Media Releases

SASKATOON—University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers have been awarded $5 million from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) as part of a major new national initiative that aims to create a network of Indigenous research centres driven by and grounded in Indigenous communities.

SASKATOON – University of Saskatchewan (USask) health research leader Dr. Carrie Bourassa and Morning Star Lodge, an Indigenous community-based health research lab in Regina, are launching a strategy to inform Indigenous communities about the risks of COVID-19 infection and how to prevent its spread.

The International Vaccine Institute (IVI) of South Korea, a world-renowned international organization founded by the United Nations Development Programme, is collaborating with VIDO-InterVac at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) to better understand the virus causing the COVID-19 pandemic and to develop vaccines and potential treatments.

SASKATOON — The Government of Saskatchewan has announced $3.6 million in new funding for the University of Saskatchewan’s (USask) Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization – International Vaccine Centre (VIDO-InterVac), one of the world’s most advanced infectious disease labs and a leader in global efforts to find a COVID-19 vaccine.

SASKATOON – Unlocking the full potential of cannabis for agriculture and human health will require a co-ordinated scientific effort to assemble and map the cannabis genome, according to a just-published international study led by University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers.

SASKATOON – As the COVID-19 outbreak continues to rapidly evolve, the federal government is announcing $23.3 million in total support for the University of Saskatchewan’s (USask) Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization – International Vaccine Centre (VIDO-InterVac), one of the largest and most advanced infectious disease research facilities in the world.

SASKATOON – In light of growing concerns regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, the University of Saskatchewan (USask) will NOT be holding its seventh annual One Day for Students campaign on Tuesday, March 17.

SASKATOON – University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers have demonstrated that it is possible to “train” microscopic black fungi in the lab to find radiation sources—a discovery with potential applications such as cleaning up radioactive waste from nuclear accidents and detecting radioactive fallout from illicit nuclear testing.

SASKATOON – A University of Saskatchewan (USask) research team and collaborating scientists from across the country have been awarded almost $1 million over two years to develop animal models and test vaccine candidates for effectiveness and safety against the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2).

SASKATOON – Eight University of Saskatchewan (USask) health research projects have been awarded nearly $3.6 million from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) to improve health and quality of life for children, mothers, seniors, Indigenous communities, and people in rural areas.

SASKATOON – University of Saskatchewan (USask) pharmacy researchers have been awarded more than $1.7 million over three years to implement and assess a new pharmacist-led interprofessional model for chronic pain management aimed at helping to reduce opioid use and improve patient health.

SASKATOON – To help expand agronomy research in Western Canada, crop scientist Dr. Maryse Bourgault (PhD) has been recruited from the United States as the first Western Grains Research Foundation (WGRF) Integrated Agronomy Chair at the University of Saskatchewan (USask).

SASKATOON –The University of Saskatchewan (USask) College of Medicine has achieved further strong results from the Committee on Accreditation of Canadian Medical Schools (CACMS), meaning a site visit will not be required until 2025 or 2026

SASKATOON—University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers have used a novel combination of techniques to compare the effects of two families of pesticides used in agriculture, and found that at low dosages the newer pesticide is less toxic than a currently used neonicotinoid one.

SASKATOON – Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) Crop Development Centre (CDC) have developed a fast and accurate method for identifying and quantifying toxins in fusarium-infected cereal grain, an innovation that could reduce toxins that are harmful to both animals and humans.

SASKATOON – Measuring pharmaceuticals in Saskatoon’s wastewater, diverting food from the landfill to save money and the planet, and improving property assessment appeals are some of the first research projects of the new Research Junction collaboration between the City of Saskatoon (City) and University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers.

SASKATOON – To help protect Canada’s cattle and bison and maintain the country’s bovine tuberculosis (TB)-free status, scientists from University of Saskatchewan’s (USask) Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization-International Vaccine Centre (VIDO-InterVac) and Parks Canada are conducting trials in bison of several diagnostic tools, including the innovative Actiphage® blood test developed by the diagnostics company PBD Biotech.

SASKATOON – The origin of an understudied hybrid population of poisonous frogs—highly endangered colourful animals that live deep in the Colombian jungle—is the result of natural breeding and not caused by wildlife traffickers moving them, a University of Saskatchewan (USask) study shows.

SASKATOON — One of the world’s most horrific environmental disasters—the 1950s and ’60s mercury poisoning in Minamata, Japan—may have been caused by a previously unstudied form of mercury discharged directly from a chemical factory, research by the University of Saskatchewan (USask) has found.

SASKATOON – The Global Institute for Food Security (GIFS) at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) and the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council (BARC) of the Bangladesh Ministry of Agriculture have agreed to a multidisciplinary research, training and development partnership to help promote sustainable food security in the country.

