Building a healthier & more productive environment through genomics
2020 - 2021 Annual Report
Medicine
Our Mission
Driving genomics research, development and knowledge translations to better protect, feed, heal & empower the people of Manitoba, Saskatchewan & beyond.
Our Vision
Building a healthier and more productive environment for everyone through genomics.
Our Values
Genome Prairie...
...is empathetic, considerate and respectful in its communications and conduct between staff and stakeholders.
...continually strives to be correct, complete and consistent in exceeding staff and stakeholders' expectations.
...is inclusive, diverse, equitable and accessible in all conduct at all times throughout the entire organization.
...operates with integrity, honesty and urgency in all our conduct with staff and stakeholders.
...is bold, innovative and open in pursuing opportunities and challenges together with our stakeholders.
Our Leadership
Watch the video from the President & CEO, check out our highlights PDF and view messages from a few members of our leadership team.
To learn about our organizations vision for the future download the Genome Prairie 5-Year Strategic Plan
Our Work
Genome Prairie leads the application of genomics solutions across key sectors in the Manitoba and Saskatchewan to drive economic growth, improve quality of life and foster global leadership.
Genome Prairie will continue to explore new opportunities for future research projects for both provinces in the health, agriculture and environment spaces to ensure long term sustainability for the organization.
Click on each sector to learn more
Food Security
Genomics plays a role in maximizing the utility, diversity, and yield of resources, as well as in contributing to sustained food security in our present day and in the future. While producing more high quality, safe food on less land with less environmental impact is one of the greatest challenges of the 21st century.
The Canadian agriculture and agri-food sector are well-positioned to use genomics to improve food quality, safety and security, and boost production in crops and livestock. It is helping Canadians create high value products, gain a more diverse global market share, and increase exports. Feeding the world is a scientific, logistical, and humanitarian enterprise involving an assembly of effort, starting with farmers and breeders and extending to policy makers and governments.
Our diverse agriculture and agri-food sector are critically important to the Prairie Region’s economy. While the sector is strong and growing, it increasingly faces challenges due to climate change and global market pressure. Canada is the largest lentil producer and exporter in the world with the province of Saskatchewan producing 95% of Canada's lentils.
Genome Prairie’s 2018 LSARP, Enhancing the Value of Lentil Variation for Ecosystem Survival (EVOLVES) aims to accelerate the deployment of specific quality traits through strategic use of genetic variability, and improve the capability and agility of the breeding program so Canada can rapidly capture emerging market opportunities. Project outputs from EVOLVES will contribute to the Canadian pulse industry’s goal of diversifying market outlets and creating price stability. As well, secure Canada as the global leader in all aspects of lentil innovation, and as a preferred supplier of high-quality lentils to the world.
One Health
Genomic diversity is a driving force influencing human and animal health, and susceptibility to disease. One Health recognizes the fundamental dependence of human health on the health of agricultural, industrial, and natural ecosystems. Microbes form hidden linkages that connect these ecosystems and shape their health and disease.
The COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced the relevance of One Health principles in the global governance of infectious diseases, in particular, with international efforts to prevent and contain zoonotic diseases.
One Health has been defined by the WHO as “an approach to designing and implementing programmes, policies, legislation and research in which multiple sectors communicate and work together to achieve better public health outcomes” (WHO 2020). It recognizes that the health and well-being of humans, animals and the environment are intricately linked.
Launched in 2020, the Canadian COVID Genomics Network (CanCOGeN) is a Genome Canada-led consortium of Canadian federal, provincial and regional public health authorities and their healthcare partners, academia, industry, hospitals, research institutes and large-scale sequencing centres with its mission to establish a coordinated pan-Canadian, cross-agency network for large-scale SARS-CoV-2 and human host sequencing to track viral origin, spread and evolution, characterize the role of human genetics in COVID-19 disease and to inform time-sensitive critical decision making relevant to health authorities across Canada during the pandemic. Genome Canada’s funding specifically given to Genome Prairie is to support COVID-19 sequencing activities as quickly as possible and to build capacity for sequencing in the provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan. These funds have supported the provincial health labs – Manitoba’s Cadham Provincial Laboratory (project lead Dr. David Alexander) and Saskatchewan’s Roy Romanow Provincial Laboratory (project leads Alexis Hicock and Dr. Ryan McDonald) – increase local capacity and cover costs associated with sample preparation, extraction, handling and storage of clinical samples.
