Dermal Sheath Cells (DSc) hold significant promise in regenerative medicine, particularly for hair follicle regeneration and wound healing. However, scalable production remains a challenge. Microcarrier-based culture systems present a viable solution, with the type of microcarrier and culture conditions being critical for optimizing cell yield, viability, and functionality.
This project aims to develop digestable microcarriers made from plant-based resources to facilitate large-scale cultivation of DSc.
The intern, currently a visiting PhD student at the University of Victoria, has extensive experience in cell culture and biomanufacturing. In this project, the intern will gain valuable experience in:
- Biomaterial synthesis and extraction from plant-based resources
- Microfluidic technology for producing microcarriers
- Dynamic culture of therapeutic cells using microcarriers
- Problem-solving and adapting protocols for industrial-scale production
The project will benefit the company by:
- Advancing research and development of novel regenerative medicine therapies.
- Enhancing production scalability and cost-efficiency through innovative culture technologies.
- Strengthening the company’s position as a leader in biotechnological advancements for therapeutic applications.
Overall, this internship project aims to develop optimized protocols that leverage the therapeutic potential of DSc, contributing to both scientific progress and practical applications in regenerative medicine. This effort is expected to improve cell culture conditions and overall product quality.
In BC, one in five families compromises nutrition, skips meals, or goes days without eating. Since 2005, public health data have tracked those repeatedly at risk of food insecurity, such as lone mothers, Indigenous and Black individuals, and those on social assistance. Rex, a transmale in his late 20s, shared during a dissertation interview that after coming out as trans he lost his job, father, partner, and faced mounting costs, saying, “so far everyone I am telling is leaving me.” Stories like Rex’s and other Two-Spirit, trans, and queer individuals remain absent from food security data due to historic stigma. This project remedies this through partnerships with the Community-based Research Centre (CBRC), BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC), UVic, UBC, YorkU, Saige Community Food Share, and Ribbon Community to include 2S/LGBTQIA+ communities in food security data. Using survey data from CBRC’s Our Health and Statistics Canada alongside interviews, we will analyze predictors, barriers, and facilitators of queer food security in BC. We will collaborate with health authorities to redesign health equity and food security indicators to promote the visibility of diverse queer communities and engender more equitable health systems.
Systemic racism and discrimination drive social and mental health inequities, including intergenerational trauma. People with lived experience of systemic racism and discrimination need to design and lead solutions to redress historical exclusion and bridge the gap between academic research and community needs. This research program fills this need with lived experience leaders co-designing, implementing, and evaluating a community mental health promotion program, and a national health system training program. With a foundation of equitable community-health system-university partnerships, it aims to: 1. adapt, scale, evaluate, and sustain Building Roads Together (BRT), an effective social inclusion and mental health program; 2. advance an anti-racist implementation science approach; 3. build capacity in anti-racist implementation research among academic trainees, early career researchers, and lived experience researchers. This research will: promote social and mental health equity; build anti-racist research capacity; contribute to BC Anti-Racism Act commitments to advance racial equity, and healing for those harmed by systemic racism; and Canada’s Anti-Racism Strategy commitment to dismantling systemic racism in health systems.
One in five Canadian youth experience mental health problems (e.g., depression) and most youth are not able to access mental health supports, calling for the need to identify accessible and low-cost interventions such as health behaviours (e.g., physical activity). Yet, less than 6% of Canadian youth achieve the recommended Canadian 24-hour guidelines for physical activity, sleep, and sedentary behaviours. We have little information on what helps (or hinders) teens to engage in healthy behaviours at the daily level and how this relates to emotion and mental health, particularly for underrepresented youth. This project addresses research gaps and asks, do health behaviours influence emotion and mood among adolescents (and vice versa)? If so, what are the contexts that optimize this connection? Are associations/contexts similar or different for underrepresented (i.e., racialized, affectional and gender minority) youth? Findings will help us understand how, when, under what conditions, and for whom health behaviours and emotions are related among adolescents. With this information, we can work with teens to develop innovative interventions to promote engagement in health behaviours, and thus mental health, for our Canadian youth.
Weight stigma includes the negative attitudes, stereotypes, and discriminatory behaviours towards people with higher weights. Weight stigma is both common and socially acceptable in Canada and contributes to inequity across the lifespan. These inequities negatively impact the health of higher-weight people, who experience poorer physical and psychological health due to weight stigma. It also impacts the quality and quantity of healthcare that higher-weight people receive, via dehumanizing language and stereotyped assumptions. The impact of weight stigma on health and healthcare is further compounded by the health consequences associated with other forms of stigma. The objective of this research is to better understand the impact of weight stigma on the health and healthcare of diverse people in Canada. This aim will be achieved by surveying and interviewing diverse people with higher weights about their experiences with weight stigma at any point in their lives. Additionally, existing health data will be examined to better understand real-life impacts of weight stigma in primary healthcare. This research will contribute to changes in healthcare services and policy, leading to greater health equity in Canada.
The Canadian health system aims to provide excellent healthcare for all. Yet, unfortunately there remain considerable inequities in healthcare, and as a result, people who experience such inequities face poorer health outcomes. There is dire need for research that identifies new strategies and approaches to achieve this aim – particularly within nursing, as the largest group of healthcare providers in Canada. This program of research centres on enhancing nursing capacity to promote equity, towards remediating these inequities that lead to poor health outcomes. In particular, this program of research focuses on addressing healthcare inequities faced by people who experience mental health challenges, and the Two-Spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual (2S/LGBTQIA+) community. Working in collaboration with health system leaders and providers, as well as people with lived experience of inequities, the ultimate vision of this program of research is to support more equitable health systems. By doing so, people who currently face inequities will experience safe and inclusive healthcare encounters, and as a result, enjoy improved health outcomes.
