UWindsor chemist John Trant’s research into new treatments for rheumatoid arthritis has won him a $375,000 grant from the Arthritis Society.

Dr. Trant researches drugs that could be used to treat rheumatoid arthritis without suppressing the entire immune system. Current treatments are less specific and leave arthritis sufferers more susceptible to infection and cancer. Trant’s biomedical research combines chemistry with computer design, 3-D bioprinting, biology, and biophysics to create custom-tailored drugs that block the molecular interactions that lead to rheumatoid arthritis.

“If successful, this will pave the way for a new treatment with fewer side effects,” Trant said. “What this certainly will provide are the first tools ever that will let immunology researchers turn a specific part of the immune system on and off, like a chemical light switch.

“This will help us understand the molecular basis of rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, and celiac disease, and will provide new chemical tools to help us understand how the disease works.”

Trant’s award is co-funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the major federal agency responsible for funding health and medical research in Canada. It’s part of $4.7 million being handed out by the Arthritis Society in 2019 and 2020.

The funding is spread over three years and includes an additional financial commitment from the University for three years after that. It’s called a Stars Career Development award, designed to help early and mid-career researchers.

In announcing the grant this week, the Arthritis Society said it “funds only the best, most scientifically meritorious research proposals that offer the greatest hope for improvements in our ability to diagnose, prevent, treat, repair and lead to a cure for arthritis.”

“Trant is exceptionally creative and is a tremendous asset to the University of Windsor, said K.W. Michael Siu, vice-president, research and innovation. “I am delighted the Arthritis Society has chosen to invest in Dr. Trant’s research. The research he and his team are performing may lead to breakthroughs in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune diseases.”

This year alone, Trant has received grants for his biomedical research from the federal New Frontiers in Research Fund, MITACS, the province’s Early Researcher Award program, the American Chemical Society’s Petroleum Research Fund, and the Ontario Institute of Cancer Research.

─ Sarah Sacheli

As a co-founder of the Offshore Energy and Storage Society (OSESS), UWindsor engineering professor Rupp Carriveau is leading researchers worldwide pushing to innovate methods that combat the intermittent nature of renewable energy generation.

Dr. Carriveau played a critical role in developing Canada’s first underwater compressed air energy storage and conversion system with Hydrostor and Toronto Hydro, which currently operate the only grid connected underwater energy storage facility in the world. His most recent work is examining the stability and durability of offshore structures in deep waters that are subject to extreme weather conditions, such as tornadoes, extreme thunderstorms, downbursts, and other strong windstorms.

For the past five years, OSESS has met annually to exchange ideas and foster collaborations that will propel the integration of renewable energy and storage technologies.

“What we would like to see is OSESS be at the heart of major projects that make an impact for communities,” Carriveau says. “For example, we’ve talked about the electrification of an island. We plan on translating these lab scale and smaller field scale pilot projects into full-scale commercial support for the offshore scene.”

By 2022, the International Energy Agency expects offshore wind generation capacity will almost triple from 2016 levels. Today in Canada, the electricity grid is 80 per cent non-emitting and the federal government has adopted a target to have this increase to 90 per cent by 2030, according to the Canadian Wind Energy Association. Visit osessociety.com to learn more.

Read the full article in the 2019 issue of Windsor Engineering (WE).

Do you want to record your regular lectures or stream them live online?

Do you want to create extra recorded resources for your students?

Will you be out of the city, but still want to have a live, interactive, online lesson?

Are you looking for a way to do online office hours that has all the value of a face-to-face meeting?

These are just some of the possibilities of the Virtual Classroom (formally known as Blackboard Collaborate Ultra). This tool is available on all course sites and is free to use for all faculty and students.

“Many instructors are looking for ways to make learning more flexible for their students, including allowing students to attend lectures virtually or recording the lectures for later review,” says Mark Lubrick, a learning specialist in the Office of Open Learning. “Others are interested in giving their students a place in their course site where they can meet live for collaborating. The Virtual Classroom can do this and much more.”

The Office of Open Learning is running an introductory workshop on Friday, Jan. 3, from 10 to 11:30 a.m., repeated Thursday, Jan. 9 from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Interested faculty, staff, and graduate students are invited to pick whichever session will work best for them.

This basic introduction will have participants actually try out the various features of the Virtual Classroom themselves. Register for either workshop at https://ctl2.uwindsor.ca/openlearning/workshops/11/#wkshp-121.

For more information, contact Lubrick at mlubrick@uwindsor.ca.

Organizers of the 2020 UWill Discover conference have issued a call for volunteers to review submissions intended to showcase the research of University of Windsor students.

Faculty, staff, administrators, and graduate students may review proposals from all disciplines, which will include abstracts, descriptions of original work, and artist statements. All are targeted to an interdisciplinary audience and should be written to be understood by anyone from any field.

Volunteers will receive a rubric for their evaluations, through the two-week period Feb. 1 to 15. The conference will run March 21 to April 2.

To volunteer, email uwilldiscover@uwindsor.ca and include “Proposal Reviewer” in the subject line.

As part of its Speaker Luncheon Series, Uni-Com: Lifelong Learning had Windsor’s poet laureate, Mary Ann Mulhern, help launch a new book. Skipping Stones is a collection of poems by members of the “Poetry for All” class; its leader Ian Henderson oversaw the project.

Several of the authors were present to read their poems to an audience of 48 people.

Most of the 350 copies printed by the University Print Shop have been purchased. A few copies are still available at the Campus Bookstore.

Whether you’re looking to get in some reps or repose, you can do it in style with an assist from the Campus Bookstore.

It is selling a sporty sweatsuit that general merchandise buyer Jackie Imeson has identified as perfect for any activity.

“Running the track or running errands, you’ll look great wearing this,” says Imeson. “Hey, no judgement if you just want to curl up in your favourite chair.”

The unisex suit consists of a cowl-neck top and drawstring pants, both boasting a stripe of Lancer shields running down the sides. Each piece costs $56.95 in the store, located on the lower level of the CAW Student Centre.