Launched in 2020, Genome Prairie’s COVID-19 Rapid Regional Response (COV3R) project uses genome capture and aims to tackle the problem of detecting co-infections in humans, and in the process provide powerful new tools for public health. Co-infection by respiratory viruses is common and bad for patients, yet we know very little about co-infection in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Integrating the genomic detection of most respiratory viruses to better understand differences in the severity of COVID-19 infection will directly and immediately improve public health interventions and clinical treatment plans. The technique will also give researchers the ability to test for all viral groups, even those scientists do not yet know about. The COV3R team is also developing a unique tool that efficiently captures genetic material and compares it against all coronaviruses known to infect animals, which will be a valuable asset in the current pandemic and for early detection of coronavirus pathogens in the future
Precision Medicine
Precision medicine is a rapidly evolving field that is changing the landscape for health care regionally and nationally across the board. It is improving patient care and making our health care system more cost-efficient. By applying advances in genomics, precision medicine can improve patient health and increase efficiency of healthcare delivery.
Inborn errors of metabolism (IEM) are genetic diseases caused by mutations in either the nuclear or mitochondrial genome. Although each of the more than 600 known IEMs is individually rare, together they affect more than 6,400 patients in the Prairies—primarily children. Throughout the Prairie provinces, there is a limited local capacity for next-generation sequencing causing delays which limit the benefits of early diagnosis, early treatment, and improved outcomes. These delays result in adverse outcomes in patients.
Launched in 2021, Genome Prairie’s GAPP Round 19 project, the Canadian Prairie Metabolic Network (CPMN) will combine clinical and laboratory approaches to ensure patients in the prairie region have timely access to new diagnostics, new therapies, and clinical and specialty supports which in turn will result in improved outcomes for patients. CPMN is a part of Genome Canada’s All for One initiative.
Biomanufacturing & Life Sciences
Biomanufacturing refers to a type of manufacturing that uses biology at the core of production. Instead of churning out automotive parts or plastics, these facilities produce high-value biological products, such as building blocks for novel vaccines (e.g. mRNA-based) and therapeutics (e.g. antibody-based).
Beyond health applications, biomanufacturing technology can be applied to other industries such as agriculture.
Genome Prairie’s 2014 LSARP, Reverse Vaccinology Approach for the Prevention of Mycobacterial Diseases in Cattle (ReVAMP) aims to develop vaccines against two important infectious diseases of cattle, Johne’s disease and bovine tuberculosis. Infections are a leading cause of sickness and death in cattle, causing direct economic losses to producers and even more serious losses associated with international trade restrictions (as seen with mad cow disease) and decreased public confidence in food quality. Infectious diseases also pose a risk to human health if they are transferred to people. The most effective way to prevent infectious disease in animals such as cattle is vaccination. The ReVAMP project team’s work will ultimately increase productivity and profitability for cattle producers and increase public confidence by reducing the use of slaughter or antibiotics to control infections. It will also enhance Canada’s reputation as a major Agrifood producer. The annual financial impact of the vaccines is estimated to be around $100 million, with international sales of a further $400 million.
Climate Change Mitigation & Adaptation
Climate change is occurring at a fast rate globally, and one major concern is that extreme climate events can have strong impacts on natural populations. How organisms respond to stressful thermal conditions depend, in part, on how phenotypically plastic they are, to what extent they can disperse to more favorable habitats and, ultimately, on their capacity to genetically respond and eventually adapt to such changes.
Genome Prairie’s 2020 LSARP, GENICE II: Reimagining Monitored Natural Attenuation as an Oil Spill Response Strategy in the Arctic project team will use metagenomics, metatranscriptomics, mass spectrometry, and high-sensitivity remote sensing techniques to develop a mechanistic understanding of the fate of oil in the Arctic, and social, policy, and economic research to further our knowledge of Monitored Natural Attenuation (MNA) as a rational response strategy for oil spills. The Arctic Ocean has lost, and continues to lose, significant amounts of sea ice due to climate warming. With this comes large increases in ship traffic and the probability of an oil spill. Damage caused by such a spill could have devastating impacts on the local wildlife, food security and human health, particularly to coastal Inuit communities – the segment of Canada’s population that bears the greatest risk related to oil spills in the Arctic. With GENICE II, cutting edge portable DNA sequencing technologies from Oxford Nanopore Technologies will be implemented in collaboration with Inuit communities to monitor natural populations of microbes that may be impacted by the presence of oil, as well, train a new generation of Canadians in large-scale applied genomics research and benefit Canada through advances in policy and governance of marine oil spill prevention, preparation and response.
