INMD Newsletter - June 2011
Inside this issue- Message from Phil Sherman, INMD Scientific Director
- Café Scientifique Nature versus Nurture: The Impact of Genes, the Environment and Microbes on Digestive Health
- CIHR and Clinical Practice Guidelines – Knowledge Synthesis Grants
- CIHR Journalism Workshop: Profiling the Benefits of Health Research
- CIHR News
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Message from Phil Sherman, INMD Scientific Director
Wally MacNaughton,
Univ. Calgary
Amira Klip, Sick Kids,
Univ. Toronto
The Institute Nutrition, Metabolism, and Diabetes is pleased to have been one of the CIHR collaborating institutes in an Inflammation in Chronic Disease Consensus Conference that was held in Toronto May 16-18, 2011. The workshop was undertaken to identify gaps and potential opportunities for future research, with a focus on crossing traditional disease-specific models and developing trans-disciplinary approaches to build on current Canadian strengths in inflammation research.
As one of the Signature Initiatives currently being developed by the CIHR, Inflammation in Chronic Disease is being co-led by the Institutes of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis (IMHA) and Infection and Immunity (III). INMD wishes to thank Drs. Wally MacNaughton (gastroenterology researcher, Univ. Calgary) and Amira Klip (diabetes researcher, Hospital for Sick Children, Univ. Toronto) for representing INMD on the Steering Committee that helped to develop the program for this national consensus conference.
There is great interest and enthusiasm related to the development of this Signature Initiative from voluntary health organizations, partners in industry, and from other potential funding partners. We will share the Workshop report as soon as it is made available to us, and look forward to working with IMHA and III to move this initiative forward to a research funding opportunity.
With best wishes for the summer season,
Philip M. Sherman, MD, FRCPC
Café Scientifique
Nature versus Nurture: The Impact of Genes, the Environment and Microbes on Digestive Health
INMD was pleased to host a Café Scientifique in Toronto on May 18, 2011 in collaboration with the Institute of Infection and Immunity (III). The Café began with an insightful introduction on Inflammatory Bowel Disease by the moderator, Wally MacNaughton (Univ. Calgary). Then Ken Croitoru (Mount Sinai Hospital) presented information about how genes influence disease. Next, Gil Kaplan (Univ. Calgary) talked about how our environment contributes to the development of IBD and Karen Madsen (Univ. Alberta) spoke on the interactions between intestinal microbes, genes, and the environment in health and disease. A lively discussion between the audience and panelists ensued, in which many thought-provoking questions were raised. Many thanks to our partners, III, and to our excellent moderator and panelists for making this Café Scientifique such a success!
CIHR and Clinical Practice Guidelines – Knowledge Synthesis Grants
Elizabeth Drake and Ian Graham
CIHR Knowledge Translation and
Public Outreach
Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPG) are defined as systematically developed statements to assist practitioners and patients make decisions about appropriate health care for specific circumstances. The development of a CPG is usually driven by a clinical question that is informed by a clinical or health problem. CPGs depend on high-quality, comparative effectiveness research and systematic reviews of the research evidence (Institute of Medicine. Clinical Practice Guidelines We Can Trust. Washington, DC: National Academies Press; 2011). Syntheses transform vast libraries of scientific literature into knowledge that is reliable, relevant, and readable for knowledge users. They are comprehensive and apply scientific methods to literature analysis, minimizing the risk of bias and error that may accompany single studies and resulting in decisions that are less likely to be based on insufficient or premature evidence.
CIHR considers knowledge syntheses the cornerstone of knowledge translation. As such the Knowledge Translation Branch supports teams of researchers and knowledge users who want to produce knowledge syntheses through its Knowledge Synthesis funding opportunity. All forms of knowledge synthesis are eligible, including syntheses that are intended to lead to the development of practice guidelines. Standard protocols, handbooks and checklists exist to guide the conduct of some syntheses, and available on the CIHR website A Guide to Knowledge Synthesis.
The Knowledge Synthesis funding opportunity is launched twice a year with deadlines in April and October. It supports two types of projects: knowledge syntheses and scoping reviews. The maximum amount awarded for a synthesis grant is $100,000 and the maximum amount awarded for a scoping review is $50,000. In both cases, the grants are for one year. In addition to the open Knowledge Synthesis competition, priority announcements offer additional sources of funding for highly rated applications that are relevant to specific CIHR research priority areas or mandates.
For more information about the CIHR Knowledge Synthesis funding opportunity, please contact Ms. Liz Drake, elizabeth.drake@cihr-irsc.gc.ca.
CIHR Journalism Workshop: Profiling the Benefits of Health Research
The Communications Branch of the CIHR, in collaboration with partner institutes, hosts Journalism Workshops to bring health and science reporters together with CIHR-funded researchers to facilitate networking and demystify research, with the intent of increasing journalists' understanding of new research findings. This is one way that CIHR reaches out to the media to facilitate communication of the benefits of health research to Canadians.
The CIHR Institutes of Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes (INMD) and Infection and Immunity (III) recently co-hosted a workshop for journalists entitled: Your health: What's bugging you? The trillions of bacteria in and on your body and how they affect health and disease. The workshop, which took place on May 19, 2011 in Toronto, profiled leading Canadian health researchers who discussed research findings related to the human microbiome. Nine journalists participated in the workshop, including freelancers and reporters from various media outlets including the Toronto Star, Sun Media, CBC Online, and Chatelaine Magazine.
Journalist Workshop Researchers (from Left):
Drs. Emma-Allen Vercoe (U. Guelph); Gil Kaplan (U. Calgary);
Michael Surette (McMaster U.); Karen Madsen (U. Alberta);
David Guttman (U. Toronto); Wally MacNaughton (U. Calgary);
and Suzy Hota (U. Toronto)
Researchers presented on topics related to the importance of the microbiome on human health; how new genomics technologies have enabled spectacular advances in microbiome research; the environmental and microbial impacts on irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and chronic inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD); the role of beneficial microbes, referred to as probiotics, in promoting health and preventing disease; the potential for therapeutic fecal transplants in the setting of recurrent Clostridium difficile infection; and the evolution over time of the respiratory microbiome in patients with cystic fibrosis. Journalists who participated in the workshop commented that the information presented was "most accessible and immediately applicable".
CIHR News
Team Grant: Implementation Research on Hypertension in Low and Middle Income Countries
Researchers interested in preventing high blood pressure by addressing lifestyle and environmental risk factors (e.g. high salt intake) through multi-strategy and multi-level initiatives are encouraged to apply to the following Team Grant: Implementation Research on Hypertension in Low and Middle Income Countries
Institute Community Support: Community Outreach Program for Non-Governmental Organizations
Calling all non-governmental organizations. We can help support partnerships, innovative communication tools and knowledge translation.
INMD Mandate
The Institute of Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes supports research to enhance health in relation to diet, digestion, excretion, and metabolism; and to address causes, prevention, screening, diagnosis, treatment, support systems, and palliation for a wide range of conditions and problems associated with hormone, digestive system, kidney, and liver function.