Our Funded Research Projects

Updated April 2024

Title Principal Investigator / Supervisor Program Project Start Date Project End Date Sort ascending Total $ Awarded
Replacement of IVIg by small molecule inhibitors of phagocytosis Principal Investigator: BRANCH, Donald

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: LORIAMINI, Melika
Graduate Fellowship Program $112,333
Awareness and understanding of apheresis plasma donation and effectiveness of alternative donor screening questions for diverse gbMSM and trans populations Principal Investigator: GAHAGAN, Jacqueline

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: HAW, Jennie, LACHOWSKY, Nathan, DRYDEN, OmiSoore, MANNING, Eli, FOSTER, Terrie, O'BRIEN, Sheila, HACHETTE, Todd, MULLOWNEY, Mike
MSM Plasma Program $200,500
Translating novel clotting factor X function to treat thrombosis Principal Investigator: PRYZDIAL, Ed

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: MACVICAR, Brian, SHEFFIELD, William
Intramural Research Grant Program $369,052
Transfusion CONsent by a Standardized Evidence-based Novel Tool (Transfusion- CONSENT): Creating and validating novel tools to assess competence in obtaining transfusion consent Principal Investigator: LAUREANO, Marissa

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: KHANDELWAL, Aditi, HASPEL, Richard, FUNG, Mark, LANE, Shannon, ZELLER, Michelle
BloodTechNet Award Program $8,524
Assessing the acceptability and feasibility of a plasma donation program for gbMSM in Montréal from the point of view of cis and trans gbMSM, volunteers from Héma-Québec, current donors, and plasma product recipients Principal Investigator: OTIS, Joanne

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: GERMAIN, Marc, HAW, Jennie, MONTEITH, Kenneth, MYHAL, Geneviève, PRESSEAU, Justin, PIRNAT, Bojan, LAPIERRE, Don
MSM Plasma Program $390,970
Study of Whole Blood In Frontline Trauma-2 (SWIFT-2) Principal Investigator: BECKETT, Andrew

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: SINGH, Kanwal
Postdoctoral Fellowship Program $20,500
Anti-RBC monoclonal antibodies as a replacement for IVIg and anti-D in ITP Principal Investigator: LAZARUS, Alan

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: BRANCH, Donald, DUNN, Shannon
Intramural Research Grant Program $400,000
The pan-Canadian immunoglobulin database: Enabling utilization reporting and personalized treatment using data mining techniques for immunoglobulin Principal Investigator: LI, Na

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: DOWN, Douglas, CHIANG, Fei, LEE, Joon, HEDDLE, Nancy, ARNOLD, Donald, CALLUM, Jeannie, SIDHU, Davinder, BARTY, Rebecca
Kenneth J. Fyke Award Program $100,000
Optimizing Pre-Chemotherapy Anemia in Gynecologic Oncology (OPRA-2): A quality improvement initiative Principal Investigator: VICUS, Danielle

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: SPÉNARD, Elisabeth, LIN, Yulia, KHANDELWAL, Aditi, TANO, Ruby, JADUNANDAN, Saudia, KNIGHT, Dawn
Blood Efficiency Accelerator Program $30,000
IVIG utilization and its impact on platelet count in pregnant women with moderate thrombocytopenia Principal Investigator: KHALIFE, Roy

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: TINMOUTH, Alan, EL-CHAAR, Darine, MACK, Jonathan, KAROVITCH, Alan, FERGUSSON, Dean, WEBERT, Kathryn
Blood Efficiency Accelerator Program $22,217
IN-TRUST: Using a transfusion database to explore the immune-modulatory impacts of blood transfusion and the clinical impacts of blood processing changes Principal Investigator: NING, Shuoyan

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: ARNOLD, Donald, ZELLER, Michelle, ACKER, Jason, LI, Na, HEDDLE, Nancy, HILLIS, Christopher, ROCHWERG, Bram, SYED, Summer
Intramural Research Grant Program $270,352
Evaluating unintentional warming of glycerolized red cell concentrates Principal Investigator: ACKER, Jason

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: CLARKE, Gwen, TURNER, Tracy, OLAFSON, Carly, MYKHAILOVA, Olga
Blood Efficiency Accelerator Program $25,000
Establishing national best practices for out-of-hospital blood transfusion: A collaboration of the Canadian Prehospital and Transport Transfusion (CAN-PATT) network Principal Investigator: NOLAN, Brodie

