Catalyst Grants in Environments, Genes and Chronic Disease

The CIHR Institute of Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes (INMD) announced the launch of the CIHR Catalyst Grants in Environments, Genes and Chronic Disease funding opportunity in December 2012. This initiative was launched in partnership with the CIHR Institutes of Aboriginal People's Health, Cancer Research, Circulatory and Respiratory Health, Gender and Health, Genetics, Human Development, Child and Youth Health, Infection and Immunity, Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis, Neurosciences, Mental Health and Addictions, and Population and Public Health, as well as the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of Canada, and Kidney Foundation of Canada.

The CIHR Catalyst Grants in Environments, Genes and Chronic Disease funding opportunity was developed in response to the workshop recommendations from the Environments, Genes and Chronic Disease National Workshop.

The primary objectives of the CIHR Catalyst Grants in Environments, Genes and Chronic Disease were to:

  • provide researchers with financial support to synthesize knowledge and develop state-of-the-art approaches to address the contributions of environment-gene interactions to chronic disease with the goal of defining opportunities for targeted research initiatives.
  • develop inter-disciplinary collaborations between researchers of different backgrounds (including, but not limited to, basic scientists, geneticists, environmental scientists, epidemiologists, biostatisticians, and social scientists) in order to integrate the tools, research designs, and methods currently used in studies addressing the roles of environment and genes on chronic disease.

Funding Results

INMD wishes to congratulate the successful applicants of this competition.

The information is provided in the language in which it was submitted by the recipient.

Diabesity (201304CE1)

Principal Investigator Institution Project Title
Dubois, Lise University of Ottawa Interactions between dietary protein intake and polymorphisms in the insulin growth factor family: Effects on obesity development in the Québec Newborn Twin Study
Pérusse, Louis Université Laval Joining well-characterized phenotype and genetic exposures with powerful statistical models to understand gene-environment interactions in metabolic syndrome

General pool (201304CEN)

Principal Investigator Institution Project Title
Abadie, Valérie Hôpital Sainte-Justine (Montréal) Deciphering the pathways associated with tissue destruction in celiac disease
Bagli, Darius J Hospital for Sick Children (Toronto) Environmental Microbe-Gene Interactions: Role of Host Epigenetics in Chronic Urinary Tract Infection
Bailey, Janice L Université Laval Molecular underpinnings of how paternal prenatal exposure to environmentally-relevant organochlorines compromises health of future generations: A possible mechanism for health discrepancies between Northern Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Canadians
Choy, Jonathan C Simon Fraser University (Burnaby, B.C.) The endogenous microbiota and Th17 cells in abdominal aortic aneurysm
Clee, Susanne M University of British Columbia Molecular mechanism of a gene-stress interaction on obesity
Dixon, S. Jeffrey Mechanical environment - gene interactions in chronic musculoskeletal diseases Mechanical environment - gene interactions in chronic musculoskeletal diseases
Ellis, Anne K Queen's University (Kingston, Ontario) Early-Life Environment and Chronic Allergic Disease: Leveraging a Prospective Study to Discover the Epigenetic Signatures
Gagnon, France University of Toronto Identifying pollutant-sensitive DNA methylation marks associated with a global measure of thrombosis risk: a proof-of-concept study
Laprise, Catherine Université du Québec à Chicoutimi Comprehensive analysis of IL1R1 and IL1R2 genes in asthma considering smoking status
Leri, Francesco University of Guelph Food addiction: studies of bio-behavioural links between nutrition and obesity
Michou, Laetitia N Université Laval Gene-environment interactions in a chronic bone disease
Mutch, David M University of Guelph Investigating the use of biclustering to identify blood mRNA biomarkers to monitor the efficacy and safety of pharmacological and nutritional compounds targeting MetS.
Rastegar, Mojgan University of Manitoba Investigating the Cell Type-Specific Regulatory Role of Ethanol on MeCP2 Expression
Schertzer, Jonathan D McMaster University Early life nutrition, antibiotics, infection and bacterial sensing regulate diabesity
Sloboda, Deborah M McMaster University Early life determinants of obesity and metabolic compromise
Sly, Laura M University of British Columbia Crohn's Disease genetic variants predispose to commensal-driven autoinflammation
Song, Weihong University of British Columbia Epigenetic effect of traumatic brain injury contributes to Alzheimer's Disease
Vohl, Marie-Claude Université Laval Interactions between dietary n-3 fatty acids and genetic variations on cardiovascular disease risk factors
Willing, Benjamin P University of Alberta Epigenetic effects of early life antibiotics on genes relevant for metabolic disease and immune tolerance
Date modified: