical modelling has propelled the development of data-driven risk maps and model projections of Lyme disease spread in Canada, through ongoing collaboration with PHAC researchers.
Dr. Leighton leads The Leighton Lab. Research in the lab is connected by two major themes: 1) the ecology of zoonotic diseases and 2) the influence of animal ecology and landscape structure on the spatial pattern of species interactions (e.g. predation, disease transmission). Current research in the lab is focused on understanding the ecology of parasites and zoonotic pathogens of public health significance (e.g. Ixodes scapularis ticks and Lyme disease, Rabies virus, and West Nile virus) and predicting their geographic spread, particularly in the context of climate change.
Patrick Leighton is a Principal Applicant on the grant. He will co-lead research activities in risk reduction and prevention (Pillar 2).
Job Titles:
- Principal
- Assistant Professor in the Electronics Department at Carleton University
Dr. Ravi Prakash is an Assistant Professor in the Electronics Department at Carleton University. He received his B.Sc. degree (2008) in Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology in Madras, India, and his M.Sc. (2010) and Ph.D. (2013) in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Calgary, Canada. Read more…
Dr. Ravi Prakash is an Assistant Professor in the Electronics Department at Carleton University. He received his B.Sc. degree (2008) in Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology in Madras, India, and his M.Sc. (2010) and Ph.D. (2013) in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Calgary, Canada. Prior to joining Carleton in September 2018, he was an Assistant Professor in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at Queen's University (2017-18), and an NSERC postdoctoral fellow (2015-16) in Calgary. His research contributions are primarily in the fields of Lab-on-Chip micro-devices, biosensors for point-of-care diagnostics, soft-wearable systems for continuous, non-invasive health monitoring, environmental monitoring systems, and micro/nano fabrication techniques.
Dr. Prakash oversees the Organic Sensors and Devices Laboratory (OSDL) to investigate organic, label-free chemical and biological sensors, screen-printed bio-electronic microsystems, flexible organic electronic components for wearables and human-device interfacing. The lab is working on a number of projects, of particular interest is the implementation of polymer conductor material and soft-fluidic systems for low-cost, point-of-care diagnostic applications which has the potential to be applied to Lyme disease diagnostics. Dr. Prakash is a licensed professional engineer in the province of Ontario, and member of several technical organizations including Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society, and IEEE Sensors Council.
Dr. Prakash is a Principal Applicant on the grant. He will Co-lead the research activities on novel detection and diagnosis of Lyme disease (Pillar 1).
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor of Ecology
Dr. Robert Colautti is an Assistant Professor of Ecology and Evolution in the Department of Biology at Queen's University. He is also the Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Rapid Evolution. Dr. Colautti has a BSc and MSc in Biology both from the University of Windsor. He earned his PhD in Botany at the University of Toronto. His completed NSERC funded Post-doctoral Fellowship at Duke University (North Carolina), the University of British Columbia, and the University of Tuebingen in Germany.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor
- Assistant Professor of Healthcare Quality and Adjunct Professor
Dr. Rylan Egan is an Assistant Professor in the School of Nursing. Rylan has expertise in knowledge translation, quality improvement, and qualitative, quantitative, and mixed research methodologies. Dr. Egan is a Principal Applicant on the grant. As a co-lead of Pillar 4, Rylan's team at Queen's University is specifically interested in healthcare practitioners' approaches to Lyme disease diagnosis and treatment, and the influence of current guidelines, training, and knowledge translation. The Queen's team is also leading the implementation of a knowledge translation porthole. Rylan served as the Pillar 4 Committee Co-Chair from 2018-2021, and is a member of the training committee.
Dr. Rylan Egan is an Assistant Professor of Healthcare Quality and Adjunct Professor in the School of Nursing & Department of Biomedical Science at Queen's University. He is also the Director of Education Science, Office of Professional Development and Educational Scholarship at Queen's University. Read more…
Job Titles:
- Principal
- Assistant Professor in Laboratory Medicine & Pathobiology at the University of Toronto
Dr. Samir Patel is a Clinical Microbiologist at Public Health Ontario (PHO) and an Assistant Professor in Laboratory Medicine & Pathobiology at the University of Toronto. He has a MSc and PhD in Tropical Disease/Infectious Disease both from the University of Toronto. He also completed his fellowship in Clinical Microbiology at the University of Toronto.
