Cystic Fibrosis Canada announces nearly $2.7M in new research funding
Cystic Fibrosis Canada announces nearly $2.7M in new research funding
Strategic partnerships with co-funders makes donor dollars go further
Toronto, ONTARIO (June 8, 2023) – Cystic Fibrosis Canada has awarded nearly $2.7M in research funding to projects that support the organization’s new approach to research funding, aimed at improving health outcomes for people living with cystic fibrosis (CF). The funding supports projects ranging from the complexities of ageing with CF to improving treatments for lung infections, all projects focused on addressing the health priorities of the CF community. Cystic Fibrosis Canada partnered with Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Cystic Fibrosis Trust, Research Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation who collectively contributed $700k to fund these research projects.
Funding for the projects began on April 1, 2023, and includes support for seven research grants, three early career investigator awards and one research fellowship. In 2021, Cystic Fibrosis Canada invited Canadians impacted by cystic fibrosis to determine patient needs and help guide our research focus. This list of CF community health priorities is now used to help determine the research projects we fund. All research project applications were subjected to the organization’s rigorous peer review process, including assessment by an expert scientific panel for feasibility and scientific merit, and by a panel of dedicated community reviewers, who evaluated each proposal for community impact and alignment to the health priorities of the Canadian CF community.
“It is only through research that we will be able to improve the health of all people living with cystic fibrosis. Our new approach to advancing research will have us focused on the people and projects that have the greatest potential to make a difference on the health priorities that are most important to people living with CF,” says Kelly Grover, CEO of Cystic Fibrosis Canada. “By being strategic with our funding and investing in the projects, people and infrastructure that will help create solutions for our community sooner than later, we are continuing our legacy of building Canada’s robust and dynamic cystic fibrosis research environment and advancing knowledge.”
Cystic Fibrosis Canada’s new research approach is also focused on investing in areas of unmet need in order to reduce the burden of the disease for all and to bring new treatments to Canadians, faster. We are also focussed on working in partnership with other like-minded organizations to fund more research with strong potential to impact our community. Six of the 11 funded projects were made possible by co-funding from our partners at the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health (CIHR-ICRH; 3 projects), Cystic Fibrosis Trust (1 project), Research Nova Scotia (1 project) and the Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation (1 project).
Basic science research grants, valued at up to $100,000 per year for up to three years were awarded to:
Dr. Anne Stephenson, St. Michael’s Hospital (includes one year of funding from CIHR-ICRH and named the recipient of the Cathleen Morrison Research Impact Award for the highest ranked application by our community reviewers and also the Robbie Award for highest ranked new research project): Getting older and wiser: the complexities of ageing with cystic fibrosis
CF community priority this research addresses: Understand health issues for people living with CF aged 50+
Dr. Lisa Strug, The Hospital for Sick Children (includes one year of funding from CIHR-ICRH): The Genetic Epidemiology of Cystic Fibrosis. Dr. Strug has also received the Senior Scientist Research award for a high-ranking project and a continued track record of significant research accomplishments in the field of cystic fibrosis.
CF community priority this research addresses: Cure CF with gene or stem cell therapies, Relevance to Canadian CF community
Dr. Igor Stagljar, University of Toronto (includes one year of funding from CIHR-ICRH): Large-scale Exploration and Functional Validation of the Dynamic Interactions of CFTR WT and Mutant Proteins with Solute Carrier Transporters
CF community priority this research addresses: Reduce the Treatment Burden
“At the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health (CIHR-ICRH) we place a high value on community engagement in research. The partnership with Cystic Fibrosis Canada reflects this priority of community engagement in setting research priorities and involvement in peer review to identify the best science with the greatest potential to address the health concerns that matter most to those living and/or caring for those with CF.” Dr. Brian H. Rowe, Scientific Director, CIHR-ICRH.