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: TROJANOWSKI, Jan, SHIH, Andrew, GREENE, Adam, EVANS, Rob, MULVEY, Jamin, CHANG, Eddie, NAHIRNIAK, Susan, PEARSON, Dallas, PROKOPCHUK-GAUK, Oksana, MARTIN, Doug, MUSUKA, Charles, SEIDL, Cindy, PEDDLE, Michael, LIN, Yulia, SMITH, Justin, MACDONALD, Scott, RICHARDS, Lindsay, FARRELL, Michael, KHANDELWAL, Aditi, CALLUM, Jeannie
Blood Efficiency Accelerator Program $30,000
Modulation of biofilm formation, virulence, and antimicrobial resistance by Staphylococcus aureus during platelet storage Principal Investigator: RAMIREZ-ARCOS, Sandra

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: SAD, Subash, MAH, Thien-Fah
Intramural Research Grant Program $323,253
Fc receptors and IVIg in ITP Principal Investigator: LAZARUS, Alan

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: CSERTI-GAZDEWICH, Christine, LIN, Yulia, CALLUM, Jeannie, SHOLZBERG, Michelle, NI, Heyu
Intramural Research Grant Program $432,000
PREMISE: Point-of-care hemoglobin accuracy and transfusion outcomes in non-cardiac surgery Principal Investigator: MARTEL, Guillaume

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: TINMOUTH, Alan, FERGUSSON, Dean, MCISAAC, Daniel, SHAW, Julie, RAMSAY, Tim, PRESSEAU, Justin, WHERRETT, Christopher, CARRIER, François-Martin, SEELY, Andrew, BRYSON, Gregory
Intramural Research Grant Program $392,974
Mechanisms of erythrocyte antibody-mediated immune suppression Principal Investigator: LAZARUS, Alan

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: NI, Heyu, SEMPLE, John
Intramural Research Grant Program $400,000
New solution for cord blood unit preservation Principal Investigator: PINEAULT, Nicolas

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: KAUSHAL, Richa
Graduate Fellowship Program $116,500
Assessing the impact of donor manufacturing characteristics on survival of transfused red blood cells Principal Investigator: TINMOUTH, Alan

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: ACKER, Jason, FERGUSSON, Dean, CHASSÉ, Michaël
Intramural Research Grant Program $90,935
Small molecule drug development of phagocytosis inhibitors Principal Investigator: BRANCH, Donald

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: KOTRA, Lakshmi, P.
Intramural Research Grant Program $428,468
New cryosolution for stem cell-based therapeutics Principal Investigator: PINEAULT, Nicolas

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: BEN, Robert, HARPER, Marie-Ellen, CHAKRABORTY, Nilay
Intramural Research Grant Program $180,000
Anti-GPIb- and anti-GPIIbIIIa- mediated immune thrombocytopenia: Mechanisms and actions of intravenous IgG (IVIG) and alternative therapies Principal Investigator: NI, Heyu

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: LAZARUS, Alan, BRANCH, Donald
Intramural Research Grant Program $412,010
Plasma transfusion or plasma protein product infusion in a murine model of trauma Principal Investigator: SHEFFIELD, William

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: PRYZDIAL, Edward
Intramural Research Grant Program $257,415
Mechanisms of anti-αIIb mediated miscarriage in fetal and neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia Principal Investigator: NI, Heyu

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: CHEN, Zi Yan
Graduate Fellowship Program $52,000
Perioperative transfusion threshold : A population-based observational study Principal Investigator: FERGUSSON, Dean

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: VERRET, Michael
Graduate Fellowship Program $52,000
Deformability based cell sorting enabling quality control of stored red blood cells Principal Investigator: MA, Hongshen

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: ISLAMZADA, Emel
Graduate Fellowship Program $112,333
Applying educational tools of knowledge translation to reduce the inappropriate use of plasma in Ontario: a collaboration between Canadian Blood Services and Ontario hospitals Principal Investigator: SOLH, Ziad