We bring the right researchers together with the right partners at the right time to make the required impact.
2020-2021 Highlights
Funded Projects
Click on the projects below to find out more.
FOOD SECURITY
Enhancing the Value of Lentil Variation for Ecosystem Survival (EVOLVES)
Canada, especially Saskatchewan, is a know global leader in lentil innovation. Enhancing the Value of Lentil Variation for Ecosystem Survival (EVOLVES) strives to accelerate the deployment of specific quality traits in lentils through the strategic use of genetic variability. As a result, EVOLVES aims to improve the capability and agility of Canada’s lentil breeding program in order to gain a global competitive advantage.
Pulses are the dried, edible seeds of legume plants and are both high in protein and fibre, and low in fat. The most common pulse varieties are dried peas, beans, lentils and chickpeas. By volume, India, China and Brazil are the countries that consume the most pulses. Lentil producers from central Asia (the region that consists of former Soviet republics such as Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan) still have the benefit of proximity to India and China where millions of people eat lentils daily.
The goals of EVOLVES project are to accelerate the deployment of specific quality traits through strategic use of genetic variability, and to improve the capability and agility of the breeding program so Canada can rapidly capture emerging market opportunities. Project outputs from EVOLVES will contribute to the Canadian pulse industry’s goal of diversifying market outlets and creating price stability. It will also secure Canada as the global leader in all aspects of lentil innovation and as a preferred supplier of high-quality lentils to the world. Stats currently show that Canada is the largest lentil producer and exporter in the world with the province of Saskatchewan producing 95% of Canada's lentils.
ONE HEALTH
CaNCOGeN & COV3R
Canadian COVID Genomics Network (CanCOGeN)
GENOMICS IS ON A MISSION TO RESPOND TO COVID-19
First announced in April 2020, the Canadian COVID-19 Genomics Network (CanCOGeN) is a $40 million Genome Canada-led network involving a consortium of Canadian federal, provincial and regional public health authorities, academia, and industry created to coordinate and fund SARS-CoV-2 and human host sequencing to track viral origin, spread and evolution, characterize the role of human genetics in COVID-19 disease and to inform time-sensitive critical decision making relevant to health authorities across Canada during the pandemic. The network will further contribute to building national capacity to address future outbreaks and pandemics.
The virus side is primarily focused on large-scale whole genome sequencing identifying genetic variations and mutations. This provides essential information for COVID-19 surveillance, contact tracing, tracking, dispersal and management of the virus locally, nationally and internationally. The host side involves whole genome sequencing of virus-infected individuals to better understand variable clinical responses to infections ranging from mild discomfort to extremely serious respiratory complications.
Genome Prairie has this great opportunity to take advanced laboratory technology directly to the Prairie Region in order to provide genomic solutions to a very complex problem, specifically, COVID-19. CanCOGeN funding translates into meaningful collaboration opportunities in the health care space which, in the future, could lead to the development of significant health care projects. Manitoba and Saskatchewan residents can rest assured that Genome Prairie is addressing a global issue on a regional level, as well as building local capacity and infrastructure that did not exist pre-COVID-19.
Genome Canada’s funding specifically given to Genome Prairie is to support COVID-19 sequencing activities as quickly as possible and to build capacity for sequencing in the provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan. These funds have supported the provincial health labs – Manitoba’s Cadham Provincial Laboratory (project lead Dr. David Alexander) and Saskatchewan’s Roy Romanow Provincial Laboratory (project leads Alexis Hicock and Dr. Ryan McDonald) – increase local capacity and cover costs associated with sample preparation, extraction, handling and storage of clinical samples. Many of these samples are subsequently transported to the National Microbiology Lab in Winnipeg for whole genome sequencing. The latter costs are covered directly by separate funding from Health Canada.
CanCOGeN is also collaborating internationally to share knowledge, discoveries, and best practice. Genome Canada launched a new partnership with the COVID-19 Genomics UK (COG-UK) consortium in May 2020 and are forming similar partnerships with other countries that are focusing on using genomics to understand and control the COVID-19 pandemic.