In his position at PHO, Dr. Patel provides clinical scientific oversight for vector borne disease testing, including Lyme disease as well as tick surveillance program in Ontario. He oversees Lyme disease testing in Ontario and has extensive experience in diagnostic microbiology, including the processing and storage of clinical specimens. Dr. Patel has co-authored a technical report on Lyme disease at the request of the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care (MOHLTC), and currently co-chairs the PHO-Health Quality Ontario working group responsible for developing a clinical algorithm for diagnosis and management of Lyme disease. He is also a member of the Canadian Public Health Laboratory Network (CPHLN) Lyme disease diagnostic working group.
Dr. Patel is a Principal Applicant on the grant and will act as the Networks Scientific Co-Director. He will also co-lead the establishment of foundational resources (national cohort and biobank). In particular he will oversee and coordinate patient recruitment in Ontario with colleagues from the Southeastern Ontario region. He will also be involved with research activities in clinical science and health services research (Pillar 3) and on novel detection and diagnostics (Pillar 1).
Dr. Samir Patel is a Clinical Microbiologist at Public Health Ontario (PHO) and an Assistant Professor in Laboratory Medicine & Pathobiology at the University of Toronto. He has a MSc and PhD in Tropical Disease/Infectious Disease both from the University of Toronto. He also completed his fellowship in Clinical Microbiology at the University of Toronto. Read more…
Job Titles:
- Scientific Advisor at the Institut National De Santé Publique
Dr. Sandie Briand is a Scientific Advisor at the Institut National de Santé Publique du Québec (INSPQ) and is a member of the Research Group in Epidemiology of Zoonoses and Public Health (GREZOSP). In their role as a Scientific Advisor, Sandie has expertise in monitoring and prevention of infectious diseases, Haemovigilance, Immunization and respiratory diseases, and coordinates a group of experts on tick-borne diseases.
Dr. Briand has a MSc and PhD both in Pharmacology from the Université de Sherbrooke.
Dr. Briand is a Knowledge User on the grant and will contribute to databases and sentinel surveillance in the province of Québec (Pillar 2).
Dr. Scott Weese is a Professor in the Department of Pathobiology at the Ontario Veterinary College (OVC), the University of Guelph and a Zoonotic Disease/Public Health Microbiologist at the University of Guelph's Centre for Public Health and Zoonoses. Read more…
Dr. Scott Weese is a Professor in the Department of Pathobiology at the Ontario Veterinary College (OVC), the University of Guelph and a Zoonotic Disease/Public Health Microbiologist at the University of Guelph's Centre for Public Health and Zoonoses. He is also Chief of Infection Control at the OVC Teaching Hospital and holds a Canada Research Chair in Zoonotic Diseases. Dr. Weese has a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, a Doctor of Veterinary Science and a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine.
Dr. Weese is a leader in veterinary infection control. He has authored or co-authored over 250 papers in peer reviewed journals, edited two books and speaks extensively on infectious diseases topics. His lab is dedicated to infectious and zoonotic diseases, multi-drug resistant pathogens, and interspecies transmission of pathogens. His research group has several studies underway evaluating Lyme disease as well as B. burgdorferi exposure in dogs and horses. In 2016, he launched the Pet Tick Tracker to help monitor changes in tick populations. He has teamed up with Drs. Katie Clow and Michelle Evason to create Pets and Ticks- a comprehensive website that brings the Pet Tick Tracker together with up-to-date, evidence-based information on ticks in Canada.
Dr. Weese is a Co-Applicant on the grant. With his postdoctoral fellow, Dr. Clow, he will contribute to the Network research activities and provide insight into veterinary and tick aspects that will relate to human Lyme disease surveillance and education. They will also have a collection of animal- and tick-origin B. burgderferi that they will provide for comparative study.
Job Titles:
- Principal Investigator
- Associate Professor at the University of Toronto
Dr. Tara Moriarty is an Associate Professor at the University of Toronto in the Faculty of Dentistry with cross appointment to the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology in the Faculty of Medicine. Dr. Moriarty received her PhD in Anatomy and Cell Biology at McGill University and completed her Post-doctoral training in Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Microbiology & Infectious Diseases at the University of Calgary. Read more….
