CRCs announced

October 2, 2009

Three U of S researchers –Philip Griebel, Ajay Dalai and Safa Kasap – will share $4.76 million over the next seven years as they pursue their work as Canada Research Chairs (CRC).

As part of a major CRC funding announcement Sept. 23, the U of S learned that Griebel had been awarded the new CRC in Neonatal Mucosal Immunology, Dalai was advanced to Tier 1 chair level and Kasap had his appointment renewed. In all, the U of S now has 26 chairs.

Griebel, manager of the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization-International Vaccine Centre innate immunity program and professor in the School of Public Health, will focus his research program on creating targeted vaccines and delivery methods to fight pathogens that enter the body through mucosal surfaces like those found in the respiratory and intestinal tracts.

As Canada Research Chair in Bioenergy and Environmentally Friendly Chemical Processing, Dalai aims to develop fuel alternatives such as those made from inedible materials left over from crops like canola, mustard and soybeans. Dalai is the associate dean of research and partnerships in the College of Engineering.

The renewal of his chair means Kasap, an electrical engineering professor, will continue to explore photoconductors, which are materials that change their conductivity when irradiated with light or X-rays. These materials are key to advances in storing X-ray images digitally for faster access and analysis.