Friends of VIDO receives $1 million from celebrated Saskatoon philanthropist

A generous donation of $1 million from Ellen Remai, through the Frank and Ellen Remai Foundation, will support the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO), a world-class research facility at the University of Saskatchewan (USask), with an aim to stop emerging infectious diseases and future pandemics.

Banned rodenticide still endangers pets’ lives

It’s been a year since Saskatchewan banned the use of strychnine to control rodents, but a University of Saskatchewan (USask) veterinary toxicologist is warning that the highly toxic poison continues to threaten the lives of animals in the province.

USask’s VIDO selected to join DIANA innovation accelerator

The University of Saskatchewan’s (USask) Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO) has been selected to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA) program. VIDO is one of 13 new Canadian test centres chosen to be part of the network—and the only centre with biotechnology as its main focus.

WCVM faculty awarded CIHR research funding

Through its latest round of funding, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research is investing $4,862,701 in 13 projects led by University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers and research teams — including scientists who are part of the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) faculty. 

A growing fetus may lead to preterm labour

The statistics reflect a stark reality: about 15 million babies are born prematurely each year, with preterm birth accounting for 70 per cent of newborn deaths worldwide.

Harmful algal blooms: alarming threats lurking in waters

Have you ever walked by a pond and noticed a thick green or bluish-green layer covering the surface of water? These thick layers are becoming increasingly common in oceans, lakes, ponds and other water bodies — threatening aquatic life and human health.

WCVM scientist among USask's top research award recipients

Recipients of the University of Saskatchewan’s (USask) top honour of Distinguished Researchers for 2023 are Dr. Cheryl Waldner (DVM, PhD), and Dr. Wen Jun (Chris) Zhang (PhD), internationally recognized experts in their fields who have contributed their talents to USask for more than two decades.

Are off-leash dog parks a ‘ticking’ time bomb?

For many dog owners, warmer weather means that trips to the local off-leash dog park are a regular occurrence. But more time at the park may mean a higher chance of picking up a few passengers on the way — including ticks.

From small-town kid to Vanier Scholar

When Cody Koloski graduated from high school in Rossburn, Man., he headed for university with dreams of becoming a doctor — buoyed by his teachers’ enthusiasm for biology, chemistry and physics.

A quarter century of service at USask

Let’s turn back time 25 years to 1997, when Jean Chrétien was re-elected prime minister, the blockbuster movie Titanic premiered in theatres, Tiger Woods became the youngest golfer to win the Masters at age 21, and the first book in the soon-to-be wildly successful Harry Potter series was published.

Guide aims to help put the welcome mat out for pets

A team of researchers at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) and the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) are part of an initiative to explore the benefits of welcoming companion animals in places where they wouldn’t normally be allowed.

$8.1M investment will help VIDO become CL4 facility

The University of Saskatchewan’s (USask) Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO) has received a significant investment from the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) to establish containment Level 4 (CL4) capacity — the highest level of containment.

New online course prepares therapy dog handlers

University of Saskatchewan (USask) researcher Dr. Colleen Dell (PhD) and her team have partnered with St. John Ambulance in Saskatchewan to offer a first-of-its-kind online certificate course to improve the abilities of therapy dog handlers to prepare and support their interactions with the program’s participants.

Equine abortions: Chlamydia a culprit?

When veterinarian Dr. Madison Ricard came to the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) for her anatomic pathology residency program in 2020, she had no idea that her research would potentially have an impact on the veterinary profession and the horse industry at large.

USask major scientific centres awarded $170M of MSI funding

Four flagship research centres at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) uniquely equipped to keep Canada at the forefront internationally in vaccine development, imaging science, sustainable water management and monitoring space weather have been awarded nearly $170 million.

Have you ever thought about how you think?

Think back to your first memory: do you remember it vividly or does it all seem a bit confusing? If you can recall details about the movie that you watched last night much more easily than your very first memory, most of us can relate.

Fruit fly research could lead to final frontier

By using fruit flies as their model organism, Dr. Adelaine Leung and her team at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) are contributing vital knowledge to a fascinating research story that began more than 120 years ago.   

