Past Events

9-part series of informal 1-hr discussions to connect with your fellow Canadian SRL. We invited members of the cytometry/microscopy and SRL community to share their different perspectives and experiences in the following subject areas.

• Podcast style with moderators for each session (CCMA EB) to facilitate discussion/ask questions
• Focus on different perspectives
  • Microscopy vs. flow
  • Academia vs. industry vs. government
  • Clinical vs. research

Each session in the series will featureed a Canadian core facility in our “Meet the Cores of Canada” initiative.

The session was dedicated to the vendors who had very generously supported this series. This was our “Vendor Showcase Showdown” where our featured vendors had an opportunity to tell us about new developments in reagents, technology, and software applications!

High-parameter flow cytometry has become a central technology in the analysis of cell biology. However, with increasing complexity comes increased challenges in experimental design through data analysis. In this session, we looked at how you can successfully incorporate multiparameter flow cytometry into your facility.

Are you trying to decide on a facility management system for your core facility? There are many platforms available to choose from now and let’s face it, none of them are perfect, but that doesn’t mean you won’t find one that works well for your facility. We go through some tips on choosing and implementing the right platform for your facility!

Moderators:

• Vera Tang, University of Ottawa (CCMA)
• Jessica Back, Karmanos Caner Institute (Guest Moderator))

Participants:

• Mathieu Kouri, University of Ottawa, IT Specialist
• Chloe Van Oosted-Triplet, University of Ottawa, Core Facility Manager
• Marie-Helene Lacombe, McGill University Health Centre, Core Facility Manager
• Aja Rieger, University of Alberta, Core Facility Manager

Meet the Cores of Canada: 

• Christine Zhang – Flow Cytometry Core Facility Manager, University of Manitoba

Image cytometry is a diverse field, encompassing many techniques all with a similar overarching goal- multiparameter analysis of individual cells. While image cytometry may make you think solely of imaging flow cytometry, this is only 1 of many techniques under this umbrella. In this webcast, we will take a look at the variety of techniques in image cytometry, including but not limited to imaging flow, imaging mass cytometry, microscopy, spatial profiling, and whole slide imaging, and discuss important aspects to consider when deciding which technique is the right one for your experiment

Moderators:

• Aja Rieger, University of Alberta (CCMA)
• Stephen Ogg, University of Alberta (Invited guest moderator)

Participants:

• Peter O’Toole (Head of Imaging and Cytometry; University of York, UK)
• Hartland Jackson (Lunenfeld Tanenbaum Research Institute)
• Elke Küster-Schöck (Research Centre of the Sainte-Justine University Hospital)

Meet the Cores of Canada: 

• Sunnybrook Research Institute – Centre for Cytometry and Scanning Microscopy (Paul Oleynik)

Shared resource labs (SRLs) are a key component of any research institute. Not only do they provide the scientific community with access to state-of-the-art technology, they also provide support and education. Maintaining those infrastructures isn’t an easy task. In this webcast, our guest panelists will present their sustainability models and discuss revenue sources, institutional support as well as maintenance and renewal of instrumentation.

Moderators:

• Marie-Helene Lacombe, RI-MUHC (CCMA)
• Laurence Lejeune (CNSP)

Participants:

• Caterina Di Ciano-Oliveira (Unity Health Toronto, Bioimaging Facility Manager)
• James Jonkman (University Health Network, Toronto, AOMF and WCIF Staff Scientist)
• Patrice Vaillancourt (McGill University Health Center Research Institute, Platforms Manager)

Meet the Cores of Canada: 

• Core (name)

Shared resource labs often serve as the main educational base for researchers looking to utilize specific technology. However, developing and maintaining an educational program can be a daunting task. In this webcast, our panel of experts will cover topics including incorporating existing resources into your educational program, developing new resources with a focus on virtual learning, and methods for assessing proficiency after training.

Moderators:

• Aja Rieger (University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada)
• Kathy Daniels (Whitehead Institute for Biological Research, Cambridge, Mass, USA)

Participants:

• Jennifer Wilshire (StemCell Technologies, Vancouver, Canada)
• Derek Davies (National STP Training Lead at the Francis Crick Institute, London, UK)
• Tim Bushnell (University of Rochester and Expert Cytometry Co-Founder, USA)
• Pina Colarusso (University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada)

Meet the Cores of Canada: 

• Dalhousie University Flow Core (Derek Rowter)

We have all heard of super resolution microscopy (SRM), and let’s face it, who doesn’t want to try something super? But there are so many different types of SRM out there that it is often overwhelming to decide if you actually need SRM and if so, what is the right technology for the application. In our “Getting Started with SRM” webinar, we will ask expert panelists to share their advice and experience on getting started with SRM.

Moderators:

• Desmond Pink, PhD (University of Alberta and APCARI)
• Caterina Di Ciano-Oliveira, PhD (Unity Health Toronto, Bioimaging Facility Manager)

Participants:

• Paul Paroutis, MSc (SickKids Research Institute, Imaging Facility)
• Kevin Conway, PhD (University Health Network, Advanced Optical Microscopy Facility and Deep Six Imaging)
• Thomas Stroh, PhD (The Neuro – Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital)

Meet the Cores of Canada: 

CHU de Quebec Research Center Bioimaging Platform (Sachiko Sato)

You have been asked to purchase the “best” instrument to suit the needs of the department/institution for the next 5 years. Awesome! But wait – there are so many investigators and multiple themes of research. How do you satisfy everyone’s needs? Do they even know what they need? You’ve been given a specific budget, but your preferred instrument is already well in excess of the budget. Some investigators are demanding that you purchase a different system because the vendor sold them on the “versatility” and the price is closer to the budget; but that instrument is only appropriate for their specific research…

Join us and our expert panel for a discussion around important considerations for choosing the right instrument for your SRL.

 Moderators:

• Desmond Pink, PhD (Nanostics, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada)
• Emily C. Reddy, PhD (SickKids-UHN Flow Cytometry Facility, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada)

Guest Panelists:

• Rachael Sheridan (Van Andel Institute, Grand Rapids, MI, USA)
• Steve Ogg (Cell lmaging Centre, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada)
• Rob Salomon (Institute of Biomedical Materials and Device, University of Technology Sydney, Australia)
• Monica Delay (Technical Application Support at Cytek Biosciences)

Meet the Cores of Canada: 

Queen’s CardioPulmonary Unit (QCPU)

There is increasing interest in the use of flow cytometry for phenotypic analysis of small particles such as extracellular vesicles and viruses. To detect these small particles, conventional flow cytometers are functioning at the limit of detection. There is currently no consensus on how small particles should be analysed on flow cytometers. This session brings together small particle flow cytometry gurus from around the world to share their different approaches to resolving the small stuff.

Topics of Discussion:

• Pros and cons of SSC vs FL threshold
• Calibration methods and and the materials to use (FL & SSC)

Guest Panelists: 

• Edwin van der Pol (Amsterdam University Medical Centers/Exometry)
• Desmond Pink (Nanostics)
• Joanne Lannigan (Flow Cytometry Support Services)
• John Nolan (Scintillon Institute/Cellarcus)

Moderators:

• Joshua Welsh (NIH)
• Vera Tang (University of Ottawa)

Meet the Cores of Canada: 

McGill Flow Cytometry Core Facility

June 17-18, 2019 – Edmonton, Alberta

May 9-12, 2017 – Montréal, Québec

June 18-20, 2015 – Toronto, Ontario