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CFID Undergraduate Summer Research Grant

These awards were established in 2012 to attract bright young minds with outstanding academic records to the field of infectious diseases, microbiology, and infection control, and to fulfill the CFID mission of supporting research in infectious diseases. Each award is funded for $5,000 for a 12-13 week research term. Adjudication is by a selection committee and will be competitive based on academic achievement, research potential or experience, and mentor acceptance. Student awardees are required to submit a summary report within 4 weeks of the termination of their project, and are encouraged to submit a poster or oral presentation about their work at the AMMI Canada/CACMID annual meeting.

Eligibility requirements:

  • Students must be enrolled in a Canadian University in their 2nd year or higher
  • Commitment to 12-13 weeks of research either as a summer research project, an elective research term, or a co-op work-term
  • Minimum GPA of B+ (3.33 or 76%)
  • Preference will be given to sponsoring research faculty who are members of CFID partnered professional associations (eg. AMMI Canada, CACMID, etc.)
  • Research area must be relevant to the diagnosis, treatment or prevention of infectious diseases
  • Priority is given to current focused research areas identified by CFID (e.g. water safety, antimicrobial resistance, rapid diagnostics, infection prevention strategies, antimicrobial stewardship, etc.)

Download application package with link to application form:

2018 CFID Undergraduate Summer Student Research Projects

“Frailty and Immune Response to Influenza Vaccine in Older Adults”

  • Student – Nathalie Loeb, Year 3, Bachelor of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON
  • Supervisor – Dr. Janet E. McElhaney MD, FRCPC, FACP, Professor, Northern Ontario School of Medicine & Health Sciences North Research Institute, Sudbury, ON

Read research proposal

 

“Can sCD127 secretion in response to IL-7 be predicted by a single nucleotide polymorphism?”

  • Student – Kaitlyn Rourke, Year 3, Biomedical Science, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON
  • Supervisor – Dr. Johnathan B. Angel MD, FRCPC, Professor & Head, Division of Infectious Diseases, University of Ottawa & Ottawa Hospital, Ottawa, ON

Read research proposal

2017 CFID Summer Undergraduate Student Research Project

Whole Genome Sequencing of Mumps Virus from an Adult Outbreak in Brisith Columbia

  • Student – Thenuga Sasitharan, Year 4, Medical Laboratory Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC
  • Supervisor – Dr. Agatha Jassem PhD, Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, University of British Columbia and BCCDC Public Health Laboratory

Read project final report

2016 CFID Summer Undergraduate Student Research Project

Understanding poor vaccine responses: transcriptomics of vaccine failure

  • Student – Kathleen Miller, Year 3, Microbiology & Immunology, Dalhousie University
  • Supervisor – Dr. Lisa Barrett, MD, PhD, FRCPC, Department of Microbiology & Immunology, QE II Health Sciences Centre, Dalhousie University

Read research proposal

Read project final summary

2015 CFID Summer Undergraduate Student Research Projects

Designing and testing the efficacy of a RSV phosphoprotein mimetic on the inhibition of RSV replication and infection

  • Student – Christopher Chiang, Honours Life Science Program, McMaster University
  • Supervisor – Dr. James Mahony, St Joseph Hospital, McMaster University

Read project final summary

 

Parasitologic correlates of genomic differences in Plasmodium ovale wallikeri and Plasmodium ovale curtisi

  • Student – Melissa Phuong, Honours Bachelor Health Sciences Program, McMaster University
  • Supervisor – Dr. Andrea K. Boggild, University of Toronto

Read project synopsis

2014 CFID Summer Undergraduate Student Research Projects

Pandemic waves-mortality in the Canadian expeditionary forces, 1918

  • Student – Alex Rewegan, McMaster University (Anthropology)
  • Supervisor – Ann Herring PhD, Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Social Sciences, McMaster University

Read research proposal

Read project final summary

 

The prevalence of STEC and stx+ wells and microbial source tracking of faecal contamination in rural Southern Ontario drinking water wells

  • Student – Sophie Felleiter, Queen’s University (Life Sciences)
  • Supervisor – Anna Majury PhD, PHO, and Gerald Evans MD, Department of Medicine, Queen’s University

Read research proposal

Read project final summary

 

The role of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and and the lung microbiome in Pseudomonas eradication in cystic fibrosis

  • Student – Lauren Smith, McMaster University (Honours Integrated Science Program)
  • Supervisor – Valerie Waters MD, Hospital for Sick Children, University of Toronto

Read research proposal

Read project final summary

2013 CFID Summer Undergraduate Student Research Projects

Exploring the overexpression of a central regulator of Aspergillus fumigatus asexual sporulation, brlA, as a way to reduce virulence through reduced vegetative growth

  • Student – Mohamad Rabbani, McGill University (Bachelors Program)
  • Supervisor – Don Sheppard MD, Department of Microbiology & Immunology, McGill University

Read project report

 

A Listeria monocytogenes-based Vaccine for Respiratory Syncytial Virus

  • Student – Zach Liang, Developmental Biology, Faculty of Science, University of British Columbia (Bachelors Program)
  • Supervisor – Tobias Kollman MD, PHD, Division of Infectious and Immunological Diseases, Department of Pediatrics, Child and Family Research Institute; BC Children’s Hospital

Read abbreviated project report

 

Predictors of Influenza vaccine failure and impact of influenza immunization on severity of illness and outcomes among hospitalized Canadian adults

  • Student – Tara Riddell, Dalhousie University (MD Program)
  • Supervisor – Shelly McNeil MD, Canadian Center for Vaccinology, IWK Health Centre, Halifax, Nova Scotia

Read abbreviated project report

2012 CFID Summer Undergraduate Student Research Projects

Conventional compared to biofilm antimicrobial susceptibility testing for Stenotrophomonas maltophilia isolates from cystic fibrosis patients (submitted for publication).

  • Student – Kitty Wu (Cells Systems Biology, University of Toronto)
  • Supervisor – Dr. Valerie Waters, Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Hospital for Sick Children

Accepted for publication in Antimicrobial Agents Chemotherapy, January 2, 2013

Read project abstract

 

Deficits in cell-mediated immune recovery among HIV+ individuals on effective antiretroviral therapy

  • Student – Parmvir Parmar (Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Ottawa)
  • Supervisor – Dr. Jonathan B. Angel, Division of Infectious Diseases, Ottawa Hospital-General Campus

Read abbreviated project report

 

Invasive Streptococcus pneumoniae in Canada 2012: Serotyping, antimicrobial susceptibility and virulence assessment

  • Student – Alyssa Golden (Molecular Biotechnology (Honours), University of Manitoba)
  • Supervisor – Dr. George Zhanel, Department of Clinical Microbiology, Health Sciences Centre

Read abbreviated project report