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: SKEATE, Robert, BERTA, Donna, CALLUM, Jeannie, LIMA, Ana, ZELLER, Michelle, ELAHIE, Allahna, HEDDLE, Nancy, THOMPSON, Troy, TINMOUTH, Alan, SHEHATA, Nadine, ILAGAN, Cesario
BloodTechNet Award Program $7,200
Pediatric Transfusion Camp Principal Investigator: LIEBERMAN, Lani

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: LIN, Yulia, CALLUM, Jeannie, WALSH, Catherine, CHARGÉ, Sophie, WILLIAMS, Suzanne, FARONI, David, MEMA, Briseida, LACROIX, Jacque, LAU, Wendy, ROBITAILLE, Nancy, FINAN, Emer, HUME, Heather, HASPEL, Richard, ATKINSON, Adelle, SCOLNIK, Dennis
BloodTechNet Award Program $10,500
Elianna Saidenberg Transfusion Medicine Trainee Principal Investigator: LAU, Wendy

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: VANDERMEULEN, Heather
Elianna Saidenberg Transfusion Medicine Traineeship Award $210,000
Development of a drug to replace IVIg, and ADCC as cause for unexplained hemolysis post-transfusion Principal Investigator: BRANCH, Donald

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: ALMIZRAQ, Ruqayyah
Postdoctoral Fellowship Program $165,000
Support of HLA laboratory directors in-training for rotations in specialized laboratories Principal Investigator: WAGNER, Eric

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: KEOWN, Paul, LIWSKI, Robert, CAMPBELL, Patricia, BERKA, Noureddine, WANG, Jinguo, MOSTAFA, Ahmed, CHEE-LOONG, Saw, RICHARD, Lucie, CHARGÉ, Sophie, DHARSEE, Fatima
BloodTechNet Award Program $8,490
The Calgary Plasma Study: feasibility of implementing source plasma donation with alternative screening eligibility criteria for men who have sex with men Principal Investigator: PRESSEAU, Justin

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: GOLDMAN, Mindy, O'BRIEN, Sheila, MACPHERSON, Paul, OTIS, Joanne, FOSTER, Terrie, VESNAVER, Elisabeth, GERMAIN, Marc, ROSSER, Andrew, LAPIERRE, Don, HILL, Nolan
MSM Plasma Program $399,875
An interactive virtual tour of blood product manufacturing at Canadian Blood Services Principal Investigator: BODNAR, Melanie

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: CHARGÉ, Sophie, YAN, Mathew, ABE, Tricia, TORDON, Bryan, CLARKE, Gwen
BloodTechNet Award Program $20,000
A machine learning based framework to analyze blood product transactional data for reducing discards Principal Investigator: CHENG, Calvino

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: ABIDI, Syed Sibte Raza, BLAKE, John, LIWSKI, Robert, QUINN, Jason, ABUSHAREKH, Ashraf, ABIDI, Samina, XIANG, Richard
Blood Efficiency Accelerator Program $29,950
McMaster Centre for Transfusion Research Principal Investigator: ARNOLD, Donald

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee:
Transfusion Medicine Research Program Support Award $1,303,334
Demonstration of genetic blood group transition in patients undergoing ABO-mismatched hematopoietic stem cell transplantation by peripheral blood quantitative polymerase chain reaction targeting the ABO locus Principal Investigator: SHIH, Andrew

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: LAZO-LANGER, Alejandro, D'SOUZA, David, CALLUM, Jeannie, LEUNG, Eric, CHIN-YEE, Ian
Blood Efficiency Accelerator Program $15,990
University of Toronto QUEST Research Program Principal Investigator: CALLUM, Jeannie

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee:
Transfusion Medicine Research Program Support Award $1,290,734
Blood and stem cell donation for men who have sex with men in Canada: A toolkit for healthcare professionals Principal Investigator: FINGRUT, Warren

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: GOLDMAN, Mindy, SHIH, Andrew, ELMOAZZEN, Heidi, ALLAN, David, PETRASZKO, Tanya, YAN, Matthew, COUPAL, Dylan, SEGALL, Romy, CHOWDHURY, Fuad, CAI, Helen, KUMAR, Shamini Vijaya, TRAADE, Daniel, ROSENFELD, Aaron, KAVEH, Farrokhi
BloodTechNet Award Program $20,000
Addressing racial disparity in blood, stem cell, and organ and tissue donor pools Principal Investigator: FINGRUT, Warren