WCVM alumni appointed to Order of Canada

Dr. David Waltner-Toews, a graduate of the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) at the University of Saskatchewan (USask), was appointed as an officer of the Order of Canada – one of the country’s highest civilian honours.

‘Water’ we doing to our water?

We all need water — we need it to bathe, to clean, to drink and to live our lives as we have for years. Yet our freshwater supply is in peril, and our relationship with water is changing.

New VIDO Vaccine Development Centre opens

The University of Saskatchewan’s (USask) Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO) has completed the construction of its Vaccine Development Centre (VDC), strengthening and expanding Canada’s domestic biomanufacturing capacity.

WCVM graduate students excel at research expo

Members of the Western College of Veterinary Medicine’s (WCVM) community excelled at the 2022 Life and Health Sciences Research Expo — an annual event at the University of Saskatchewan (USask).

Collaboration key to research funding success

The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) has awarded $810,000 over five years to a diverse team of University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers who are embarking on an ambitious, three-part project to advance the understanding of cystic fibrosis (CF).

USask researchers probe Lyme disease ecology

A mysterious disease is creeping its way into Saskatchewan, and its diagnosis remains complicated and unstandardized. Lyme disease, a tick-borne bacterial infection, is spreading westwards and northwards into the province of Saskatchewan.

On the trail of the B.C. bat mortality mystery

British Columbia is losing its bats. Half of the 16 bat species in the province are either vulnerable or threatened, and ecologists and farmers alike worry about how the loss of these voracious pest control experts will affect our natural and agricultural systems.

Safety vital near portable X-rays

A recent study by University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers highlights the importance of regularly reviewing radiation safety practices for the use of portable X-ray machines in equine practice.

Novel ergot research leads to top-tier scholarship for USask student

University of Saskatchewan PhD student Jensen Cherewyk has been awarded one of Canada’s most prestigious doctoral scholarships for leading-edge research into an overlooked compound formed by a toxic fungus in forage grasses and cereal grains that threatens human and animal food safety.

Two WCVM researchers join university's CAHS Fellows

Three University of Saskatchewan (USask) leaders and researchers — including two faculty members of the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) — have been inducted as fellows into the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences (CAHS).

Foundation supports infectious disease research

To help protect Saskatchewan residents from emerging disease threats, Hospitals of Regina Foundation (HRF) has invested $150,000 to help establish Canada’s Centre for Pandemic Research at the University of Saskatchewan’s (USask) Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO).

WCVM researchers receive NSERC Discovery Grants

Three researchers from the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) have received $515,000 in funding through the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Discovery Grant program.

Saskatchewan Blue Cross invests in VIDO's future

The Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO) at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) is one step closer to establishing its Centre for Pandemic Research, thanks to a $150,000 donation from Saskatchewan Blue Cross.

USask scientists probe tick-borne Lyme disease

While most people dread dealing with ticks, University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers are keen to work with the parasite as they investigate the host-pathogen system responsible for Lyme disease in Canada.

Unique stem cells hold reproductive potential

Preserving endangered species, curing male infertility, making milk that prevents disease, supplying hospitals with transplantation tissue — all of these accomplishments can be linked to spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) and to important research that’s being carried out at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM).

Federal budget supports USask’s VIDO with $59.2M

Today the Government of Canada announced $59.2 million to the University of Saskatchewan’s (USask) Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO). The funding supports the development of its vaccine candidates and the expansion of its research facilities, including a National Centre for Pandemic Research.

Saskatoon COVID-19 wastewater testing results now online

Saskatoon residents now have access to the results of wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) testing for SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID-19 — thanks to a partnership between University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers, the City of Saskatoon and the Saskatchewan Health Authority. 

Studying e-cigarettes' risk to reproductive health

E-cigarette companies spent more than $9 billion in marketing last year to promote their product as a healthy alternative to conventional cigarettes for smokers, but University of Saskatchewan (USask) scientist Dr. Ali Honaramooz (DVM, PhD) is not convinced.