COVID-19 Rapid Regional Response (COV3R)
Using genome capture, the COVID-19 Rapid Regional Response (COV3R) initiative aims to tackle the problem of detecting co-infections in humans, and in the process provide powerful new tools for public health. Co-infection by respiratory viruses is common and bad for patients, yet we know very little about co-infection in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Integrating the genomic detection of most respiratory viruses to better understand differences in the severity of COVID-19 infection will directly and immediately improve public health interventions and clinical treatment plans.
The technique will also give researchers the ability to test for all viral groups, even those scientists do not yet know about. The COV3R team is also developing a unique tool that efficiently captures genetic material and compares it against all coronaviruses known to infect animals, which will be a valuable asset in the current pandemic and for early detection of coronavirus pathogens in the future.
PRECISION MEDICINE
Canadian Prairie Metabolic Network (CPMN)
More than 6,000 patients, primarily children, in the Prairie Region are affected by inborn errors of metabolism (IEM), rare genetic diseases caused by mutations in either the nuclear or mitochondrial genome. The Canadian Prairie Metabolic Network (CPMN) will ensure the timely and more cost-effective delivery of innovative and relevant genomic testing in Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
The project lead is Max Rady College of Medicine Distinguished Professor Dr. Cheryl Rockman-Greenberg (pediatrics and child health; biochemistry and medical genetics), with Adam Topp (CEO) Shared Health Manitoba, and partners at Genome Canada and Genome Prairie. Rockman-Greenberg is also a research scientist at the Children’s Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba and an internationally known researcher who has identified the molecular source of some of Manitoba’s most devastating inherited diseases.
CPMN is the fifth regional All for One precision health partnership with Genome Canada and Genome Prairie, making it pan-Canadian, spanning from coast-to-coast. The goal is to improve the health and wellness of Canadians with serious genetic conditions by enabling access to a timely and accurate genomic-based diagnosis. This enables patients to benefit while helping others through the sharing of their clinical and genomic data within a learning health system.
Throughout the Prairie provinces, there is a limited local capacity for next-generation sequencing causing delays which limit the benefits of early diagnosis, early treatment and improved outcomes. These delays result in adverse outcomes in patients. This project will combine clinical and laboratory approaches to ensure patients have timely access to new diagnostics, new therapies and clinical and specialty supports.
CPMN will provide access to a full range of multidisciplinary expertise, develop best practice approaches, and provide, as needed, clinical specialist coverage for generalist physicians and their patients. It will also ensure the timely and more cost-effective delivery of innovative and relevant genomic testing in the Prairies, including rapid, inexpensive mitochondrial DNA testing not available elsewhere; generate genomics data that will stay in Canada; and contribute to knowledge and expertise in Canada across multiple disciplines and specialties.
BIOMANUFACTURING & LIFE SCIENCES
Reverse Vaccinology Approach for the Prevention of Mycobacterial Diseases in Cattle (ReVAMP)
Reverse Vaccinology Approach for the Prevention of Mycobacterial Diseases in Cattle (ReVAMP)
Infections are a leading cause of sickness and death in cattle, causing direct economic losses to producers and even more serious losses associated with international trade restrictions (as seen with mad cow disease) and decreased public confidence in food quality.
The most effective way to prevent infectious disease in animals such as cattle is vaccination. Lack of effective vaccines for some diseases contributes to the overuse of antibiotics and the strategy of slaughtering infected animals, which has come under increasing public scrutiny.
Bovine Tuberculosis (bTB) is a debilitating disease of cattle that can spread to humans and other domestic and wild animals and Johne’s disease (JD) is a contagious and chronic disease of cattle. These are common diseases of high economic importance to the Agri-food industry in Canada however, there is no effective vaccine to protect cattle against these diseases.
The overarching goal of the ReVAMP project which was led by Drs. Volker Gerdts and Andrew Potter of VIDO-InterVac, University of Saskatchewan, and Robert Hancock of the University of British Columbia, was to use genomics and reverse vaccinology to develop vaccines for two cattle diseases, Johne’s disease and Bovine tuberculosis.
The ReVAMP project used genomic technology to screen large numbers of bacterial proteins to identify those that have properties that can stimulate a protective immune response in cattle. The identified proteins then formed the basis for developing novel vaccines and immunization strategies.
Highlights of project outcomes include (i) a number of key white papers with novel information for the public, producers, industry and government on the options and strategies for dealing with these important cattle diseases, (ii) identification and testing of candidate proteins that could be used as vaccines against these two diseases, (iii) the development of new infection and vaccine screening models for JD and bTB, and (iv) the creation of a framework to facilitate core research programs for these important national & global diseases.