SASKATOON – In the first comprehensive study mapping global patterns of stillbirth rates, University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers have found that pregnant women who are poor and have lower access to education and employment are more likely to experience a child’s death at delivery.

A University of Saskatchewan-led international team has produced the first web and mobile phone app of Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales—the first major literary work augmented by new scholarship, in any language, presented in an app.

SASKATOON – With $2.35 million in funding from the federal government and the Beef Cattle Research Council (BCRC), University of Saskatchewan (USask) veterinary researcher Dr. Cheryl Waldner will undertake a major five-year research program to advance beef cattle health and productivity, helping to sustain the profitability and competitiveness of Canada’s $17-billion-a-year beef industry.

SASKATOON — The University of Saskatchewan (USask) has officially opened the USask Community Centre, located in Marquis Hall on the Saskatoon campus.

SASKATOON – Twenty University of Saskatchewan (USask) projects have been awarded nearly $7 million through a joint federal-provincial government funding program to advance cattle, swine, and poultry research.

SASKATOON – University of Saskatchewan (USask) research has received a $675,000 boost from the Global Institute for Food Security (GIFS) to investigate social science impacts on food security and barriers to agri-food innovation.

SASKATOON – Thirty University of Saskatchewan (USask) crop research projects have been awarded a total of more than $8 million through Saskatchewan’s Agriculture Development Fund (ADF), a program jointly supported by the federal and provincial governments and supplemented by industry partners.

SASKATOON – A grant from Saskatchewan’s Agriculture Development Fund (ADF) is helping researchers at the Global Institute for Food Security (GIFS) at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) pursue a project that could help extend the growing season for canola and soybean in the province and in temperate climates around the world.

SASKATOON —Global Institute for Food Security (GIFS) researchers at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) are members of an international consortium of key academic and global seed company leaders from Canada, the United States, Europe and Israel that has successfully sequenced the genome for canola.

SASKATOON — Canada’s first laboratory combining digital data analysis of plant genes and traits with the latest precision agriculture technologies to improve crop yield, profitability and sustainability in the agri-food sector is gearing up for a two-year pilot project this year at the University of Saskatchewan’s (USask) Global Institute for Food Security (GIFS).

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is pleased to announce that the University of Saskatchewan’s Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization-International Vaccine Centre (VIDO-InterVac) will work with African swine fever (ASF), further supporting Canada’s preparedness strategy by increasing research capacity.

Pre-clinical study seeks to determine the impact of cannabis derivatives on mental health conditions.

SASKATOON — The University of Saskatchewan’s Global Institute for Water Security (GIWS) and a top Indian research institution—the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bengaluru—have signed an over-arching agreement to partner for five years on joint research, training and academic exchanges related to water security, climate science and policy issues.

SASKATOON – Members of the media are invited to attend the University of Saskatchewan (USask) College of Dentistry White Coat Ceremony.

SASKATOON – With a sound on-going commitment towards Indigenization, decolonization and reconciliation, the University of Saskatchewan (USask) is pleased to announce that it has joined a growing number of organizations in renewing its presence on an urban reserve in the city of Saskatoon with the announcement of a new location.

The future of seed development is set to become more efficient thanks to PlotVision, a new image analysis software product from the University of Saskatchewan’s (USask) Plant Phenotyping and Imaging Research Centre (P2IRC).

SASKATOON – Chemicals commonly used in smartphone, television, and computer displays were found to be potentially toxic and present in nearly half of dozens of samples of household dust collected by a team of toxicologists led by the University of Saskatchewan (USask).

SASKATOON—The heady aroma of magnolia blossoms and lotus flowers might have wafted to your nostrils if you had gone for a walk 56 million years ago in the lush green forest which covered Canada’s northernmost islands.

MADRID, SPAIN – At the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Madrid, Spain (COP25), University of Saskatchewan (USask) scientists are focusing attention on the world’s changing mountain snowpacks, glaciers, vegetation, and long-term effects that the thaw of snow and ice are having on the world’s freshwater and ocean water.

SASKATOON — Committed to creating the best student-athlete experience in the country, the University of Saskatchewan (USask) has appointed new members to its Huskie Athletics Board of Trustees.

SASKATOON – A group of international scientists and practitioners including University of Saskatchewan (USask) researcher Jay Famiglietti say we are not doing enough to protect and manage global groundwater resources, which will have long-term effects on the planet’s drinking water, food production, and adaptation to a rapidly changing climate.

SASKATOON—Eating a krill-only diet has made one variety of Antarctic penguin especially susceptible to the impacts of climate change, according to new research involving the University of Saskatchewan (USask) which sheds new light on why some penguins are winners and others losers in their rapidly changing ecosystem.

REGINA – Canadian Western Agribition (CWA) has announced a contribution of $100,000 over the next decade to the University of Saskatchewan (USask) Livestock and Forage Centre of Excellence (LFCE).

