Canada establishes research hub at UofT to accelerate Canada’s vaccine and therapeutics production

TORONTO — The Government of Canada is investing $2 million to create the Canadian Hub for Health Intelligence & Innovation in Infectious Diseases. This support is part of a $10 million investment announced by François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, and the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Health, on March 2 for the creation of five research hubs as part of Stage 1 of the integrated Canada Biomedical Research Fund (CBRF) and Biosciences Research Infrastructure Fund (BRIF) competition.

“This investment from the federal government to establish the HI3 hub builds on the robust research and innovation ecosystem at UofT and on the strength of our partnerships across sectors,” said Leah Cowen, Vice-President, Research and Innovation, and Strategic Initiatives, University of Toronto. “By bringing together an unprecedented number of partners from universities, hospitals, industry and other fields, the hub is poised to expand and invigorate the innovation-to-product pipeline and protect the health of all people living in Canada.”

The Canadian Hub for Health Intelligence & Innovation in Infectious Diseases is being led by the University of Toronto. Its focus will be on advancing the concept of “personalized and precise medicine” to influence the development of vaccines, therapeutics and other public health interventions. This multidisciplinary research hub will accelerate research and development of vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics, while supporting training and development to expand the pipeline of skilled talent. It will also accelerate the translation of promising research into commercially viable products and processes.

“To continue to protect Canadians and to build a resilient biomanufacturing ecosystem, our government is taking every action possible to be equipped with the best tools,” said François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry. “We’re proud to foster the research needed to produce cutting-edge discoveries and products in our very own labs, which will help us build a stronger, more robust life sciences sector that responds to the needs of Canadians for decades to come.”