The Trans Healthcare Research Co-Lab is a research program focused on transgender and nonbinary people’s health and healthcare experiences. The aim of this collaborative research endeavor is to conduct community-controlled research that informs practice and supports the health and well-being of trans and nonbinary people in BC and across Canada. The project is led by Leo Rutherford and utilizes connections to the Community-Based Research Centre and Trans Care BC and is funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Strategy for Patient Oriented Research Transition to Leadership Award. While research on the topics is burgeoning, very little research has actively involved community members in designing and carry out projects about health and healthcare. Projects undertaken by the Trans Healthcare Research Co-lab then, will be based on trans community-identified needs and priorities and utilize community-based participatory and patient oriented approaches. The mission of this program is to positively impact the lives of trans and nonbinary people by creating valuable research and knowledge that is given back to the community who needs it most. We will utilize both qualitative and quantitative approaches to collect data about community identified research priorities. Through this work we will also create a foundation for future research about gender-affirming healthcare.
Progress Report – May 2025
Progress
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Consulted community members on research design, including feedback on data collection tools, methods, recruitment approaches, and knowledge translation strategies.
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Hired a research assistant to support tool development and administrative processes; an REB application has been drafted.
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Established a community engagement committee to support ongoing project activities.
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Formed active collaborations with the Community-Based Research Center (CBRC) and the Center for Research, Education and Advocacy for Transgender Equity (CREATE), which are enhancing reach, recruitment, and knowledge translation.
Achievements
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Presented a research poster at a conference, outlining the study’s aims and potential impacts on transgender health care.
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Strengthened community-grounded research capacity by embedding patient-oriented practices from the outset.
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Broadened the accessibility and reach of project findings through partnerships that offer mentorship, in-kind support, and strategic guidance in community-based research.
Amanda Willms is a PhD student in the School of Exercise Science, Physical and Health Education at the University of Victoria. She is passionate about using technology to improve health outcomes and works on projects that create and test physical activity apps. Her research focuses on finding innovative ways to support individuals in making long-term physical activity changes.
Her PhD research is funded by the CBITN-CTTP & Michael Smith Health Research BC Doctoral Studentship. This project takes place in BC and focuses on improving digital health tools for people with type 2 diabetes.
Dr. Sam Liu, the director of the Digital Health Lab, leads this research. He is an expert in digital health interventions and behaviour change. Amanda’s research studies whether an adaptive physical activity intervention can help people with type 2 diabetes be more active. The goal is to give them personalized exercise suggestions when they need them, based on their preferences and physical activity levels, through a mobile health app.
In this study, BC residents with type 2 diabetes will participate in a 12-week mobile app program. The research hopes to help people get more active, manage their blood sugar levels better, and improve digital health tools. This work aims to make it easier for people to access personalized health programs through digital tools.
Spencer Skaper is a Master of Science student at the University of Victoria and is leading a research project aimed at understanding how exercise improves blood flow to the brain in individuals with Down syndrome. This project is funded by the Canadian Consortium of Clinical Trial Training Platform-Clinical Trials Training Programs (CANTRAIN-CTTP) & Michael Smith Health Research BC Masters’ Studentship, which is a BC-based initiative with mentorship and support from the Cerebrovascular Health Exercise and Environmental Research Sciences laboratory under Dr. Kurt Smith, an expert in cerebrovascular health. Individuals with Down syndrome have lower blood flow to the brain, resulting in advanced aging and a higher risk of early Alzheimer’s disease and other cerebrovascular disorders. However, limited studies have demonstrated brain blood flow responses in a Down syndrome population, with fewer proposing early intervention strategies that preserve cerebrovascular function. Thus, this study aims to determine how moderate exercise affects brain blood flow in Down syndrome. We believe that aerobic exercise will improve brain blood flow in this population. These findings may be valuable for implementing early intervention strategies that preserve brain blood flow and limit early onset cerebrovascular complications in Down syndrome. The research findings could inform exercise recommendations to support brain health in Down syndrome, benefiting individuals, caregivers, and BC’s healthcare system. The results may also contribute to broader efforts in preventing cerebrovascular diseases in the aging Down syndrome populations.
This project will bring together diverse stakeholders to plan an evaluation of peer involvement in the High Hopes Cannabis Substitution Program at Drinkers’ Lounge. During a one-day facilitated workshop, a planning committee including peer workers, MAP participants, staff, and researchers will co-develop an evaluation framework and a plan for moving forward with research activities. The committee will identify priority research questions, outcomes, indicators, and data collection methods, emphasizing principles of community-based participatory research and cultural safety.
This project aims to build partnerships for community-driven research, generate a comprehensive evaluation plan grounded in lived experience perspectives, and produce insights on best practices for meaningful peer engagement in harm reduction programs. Outputs will include a collaborative research agreement, final report, and funding proposal to implement the evaluation. These activities will contribute to the evidence base on community-led solutions to the opioid crisis, refinement and scale-up of peer-involved cannabis-enhanced MAPs, and improving health outcomes for MAP participants.