Dr. Lindsay Eltis, University of British Columbia (enabled by multi-year funding from Cystic Fibrosis Trust, and also awarded the highest ranking application in the basic science competition): Targeting steroid catabolism in Mycobacterium abscessus for novel therapeutics
CF community priority this research addresses: Improve airway infection detection and treatment
“We are delighted to be co-funding this exciting research study with CF Canada. Collaborations like this are important to allow us to maximise the benefit of research to everyone with CF around the world, and uses our funding to the greatest effect. More effective treatments for CF lung infections are desperately needed, to prevent life-shortening permanent lung damage.” Dr Lucy Allen, Director of Research and Healthcare Data.
Dr. Zongchao Jia, Queen’s University: Investigation of P. aeruginosa polyphosphate kinases and their role in host cell infection for developing novel CF therapeutics
CF community priority this research addresses: Eradicate chronic pseudomonas aeruginosa infections
Dr. Valerie Waters, The Hospital for Sick Children: Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus interactions and antimicrobial tolerance in patients with cystic fibrosis.
CF community priority this research addresses: Eradicate chronic pseudomonas aeruginosa infections, Improve airway infection detection and treatment
We were also pleased to provide 1 year of funding (valued at up to $100,000) to:
Dr. Jonathan Dennis, University of Alberta: Phage Therapy for Burkholderia CF Lung Infections
CF community priority this research addresses: Improve airway infection detection and treatment, Predict and prevent pulmonary exacerbations
Early Career Investigator Awards
Dr. Sanja Stanojevic, Dalhousie University (includes two years of funding from Research Nova Scotia): Beyond the Numbers: Understanding disparities in the under-represented Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Population
CF community priority this research addresses: Reduce the treatment burden
“Research Nova Scotia is proud to partner with Cystic Fibrosis Canada to support Dr. Stanojevic, an early-career researcher at Dalhousie University,” says Stefan Leslie, CEO of Research Nova Scotia. “This work will address issues of health equity and access in segments of our population that are currently underrepresented in CF treatment and research.”
Dr. Amy Wong, The Hospital for Sick Children (awarded the Marsha Morton Award, presented to the highest-ranked project in the Early Career Investigator category): Bioengineering novel airway mimetics using human induced pluripotent stem cells for CF disease modeling and therapy discovery
CF community priority this research addresses: Cure CF with gene or stem cell therapies
We were also pleased to provide 1 year of funding (valued at up to $100,000) to:
Dr. Gagan Gupta, Toronto Metropolitan University: Connecting CFTR interaction profiling and drug response in cellular models of the human airway
CF community priority this research addresses: Cure CF with gene or stem cell therapies, Reduce the treatment burden
Research Fellowship:
Dr. Xiaojie Luan, University of Saskatchewan (includes funding from the Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation Dr. Luan is this year’s recipient of the Jennifer and Robert Sturgess Fellowship Award): Origins of cystic fibrosis lung disease: Miscoordination among ionocytes, secretory cells and airway submucosal glands.
CF community priority this research addresses: Cure CF with gene or stem cell therapies
"Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation (SHRF) is proud to be working in partnership with Cystic Fibrosis Canada to advance timely health research in our province. Cystic Fibrosis Canada's strategic and patient-oriented approach to research closely aligns to our own, and Dr. Luan's funded project is exemplary of the impact-oriented work both organizations strive to support." – Patrick Odnokon, SHRF CEO
“We’re very excited about the results of this year’s research funding competition,” says Dr. Paul Eckford, Chief Scientific Officer for Cystic Fibrosis Canada. “We know that the researchers we are supporting will accelerate the impact of CF research in Canada. We are especially excited to be working with several funding partners this year to support additional impactful research studies and help make our funding go further.”
Cystic Fibrosis Canada has a history of funding research that has led to outstanding progress, including the discovery of the gene responsible for cystic fibrosis. The discovery changed the future of the disease and enabled researchers and clinicians around the world to target the cause of the disease and not just the symptoms. Research continues to be a driving force behind helping people with cystic fibrosis live longer, healthier lives and over the last 60 years, Cystic Fibrosis Canada has invested over $279 million in research and healthcare.
