The coronavirus vaccine was developed faster than any vaccine in history. It took just 332 days from the first sequencing of the virus genome to the first vaccines given to the public.
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Articles on Genome
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The development of multiple vaccines against the virus that causes COVID-19 has been hailed as the breakthrough of 2020. But there were many more supporting discoveries that made this possible.
Compared with other RNA viruses, the coronavirus is actually quite stable. So don’t believe the scary headlines about the ‘mutant coronavirus’.
Seabird colonies are thought to be in rapid decline. But knowing just how severe the loss is can be a challenge, so some scientists are turning to bird poop for the answer.
In the disturbing scenario of human-to-mink-to-human COVID-19 transmission, the virus may mutate in mink prior to re-infecting people. That possibility makes vaccine design even more crucial.
Jumbo squids live in extreme environments. Tiny genetic modifications allow them to move back and forth from the surface of the ocean to its bottom, killing and eating everything in their path.
A recovery plan for the threatened Algonquin wolf should have been in place two years ago. Recent amendments to the Endangered Species Act mean the Algonquin wolf faces an uncertain future.
As mountain goats face pressures from climate change and human disturbance, analyzing their genome provides useful information on their ecology and evolution.
COVID-19 tests rely on a process developed at a biotech company co-founded by a Canadian. Canada’s current testing expertise needs to be channelled to prepare for the next wave, and the next pandemic.
Pluralism — the active process of inclusion — could reduce disparities in some of the most pressing health issues of our time.
Countries closed their borders in response to COVID-19, but international cooperation and technology sharing could improve recovery against pandemics and potential bioterrorist attacks.
The smallpox virus appears to have been with humanity for millennia before a global vaccination drive wiped it out. Current genome research suggests how smallpox spread and where it came from.
Bats get a lot of negative press, but they also make positive contributions to the environment and to our lives.
As the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbates global economic and health insecurities, opportunities to emulate the pandemic’s effects with bioweapons affords terrorists a new model.
Fundamental research has informed what we know about coronaviruses up until the pandemic. With possible future outbreaks, continuing and developing this type of work is crucial.
During the Second World War, anxious but also bored BBC listeners found comfort in the soothing sounds of Sandy Macpherson, Canadian-born organist.
By isolating SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19, researchers can now work on developing tests, treatments and vaccines in Canada.
It might protect thousands of people.
PODCAST: The second episode of our series on the personalisation of healthcare focuses on your diet.
Information collected from DNA samples can be used to identify species, track their movements and diagnose genetic diseases. This information is useful in conservation and management projects.
Top contributors
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Distinguished Research Professor, Emerita, Dalhousie University
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Emeritus Robert Reford Professor and Professor of Medicine, McGill University
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Thomas Merritt is a Friend of The Conversation.
Professor, Chemistry and Biochemistry, Laurentian University
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Director of Research and Professor of Pathology, Dalhousie University
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Vanier Scholar and Ph.D. Candidate in Microbiology and Immunology, Dalhousie University
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Junior Fellow, MacEachen Institute for Public Policy and Governance; Medical Student, Dalhousie University
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Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Lethbridge
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Professor of Medicine and Vice President, Research, McMaster University
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Associate Professor of Genetic epidemiology & Bioinformatics, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine
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Professor in Medicine, Ethics and Society, University of Warwick
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Doctoral Student in Biochemistry, University of Washington
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Research Scientist and Principal Investigator at the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization, University of Saskatchewan
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Jenny Graves is a Friend of The Conversation.
Distinguished Professor of Genetics and Vice Chancellor's Fellow, La Trobe University
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Assistant Professor/Canada Research Chair in emerging viruses, University of Manitoba
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Reader in Genetics, University of Aberdeen