Dr. Tara Moriarty is an Associate Professor at the University of Toronto in the Faculty of Dentistry with cross appointment to the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology in the Faculty of Medicine. Dr. Moriarty received her PhD in Anatomy and Cell Biology at McGill University and completed her Post-doctoral training in Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Microbiology & Infectious Diseases at the University of Calgary. In 2012 she was awarded the CIHR Bhagirath Singh Early Career Award in Infection and Immunity. Dr. Moriarty is a co-founder of COVID-19 Resources Canada, CanCOVID and #ScienceUpFirst, and is active in health misinformation responses and research.
Dr. Moriarty is the Principal Investigator in the Moriarty Lab. The Moriarty Lab is an infectious diseases research laboratory which studies several fundamental mechanisms underlying blood borne dissemination of bacterial pathogens. The major model organism under study is Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease. The lab has also recently begun investigating the effects of diabetes and obesity on host susceptibility to Lyme disease.
Dr. Moriarty is a Principal Applicant on the grant. She will also co-lead research activities on diagnostics and detection (Pillar 1).
Job Titles:
- Principal
- Professor of Pathology
Dr. Todd Hatchette is a Professor of Pathology and Medicine at Dalhousie University, Nova Scotia Health Authority. As an Infectious Disease Physicians and Medical Microbiologist he is also the Director of the STI clinic, Chief of the Division of Microbiology and Director of Immunology and Virology at the Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Center. Read more…
Dr. Todd Hatchette is a Professor of Pathology and Medicine at Dalhousie University, Nova Scotia Health Authority. As an Infectious Disease Physicians and Medical Microbiologist he is also the Director of the STI clinic, Chief of the Division of Microbiology and Director of Immunology and Virology at the Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Center. He is also the past President of the Association of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Disease (AMMI) Canada. He received his MD from the Memorial University of Newfoundland and completed residencies in Internal Medicine (Memorial University of Newfoundland), Infectious Diseases and Medical Microbiology (Dalhousie University). He also completed post-doctoral training in Virology at St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital.
Dr. Hatchette oversees testing for Lyme disease in Nova Scotia and has extensive experience in diagnostic microbiology including the storage of clinical specimens (he oversees the anchor laboratory for the Severe Outcome Surveillance Network in the Canadian Immunization Research Network that manages the biobank of specimens). He is part of the AMMI Lyme disease working group and the co-chair for the Canadian Public Health Laboratory Network Lyme disease diagnostic working group. He was asked to speak to Lyme disease diagnostics at the meeting to establish a federal framework and the CIHR-sponsored best brains exchange.
Dr. Hatchette is a Principal Applicant on the grant. He will guide clinical science and health services research (Pillar 3), and act as an advisor for research activities involving diagnostics and detection (Pillar 1).
Dr. Walid Houry is a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and the Department of Chemistry at the University of Toronto. He has a MSc and PhD in Chemistry from Cornell University. He is the recipient of a number of Awards including the Canada Foundation for Innovation Leaders Opportunity Fund (2009-2010) and the CIHR New Investigator award (2001-2006). Read more…
Dr. Walid Houry is a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and the Department of Chemistry at the University of Toronto. He has a MSc and PhD in Chemistry from Cornell University. He is the recipient of a number of Awards including the Canada Foundation for Innovation Leaders Opportunity Fund (2009-2010) and the CIHR New Investigator award (2001-2006) to name a few. He completed post-doctoral training at the Sloan-Kettering Institute and the Max-Plank-Institute for Biochemistry.
Dr. Houry leads the Walid A. Houry Lab. The ultimate aim of the labs is to address the fundamental question of how molecular chaperones and ATP-dependent proteases modulate protein folding in the cell. They study the biochemical and biophysical basis of function of these molecular chaperones and proteases as well as their cellular roles in model systems including E. coli, yeast, and mammalian cells. They are also mapping the chaperone interaction networks with the ultimate aim of identifying the rules that govern protein folding processes in the cell. Their work has a translational aspect leading to the development of novel antibiotics and anticancers.
Dr. Houry is a Co-Applicant on the grant. Given his research program is aimed at targeting highly conserved proteases in bacteria for the development of novel antibiotics, he will contribute to the development of novel antibiotics that target Borrelia burgdorferi.