SASKATOON—Learning how psychiatric service dogs can help veterans living with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) recover from problematic alcohol and drug use is the focus of a new $1.4-million research program led by the University of Saskatchewan (USask), in partnership with five universities and a dozen community organizations and members.

HAMILTON – Canada could lead the world in helping to achieve water sustainability but is falling short of reaching the goals set out by the United Nations (UN), according to a new report from scientists with the University of Saskatchewan-led Global Water Futures (GWF) program.

SASKATOON – The University of Saskatchewan (USask) and the Métis Nation–Saskatchewan (MN-S) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) today designed to improve the education status of Métis people, remove barriers and close the university achievement gaps between Métis and non-Indigenous populations.

As blue-green algae proliferates around the world, a University of Saskatchewan (USask) researcher cautions that current municipal drinking water monitoring that focuses on a single toxin associated with the cyanobacteria blooms is likely to miss the true public health risks.

SASKATOON – Using a relevant animal model (pigs), University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers have shown that mild Zika virus infection in fetuses can cause abnormal brain development in apparently healthy young animals.

SASKATOON – Members of the media are invited to the University of Saskatchewan (USask) fall convocation, November 13, at Merlis Belsher Place.

SASKATOON — The University of Saskatchewan (USask) will pay tribute to an innovative and influential international leader in the field of synchrotron science at this year’s Fall Convocation ceremonies.

SASKATOON – Gabriel Ribeiro, the new Saskatchewan Beef Industry Chair at the University of Saskatchewan (USask), will be developing nutritional strategies to improve health, performance and profitability, while lessening the environmental impact of beef cattle production.

SASKATOON — The University of Saskatchewan (USask) will pay tribute to a renowned business leader, philanthropist and volunteer at this year’s Fall Convocation ceremonies.

At a stop on Oct. 22 during her ongoing trip across North America, climate activist Greta Thunberg met with University of Saskatchewan (USask) water scientist John Pomeroy at a USask field research site on the Athabasca Glacier in Jasper, Alberta.

Fourth annual Plant Phenotyping and Imaging Research Centre conference takes place October 23-24

SASKATOON — Together with more than a dozen organizations and community groups, CREATE Justice and the College of Law at the University of Saskatchewan (Usask) have planned workshops, lectures and other public events to celebrate the fourth annual Saskatchewan Access to Justice Week from Oct. 20 to 25.

With a $133,000 investment from Saskatchewan mining companies through the International Minerals Innovation Institute (iMii), the University of Saskatchewan (USask) is partnering with the Saskatoon Tribal Council on a new mentorship program for Indigenous women.

This week, the Global Institute for Food Security (GIFS) at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) invited and hosted His Excellency Mizanur Rahman, Bangladesh High Commissioner to Canada, as well as representatives from the country’s ministries of agriculture and education and leading research and training institutions, in weeklong meetings and negotiations to establish a research and training development partnership.

SASKATOON – Today, Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) and the University of Saskatchewan (USask) announced a partnership to create the Ducks Unlimited Canada Endowed Chair in Wetland and Waterfowl Conservation—the first of its kind in Canada.

Today, Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) and the University of Saskatchewan (USask) announced a partnership to create the Ducks Unlimited Canada Endowed Chair in Wetland and Waterfowl Conservation—the first of its kind in Canada.

Leon Kochian, Canada Excellence Research Chair (CERC) at the University of Saskatchewan (Usask), has won the 2019 Arrell Global Food Innovation Award for “global excellence in food innovation.”

SASKATOON – The College of Education at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) is thrilled to announce the largest gift in its 92-year history from donors Jane and Ron Graham to establish a school for the scholarship of teaching and learning.

SASKATOON — John Pomeroy, Canada Research Chair in Water Resources and Climate Change at the University of Saskatchewan (USask), has been awarded one of Canada’s top honours for outstanding contributions to environmental science.

A team involving two University of Saskatchewan (Usask) researchers – Kishor Wasan, from the College of Pharmacy and Nutrition and Franco Vizeacoumar from the Saskatchewan Cancer Agency – is one of 10 teams across the country awarded a total of $2 million by Prostate Cancer Canada and Movember to accelerate discoveries that could save and improve men’s lives.

SASKATOON – New research at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) shows how the world’s most widely used insecticides could be partly responsible for a dramatic decline in songbird populations.

SASKATOON – The University of Saskatchewan (USask) is pleased to announce that the College of Dentistry has received $1,050,000 from dentalcorp, the largest donation in the college’s history since its inception in 1968.

SASKATOON — The University of Saskatchewan (USask) and the City of Saskatoon are partnering on a new program to help solve challenging urban issues through the power of research collaboration.

USask part of international team publishing Nature paper

University of Saskatchewan welcomes two Schulich Leader recipients this fall

SASKATOON – When it comes to groundwater quality, fracking receives much of the public attention but misses most of the picture, according to hydrogeologists Jennifer McIntosh from the University of Arizona and Grant Ferguson from the University of Saskatchewan (USask).

