VIBRIO2019 - Montréal, Quebec

The entire lab attended the 2019 International Vibrio conference hosted at McGill University, in Quebec. Despite it being in the middle of winter, the weather was much nicer than back in Edmonton.

Yann was involved in the local organization committee for the meeting. Kevin and Tareq showcased posters on “Establishing a core genome multilocus sequence typing scheme for Vibrio cholerae in the epidemiology of cholera outbreaks” and “Intra-species diversity in geographically distinct V. cholerae populations,” respectively. Nora presented a talk on “Horizontally transferred type VI secretion systems effector-immunity gene arrays determine life and death in a diverse Vibrio cholerae population”. Both Nora and Kevin’s submissions were presented during the sessions sponsored by the Canadian Society of Microbiology. The entire lab enjoyed meeting new people, seeing familiar faces in the group, and exchanging ideas in the Vibrio field.

Attendees from the 2019 Vibrio conference. Photo credit: Cyrielle Noël.

Attendees from the 2019 Vibrio conference. Photo credit: Cyrielle Noël.

2018 CIFAR-IMB General Meeting – Banff, Alberta

Banff, Alberta marks the final location for the last annual Integrated Microbial Biodiversity (IMB) meeting hosted by the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR). CIFAR fellows were invited to attend the meeting along with a post-doc or graduate student in their lab as a trainee. The conference was held from June 12-15, 2018, with a trainee workshop hosted on June 11 to help participants assess various career paths within, and outside of, academia. The meeting had intriguing research and interesting talks and discussion from a wide variety of microbial backgrounds. 

Yan attended the conference alongside Nora, who presented a poster of her ongoing research entitled "Type VI secretion system effector immunity diversity in intra-location Vibrio cholerae populations".  Yan and Nora also unveiled a fun, interactive type VI secretion card game during the meeting that was warmly received by members.

The final IMB meeting finished with prominent scientists from around the world sharing inspiring, cutting edge ideas. Collaboration between members and pioneering research will continue, allowing a greater understanding of the microbial world around us.  

Nora behind her research during the poster presentations. 

Nora behind her research during the poster presentations. 

2016 ISME Meeting - Montréal, Quebec

Yan and Paul (here pictured in the amazing Montréal Convention Centre) safely returned from Quebec, where they attended the 16th International Symposium on Microbial Ecology hosted by the International Society for Microbial Ecology (ISME) on August 21-26, 2016. Yan and Paul presented posters titled "Relatives of Vibrio cholerae pandemic strains can be found in non-endemic areas using a novel culture-independent method" and "Mosaic evolution of the Vibrio cholerae Type VI secretion system," respectively. Both posters are projects of Paul, who has clearly been very busy.

At the beautiful Palais des congrès de Montréal

2016 CIFAR-IMB General Meeting – Toronto, Ontario

The Integrated Microbial Biodiversity (IMB) Program of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR) held its annual conference for members (and their students) at the Intercontinental Hotel, Toronto, Ontario on June 1-4, 2016. The conference was remarkable, with amazing talks from distinguished scientists from different parts of the world, lively scientific discussions, and sharing of innovative ideas.

Yan was accompanied by Tareq this year. Yan gave a talk entitled "Relatives of Vibrio cholerae pandemic strains can be found in non-endemic areas using a novel culture-independent method," and Tareq presented a poster of his current work entitled "The elusive descendants of the pandemic Vibrio cholerae ancestor: a diverse and dangerous bunch."

Toronto skyline

VIBRIO2016 Conference – Roscoff, France

Greetings from Roscoff!

The VIBRIO2016 Conference concluded today. This conference is the biggest gathering of scientists with one thing in common – their love for vibrios. Current researches on Vibrio cholerae, Vibrio vulnificus, Vibrio fischeri, and other vibrios were presented. Great French wine and Vibrio-free seafood were also very abundant at the conference.

Yan presented a talk about work in the lab on the population structure of natural populations of V. cholerae. Fabini's poster presentation was on a newly characterized Vibrio species, Vibrio cidicii, work he and Yan did with collaborators from the University of Alberta, Georgia Institute of Technology, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC... cidicii. Get it?).

The conference was organized by Dr. Frédérique Le Roux and her lab team from the Station Biologique Roscoff. VIBRIO2017 will (possibly) be held in Chicago, USA.

Vibrio2016 attendees

2015 CIFAR-IMB General Meeting – Victoria, British Columbia

The Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR) held its annual conference for members (and their students) of the Integrated Microbial Biodiversity (IMB) Program at the Westin Bear Mountain Golf Resort & Spa, Victoria, British Columbia on May 27-29, 2015.

Yan was accompanied by Paul. Yan gave a talk entitled "Interspecies genetic interaction in bacteria," and Paul presented a poster of his current work entitled "Ecological differentiation of Vibrio cholerae clonal complexes."

Genomics: The Power and the Promise Conference – Ottawa, Ontario

The Genomics: The Power and the Promise Conference was held at the Ottawa Convention Centre on November 24-26, 2014, hosted by Genome Canada and the Gairdner Foundation. This conference celebrated the achievements in genomics research in Canada and allowed participants to meet some of the best genomics researchers in the world.

Fabini was one of 30 participants, out of nearly 150 abstract submissions, invited to present a poster at the conference. The poster session covered studies from various fields – agriculture, energy, environment, fisheries, forestry, health, and mining. Included in his acceptance was a travel award that covered his expenses during his stay in Ottawa.

A copy of the presented poster, "Comparative genomics of Vibrio metoecus with its close relative Vibrio cholerae reveals its pathogenic potential," can be found here and the published abstract here.

Fabini presenting his poster at the Genomics conference

2014 CIFAR-IMB General Meeting – Liblice, Czech Republic

The Canadian Institute for Advanced Research – Integrated Microbial Biodiversity (CIFAR-IMB) Program held its annual conference for members (and their students) at the beautiful Liblice Castle, Czech Republic on June 25-29, 2015. This time, it was Fabini's turn to attend, and he presented a poster of his work entitled "Vibrio metoecus, a novel emerging pathogen closely related to Vibrio cholerae." The group also went on an afternoon trip to Prague on June 27th to attend a private one-hour organ and violin concert at the St. Salvator Church by Charles Bridge.

This was Fabini's first trip to Europe, and he visited various cities after the conference (Prague, Vienna, Salzburg, Munich, Bremen, and Amsterdam).

Fabini presenting his poster at the CIFAR conference

2014 Banff Conference on Infectious Diseases – Banff, Alberta

Paul and Fabini attended the 2014 Banff Conference on Infectious Diseases (BCID) on June 4-8, 2014 at the Banff Centre in the beautiful Canadian rockies. BCID, organized this year by Dr. Stefan Pukatzki and his lab (Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology), was a venue for scientific discussions with researchers on pathogenesis and other aspects of infectious diseases and host defenses.

The lab presented posters entitled "Looking for the ancestor of cholera in its natural habitat" (Paul) and "Vibrio metoecus, a novel emerging pathogen closely related to Vibrio cholerae" (Fabini).

Amazing view of the Canadian Rockies from the Banff Centre