Overall, the findings from this project provide a platform for Canadian researchers to lead national & global collaborations into vaccines & therapeutics research for Bovine Tuberculosis and Johne’s disease.
CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION & ADAPTATION
GENICE II: Reimagining Monitored Natural Attenuation as an Oil Spill Response Strategy in the Arctic
GENICE II: Reimagining Monitored Natural Attenuation as an Oil Spill Response Strategy in the Arctic will critically evaluate monitored natural microbial biodegradation as a reliable response to oil spills in an ice laden Arctic marine environment. Tankers transiting Canadian waters must have an agreement with a certified Oil Spill Response Organization, but no such currently organization covers waters north of 60°N, meaning that help is usually days or weeks away, leaving natural attenuation as the presumed mechanism by which a majority of oil would be mitigated in a large Arctic spill. Natural attenuation is the removal or transformation of oil by natural processes like microbial biodegradation, which have been shown to play a major role in the cleanup of oil spills at lower latitudes.
The GENICE II project team will use metagenomics, metatranscriptomics, mass spectrometry, and high-sensitivity remote sensing techniques to develop a mechanistic understanding of the fate of oil in the Arctic, and social, policy, and economic research to further our knowledge of Monitored Natural Attenuation (MNA) as a rational response strategy for oil spills. GENICE II is organized as three inter- linked Activities: Activity 1 will conduct focused experimental incubations at the Ocean Sea Ice Mesocosm (OSIM) facility to observe geophysical, petrochemical, and microbial genomic responses to oil spills. Activity 2 will co-develop with four Kivalliq communities, a sustainable genomics-informed Community Based Monitoring (CBM) program that combines social and natural sciences with Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit, while building a baseline understanding of seasonal cycling in Arctic marine microbial communities and serving as a sentinel in the case of an actual spill. Activity 3 will ensure policy uptake of our research findings by translating the results using a regionally specific economic model (the Oil Spill Decision Support System (OSDSS); and implementable policy recommendations based on genomics-informed MNA.
End-of-project Deliverables: At the completion of this project, the team will deliver a comprehensive program containing the necessary ingredients for a sustainable genomics-informed MNA strategy, including: Highly Qualified Personnel (HQP) trained in advanced genomics, petroleomics, and remote sensing technologies; increased HQP capacity to conduct respectful research with Inuit communities; community-based HQP trained in natural science monitoring techniques; partnerships developed with communities, industry and academia; a sustainable CBM program co-developed for the Kivalliq region; a set of genomic biomarkers for use in CBM and MNA; protocols for the use of portable DNA sequencing devices for real-time on-site MNA; modeling software for the detection of oil in sea ice using electromagnetic scattering data; mapping resources provided of MNA seascapes and icescapes; the OSDSS application; an informed and effective policy and governance regime for Arctic marine spill prevention, preparation and response; and enhanced local and regional capacity for participating in, and leading spill-related governance.
Our Board of Directors
The primary mandate of Genome Prairie’s Board of Directors is to provide strategic insight and operational governance. Our Board of Directors is composed of prominent members of the Prairie and North American research community. Board members have a diverse range of experience and expertise that spans across science and business.
Through quarterly meetings, the Board aims to fulfill the Prairie Region’s Genomics’ guiding principle promoting world-class research, creating strategic genomics resources and advocating the development of a globally competitive life sciences sector. The Board members’ time and expertise are essential to our ongoing success and future direction, and we are grateful for their contributions.
Mr. Bill Johnson, Chair
Ms. Patty Rosher, Vice Chair
Mr. Mike Lesiuk
Mr. David Migadel
Ms. Kendra Mueller
Dr. Jenisa Naidoo
Dr. Curtis Rempel
Dr. Annemieke Farenhorst
Dr. Shawn Gibson
Dr. Peter W.B. Phillips
Financials
Download Consolidated Financial Statements
Contains:
- Independent Auditors Report
- Consolidated Statement of Financial Position
- Consolidated Statement of Operations
- Consolidated Statement of Changes in Net Assets
- Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows
- Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements
Thank You
Thank You To Our Partners
We extend our continued gratitude to our partners across Manitoba and Saskatchewan, Canada and abroad.
Your great work and collaborative support are sincerely appreciated.