SASKATOON — Eight University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers have been awarded $1.3 million by the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) for state-of-the-art equipment to support leading-edge projects in human health, food security, environmental protection, public safety and computer technology.

SASKATOON – For First Nations communities in northern Canada and other remote regions, access to safe and clean water, toilets, and food preparation areas presents a serious challenge to communal gatherings.

SASKATOON – Dave Hardy has been appointed the chief athletics officer (CAO) for Huskie Athletics at the University of Saskatchewan (USask), beginning August 12, 2019.

SASKATOON – University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers are using mindfulness training to help women overcome stereotype threat, a major barrier that hinders them from joining and performing well in top leadership positions in organizations.

University of Saskatchewan students are part of an international team that has launched a balloon 30 kilometres into near-space as the culmination of a special training program that will help them become the next generation of space technology and engineering experts.

A University of Saskatchewan medical research team will receive $987,000 from Western Economic Diversification (WD) towards a $4.55-million project aimed at producing and testing new imaging agents for diagnosing lung and colorectal cancers in humans.

USask researchers to lead $2.9-million project.

Imagine that your family lives on less than $1,600 a month and the power bill takes up half that money.

Canada became global ‘destination’ for lesbian and gay weddings after legalization, researcher says.

Research into link between sleepiness and bias among $647,000 in federal funding awards.

Exhibit at Norwich Cathedral a communication of science and art from Canada and the UK.

Dance has more to offer than a “fitness craze”, promoting reconciliation and Métis heritage.

An interdisciplinary university group led by University of Saskatchewan researcher Michael Nickerson has been awarded $1.65 million by the federal granting council NSERC to train a new generation of innovative plant protein scientists to help industry satisfy the exploding worldwide demand for meat alternatives.

SASKATOON – Medicinal cannabis oil containing both cannabidiol (CBD) and a small amount of THC (the drug that can cause intoxication) can reduce or end seizures in children with severe, drug-resistant epilepsy, a study by the University of Saskatchewan (USask) has found.

SASKATOON – Prominent Saskatchewan business leader Tom Kishchuk will serve as the new chair of the board of directors for the Sylvia Fedoruk Canadian Centre for Nuclear Innovation (Fedoruk Centre) at the University of Saskatchewan (USask).

SASKATOON — The University of Saskatchewan, Northern Lights School Division, Cumberland House Cree Nation, The Northern Village of Cumberland House and the Métis Nation of Saskatchewan met in Cumberland House Thursday, June 27 to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between their organizations to offer the Bachelor of Education degree program in the northern community.

SASKATOON – Supporting Indigenous individuals and their communities to drive Indigenous health research is a key goal of the new five-year plan of the national Institute of Indigenous Peoples’ Health (IIPH), a Canadian Institutes of Health Research institute based at the University of Saskatchewan (USask).

USask study finds depth of soil and porous rock beneath trees are crucial factors

SASKATOON – Following an extensive global search, two internationally recognized leaders with deep understanding of agricultural research and innovation have been named to the top leadership posts of the Global Institute for Food Security (GIFS) at the University of Saskatchewan (USask).

SASKATOON – The University of Saskatchewan (USask) has announced a new pilot project to support LGBTQI2S+ students. Starting in September 2019, self-identified queer students living in the College Quarter residence on campus may participate in a pilot project where they can choose to live with other queer students.

SASKATOON – Three new Canada Research Chairs (CRCs)—all held by female academics recognized as potential leaders in their fields—have been established at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) to carry out innovative research into air quality in cold climates, enhancing Indigenous health and well-being, and preventing cyberattacks.

SASKATOON – Western Canada’s regional veterinary college, based on the University of Saskatchewan (USask) campus, is now home to Canada’s only PET-CT unit dedicated to clinical use in animals as well as for animal-human research studies.

Mystery of shrinking population may be linked to eels devouring their own skeletons.

The frequency of downpours of heavy rain—which can lead to flash floods, devastation, and outbreaks of waterborne disease—has increased across the globe in the past 50 years, research led by the Global Institute for Water Security at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) has found.

SASKATOON - Highly regarded physician and medical educator Dr. Ron Siemens, MD, FRCPC, FAAP, has been selected as the interim provincial head of pediatrics beginning June 3, 2019 for a one-year term.

Media are invited to attend the University of Saskatchewan (USask) Graduation Powwow, in partnership with Affinity Credit Union, which celebrates the academic success of Métis, First Nations and Inuit graduates from USask and local high schools.

SASKATOON – Concussion symptoms—such as loss of balance, hazy comprehension, sleep disturbance and inability to walk straight—can be reversed by a new type of magnetic stimulation, research at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) shows.