Genome Alberta's Official Newsletter
Genome Alberta Newsletter GeneSnips - May 20, 2008
Genome Alberta News
- Applied Computational Genomics Course (ACGC)
The Bioinformatics Platform (BIP) team is pleased to announce its next course:
Where: Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia
When: July 24 - 30, 2008
Further Information: http://www.gcbioinformatics.ca/training
Contact: training@gcbioinformatics.ca or phone Lisa at 403-210-8588.
Leverage the power of Unix for managing data; learn to write quick Perl scripts that get the job done; become proficient in using bioinformatics software and services.
After the course, all attendees will have FREE internet access to all Bioinformatics Platform tools and databases used in the course.
- Bio San Diego
Genome Alberta is part of the Alberta Pavilion this year at the 2008 Bio International Convention in Sand Diego June 17-20. The Alberta contingent will actually be kicking things off with a Rooftop Reception on the 16th. Bio is an excellent opportunity to show that Alberta has as much energy in the minds and abilities of its life science community as it has in the ground. Premier Ed Stelmach and Alberta Advanced Education and Technology Minister Doug Horner will also be attending Bio this year. If you’re going to make the trip to the event stop by the Alberta Pavilion and say hello.
- Genome Alberta Staff
In addition to the two new contract employees, Ron Pidskalny and Sinead Igoe mentioned in our last Gene Snips, there has also been a change to Jeff Parker’s position with Genome Alberta.
Jeff Parker’s role as Project Manager for the “Designing Oilseeds for Tomorrow’s Market” (DOTM) project has been amended from full-time to part-time so he can take on the new role of “Scientific Officer-Bioproducts”. Jeff’s new role is funded from the newly acquired Alberta Energy funds and he will be working closely with Ron Pidskalny.
- Genome Alberta in Halifax
Genome Alberta Communications Director Mike Spear was part of a Youth Forum in Halifax at the Quinpool Education Centre. The rest of the panel was made up by Duane Guernsey (Genome Atlantic research and Dalhousie University professor), Julie Hathaway (Genetic Counselor) and Lynette Reid (Bioethicist). The Forum was all about personal genomics testing and Mike Spear was there as the ‘guinea pig’ because as part of Genome Alberta’s blog Mike has had a personal genotyping done by 23andME, deCODE, and the DNA Ancestry Project. The panelists had access to his 23andMe account prior to the Forum and the students had a copy of the deCODE summary report. There was no shortage of good questions from the students who had clearly given some thought to the issues surrounding direct-to-consumer genotyping.
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GE3LS Digest
This is a sample from the GE3LS Digest put out on a regular basis by Genome Alberta’s GE3LS team. If you’d like to receive the full digest, email rhyde-lay@genomealberta.ca
Scientists, hybrid embryos and the media – April 28, 2008
http://www.bionews.org.uk/commentary.lasso?storyid=3814
Should scientists enter the media fray on the most controversial aspects of stem cell research when the row is clearly about much more than the science? This is a question that many in the scientific community have raised over the past year in relation to the furore over human-animal hybrid embryos. When the UK Science Media Centre first ran a couple of our trademark 'Background' briefings on hybrids and chimeras in mid 2005, the story was covered responsibly by the science reporters in the inside pages. But when the Government revealed its intention to ban this area of research because of public revulsion, hybrid embryos became front page news. Some scientists point out that from that moment on this debate has been much more about politics, policy, regulation and religion than about science. And of course they are right - even in the midst of the Easter-tide assault from the Catholic church, much of the media focused on what it meant for the debate over a free vote on the Human Fertilisation and Embryology (HFE) Bill - will MPs be whipped by the PM or the Cardinals was the question favoured by political commentators.
The bioethics debate – May 7, 2008
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/editorial/story.html?id=a1aa7ef2-ea6a-421f-a31f-531a1736437c
Bioethics gets a lot of attention. Whenever there is a big new medical breakthrough, health care controversy or cutting-edge research development, news reports will usually include the voice of someone described as an "ethicist." Many movies, such as The Island, Gattaca and Million Dollar Baby, have bioethics themes. Michael Crichton's latest book, Next, is built around bioethics, particularly the concerns associated with gene patents. Political leaders increasingly refer to bioethics issues as important national concerns. But measured against most academic areas, bioethics is just a baby. Despite its ubiquitous nature, it hasn't been around all that long. Most would agree that bioethics -- if you define it as the study of the social, ethical and legal issues associated with the life sciences and health care practices -- took off in the '60s and '70s, largely as a result of specific research ethics controversies and biomedical development (such as new transplantation techniques.) In the '80s and '90s, the social concerns associated with large scientific initiatives such as the Human Genome Project, and with the morally complex areas of stem cell and cloning research, gave the field more profile and momentum.
Genome BC Announces $63 Million in Applied Genomics Research Projects – April 30, 2008
http://www.genomebc.ca/whatnew_press/press_releases/2008_press/041708_newprojects.htm
From bees to bioenergy, from forestry to fisheries and into human health, British Columbia top scientists are poised to embark on projects designed to meet technological challenges in key sectors of BC's economy. 13 new projects will use genomics knowledge (all information encoded in the organism's DNA) and translate it into tools for everyday life. “The funding of these applied projects, which will have short time frames to deliver specific results, marks an important new addition to Genome BC's suite of genomics research programs,” said Dr. Alan Winter, President and CEO. Since 2000 Genome BC has built a portfolio of discovery research projects and technology platforms with a total investment of more than $375 million.-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Genome Alberta in Pictures
The pictures for this issues of Gene Snips are from the Youth Forum at the Quinpool Education Centre in Halifax on May 15th. The panelists left to right were Lynette Reid (Dalhousie University) , Julie Hathaway (Maritime Medical Genetics) , Mike Spear (Genome Alberta) , Duane Guernsey (Dalhousie University). You can see more pictures from the event at http://picasaweb.google.com/MikesGene/PersonalGenotypingProject
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