Jean Tsao has over 20 years of experience studying Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacterium that causes Lyme disease (LD), and its vector, the blacklegged tick. Her research includes both basic science (what are the ecological factors that affect how Borrelia and ticks are distributed across the landscape?) and practical public health (where are areas that are the most risky for ticks that might be carrying Borrelia?). Read more…
Job Titles:
- Professor of Bacteriology
Dr. De Buck is a Professor of Bacteriology in the Department of Production Animal Health at the University of Calgary. He received his MSc in Bioengineering Sciences, majoring in cell and gene technologies, his MSc in Laboratory Animal Sciences and his PhD in Veterinary Medicine at Ghent University in Belgium. His area of expertise is veterinary microbiology. Read more…
Dr. De Buck is a Professor of Bacteriology in the Department of Production Animal Health at the University of Calgary. He received his MSc in Bioengineering Sciences, majoring in cell and gene technologies, his MSc in Laboratory Animal Sciences and his PhD in Veterinary Medicine at Ghent University in Belgium. His area of expertise is veterinary microbiology.
Dr. De Buck's Lab is focused on bacterial pathogenesis interactions in order to improve current vaccination strategies and to find new diagnostic targets. The lab is developing a biosensor for frequent and convenient testing for biomarkers of infectious diseases in blood, which may be applicable to the improvement of Lyme disease diagnosis.
Dr. De Buck is a Co-Applicant on the grant. As part of the proposed Network, he will help in developing a novel home test for diagnosing markers of Lyme disease (Pillar 1).
Robbin Lindsay received his PhD from the University of Guelph on the factors that limit the distribution of the blacklegged tick, Ixodes scapularis, the main vector of Lyme disease, in Canada in 1995. Shortly thereafter he was hired as a research scientist with the Public Health Agency of Canada, Zoonotic Diseases and Special Pathogens section of the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg. Activities performed at the NML focus on diagnostics, surveillance and basic/applied research on a wide variety of zoonotic diseases in Canada including tick-, mosquito- and rodent-borne zoonosis.
Dr. Lindsay's team at the NML has been actively involved in tick surveillance across Canada for several decades and critical data related to geographic range of vector ticks, infection prevalence and strain diversity of a variety of tick-associated pathogens (including the agent of Lyme disease) has been generated. This information has also been used to validate risk models and populate risk maps for exposure to tick-borne pathogens in Canada. Expertise on pathogen detection (i.e., bacterial isolation, PCR) and characterisation methodologies (MLST and whole genome sequencing) will be shared within the research network under the Diagnostics Pillar 1 along with this Dr. Lindsay will make contributions to environmental surveillance for ticks and their associated pathogens and risk reduction strategies under the Prevention and risk reduction Pillar 2.
Robbin Lindsay received his PhD from the University of Guelph on the factors that limit the distribution of the blacklegged tick, Ixodes scapularis, the main vector of Lyme disease, in Canada in 1995. Shortly thereafter he was hired as a research scientist with the Public Health Agency of Canada, Zoonotic Diseases and Special Pathogens section of the National Microbiology Laboratory. Read more…
Job Titles:
- Executive Director of the Academy of Medical Sciences
Simon Denegri OBE is the Executive Director of the Academy of Medical Sciences (AMS) in London, UK. Prior to taking up this role at the Academy, Simon was the National Director for Patients, Carers and the Public at the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), and Chair of INVOLVE - the national advisory group for the promotion and support of public involvement in research funded by NIHR. Read more…
Simon Denegri OBE is the Executive Director of the Academy of Medical Sciences (AMS) in London, UK. Prior to taking up this role at the Academy, Simon was the National Director for Patients, Carers and the Public at the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), and Chair of INVOLVE - the national advisory group for the promotion and support of public involvement in research funded by NIHR. He was Chief Executive of the Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC) from 2006 until 2011 and, prior to this, Director of Corporate Communications at the Royal College of Physicians from 2003. He also worked in corporate communications for Procter & Gamble in the United States from 1997 to 2000. He was awarded the OBE for services to NHS, public health and social care research in the Queen's Birthday Honours 2018.
Simon writes and speaks extensively about community and public involvement in health and social care and blogs at http://simon.denegri.com/. He also writes poetry which he publishes at http://otherwiseknownasdotcom.wordpress.com/.
Simon Denegri serves as an international member on the Scientific Advisory Committee. He will advise on community and patient engagement.
Veronica Harris-McAllister is the Network Manager for CLyDRN. Ms. Harris-McAllister has over 25 years of experience working in clinical, pharmaceutical, and administrative research. Read more…