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: OKONOFUA, Sylvia, YAN, Matthew, KHANDELWAL, Aditi, PENDERGRAST, Jacob, LEEIES, Murdoch, TINGA, Biba, HAW, Jennie, JAGELAVICIUTE, Gabriela, ROSENFELD, Aaron, KHANOLKAR, Rutvij, SEGALL, Romy, BELLINI, Jonathan, MORAKINYO, Tobi, AGYEPONG, Revée
BloodTechNet Award Program $34,150
Understanding general population impact and opportunities from changes to blood donation deferral screening and criteria for men who have sex with men Principal Investigator: LACHOWSKY, Nathan

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: BRENNAN, David, CARD, Kiffer, DRYDEN, OmiSoore, GASPAR, Mark, GILBERT, Mark, GRACE, Daniel, KNIGHT, Rodney, LEBOUCHÉ, Bertrand, MORGAN, Jeffrey, SALWAY, Travis
MSM Research Grant Program $310,000
New platform for targeted gene editing of hematopoietic stem cells for cellular therapy Principal Investigator: PINEAULT, Nicolas

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: MAGANTI, Harinad
Postdoctoral Fellowship Program $120,000
Assessing unintentional creation of bias against MSM as a function of exposure to blood donor screening questionnaire and assessing sexual behaviour risk factors of those successfully passing blood donor screening Principal Investigator: FISHER, William

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee:
MSM Research Grant Program $56,000
ACB and MSM - it's not an oxymoron: A research project that explores the importance of ACB people in MSM blood donation research Principal Investigator: DRYDEN, OmiSoore

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: LEE, Woo Jin Edward, NELSON, LaRon, MARSHALL, Zack, MBUAGBAW, Lawrence
MSM Research Grant Program $410,000
Measurement of heavy metals in donor blood in Canada Principal Investigator: DEVINE, Dana

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: SERRANO, Katherine, LEVIN, Elena, MURPHY, Michael, BARAKAUSKAS, Vilte, HADJESFAMDOARI, Narges, ARRIETA, Angele, RICHARDSON-SANCHEZ, Tomas
Blood Efficiency Accelerator Program $29,971
A Framework for Accelerated Synthesis of Trial Evidence – FAST Evidence - to assess efficacy of mesenchymal stromal cells and convalescent plasma for COVID-19 Principal Investigator: ALLAN, David

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: TINMOUTH, Alan, FERGUSSON, Dean, LALU, Manoj
Blood Efficiency Accelerator Program $25,000
Reducing IVIG usage by developing novel prophylaxis therapies against FNAIT Principal Investigator: NI, Heyu

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: PASMAN, Yfke
Postdoctoral Fellowship Program $165,000
A study to understand C1 esterase inhibitor distribution and patterns of use in Canada Principal Investigator: ARNOLD, Donald

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: HEDDLE, Nancy, KEITH, Paul, WASERMAN, SUSAN, WEBERT, Kathryn, NING, Shuoyan, SHIH, Andrew, MORRISON, Doug, YAN, Matthew
Blood Efficiency Accelerator Program $29,859
Elianna Saidenberg Transfusion Medicine Trainee Principal Investigator: LAU, Wendy

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: TORDON, Bryan
Elianna Saidenberg Transfusion Medicine Traineeship Award $210,000
Are cervical cancer brachytherapy outcomes associated with pre-brachytherapy hemoglobin values and transfusion practice? An observational study comparing two academic centres. Principal Investigator: SOLH, Ziad

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: LAZO-LANGER, Alejandro, D'SOUZA, David, CALLUM, Jeannie, LEUNG, Eric, CHIN-YEE, Ian
Blood Efficiency Accelerator Program $27,670
TAD-POL (Transfusion-Associated-Dyspnea: Prospective observation and laboratory assessment) Principal Investigator: CSERTI-GAZDEWICH, Christine

Co-Investigator(s) / Trainee: BRANCH, Donald, LAZARUS, Alan, CALLUM, Jeannie, LIN, Yulia, PENDERGRAST, Jacob, LIEBERMAN, Lani, SHEHATA, Nadine, PAVENSKI, Katerina, SKEATE, Robert
Intramural Research Grant Program $278,027