Thursday, April 1, 2021

President urges campus to work together to stop the outbreak

A message from Feridun Hamdullahpur, president and vice-chancellor.

As you are all aware, we are currently working closely with Region of Waterloo public health officials to manage a serious outbreak of COVID-19 in our residence community.

I know this is a concern for our students and for employees who work in the residences. Please know that working together now is more important than ever as we seek to control this outbreak.

Public health recommends that anyone who lives or works in our residences gets tested for COVID-19. Students and employees who are affected by this can expect to get a message today with instructions on what to do to get tested.

We are also implementing other measures to control this outbreak. We have:

• moved residence dining to takeout only
• removed furniture in shared study spaces, and
• put new security measures in place to make sure only those who live in a residence can enter.

Our measures to control COVID-19 on campus have been effective over the last year. This current outbreak means that we need to double down on these measures and keep working together. Anyone who is worried, who tests positive or who is identified as a close contact must know that we have people at Waterloo to help you manage these circumstances.

I know it has been a long, hard year of restrictions. Now is not the time to let our guard down.

This situation is serious and we need to act to stop it. Most of our community members have done the right thing this year and I am grateful for your efforts. For people who have acted recklessly and gathered repeatedly with people outside your household: we care about you and we are worried about your wellbeing. However, know that you’ve let us all down badly. Your behaviour risks your health and your education, and it needs to stop, now.

Whether you live on campus, in Waterloo or elsewhere – do your part to protect the people around you. Avoid social gatherings, limit non-essential trips outside your home, and follow public health and safety guidelines. As we approach the long weekend, please do your part and don’t travel outside the region.

As always, we are committed to safety and wellbeing of our community. We will continue to update you on the outbreak as we seek to get it under control. Please follow updates on the COVID-19 information website. If you have questions or concerns, please reach out to coronavirus@uwaterloo.ca.

AVP Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs nominating committee seeks feedback

The Associate Vice-President, Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs Nominating Committee is now in place and has held its first meeting, according to a memo from Vice-President, Academic & Provost James Rush circulated to employees, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows today.

"I encourage you to provide your comments/views concerning the potential reappointment of Jeff Casello for a term of three (3) years from 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2024, or concerning the associate vice-president in general, by Wednesday, April 21, 2021," the provost writes. 

Comments may be sent to any member of the Nominating Committee or to the committee secretary Kim Gingerich. Additionally, a web form is also available to provide written comments (requires WatIAM login). All comments will be held in complete confidence by the committee.

Committee membership

• James W.E. Rush, Vice-President, Academic & Provost (provost@uwaterloo.ca)
• Sheila Ager, Dean of Arts (sager@uwaterloo.ca)
• David Billedeau, GSA President (gsa-president@uwaterloo.ca)
• David DeVidi, Associate Vice-President, Academic (david.devidi@uaterloo.ca)
• Adam Kolkiewicz, Associate Dean, Graduate Studies, Math (wakolkiewicz@uwaterloo.ca)
• Lili Liu, Dean of Health (lili.liu@uwaterloo.ca)
• Cathy Newell Kelly, Registrar (cnkelly@uwaterloo.ca)
• Chris Read, Associate Provost, Students (cread@uwaterloo.ca)
• Marianne Simm, Director, Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs (msimm@uwaterloo.ca)
• Mary Wells, Dean of Engineering (mawells@uwaterloo.ca)
• Kim Gingerich, Secretary to the Committee (katginge@uwaterloo.ca)

Vaccine technology to stop future pandemics

By Rose Simone. This article was originally featured on Waterloo News.

In the midst of a surge in COVID-19 cases in fall 2020, hopeful news emerged: Vaccine trials by several large drug makers showed promise. 

It sparked widespread optimism for a vaccine that might bring the pandemic to heel in 2021. 

But what about the next pandemic? That’s what Nafiseh Nafissi (MSc ’09, PhD ’13), executive vice-president of research and development at Mediphage Bioceuticals, and her colleagues are thinking about. 

Mediphage, a company founded by Waterloo School of Pharmacy Professor Roderick Slavcev, is developing a universal vaccine platform based on “ministring DNA” technology that creates synthetic virus-like particles to generate an effective immune response in people.  

Since these ministring DNA particles do not contain bacterial sequences, and cannot form a virus capable of replication, Nafissi says they will be safer than traditional vaccines, even for people who normally can’t be vaccinated because they are immunocompromised. 

Technology platform can be adapted for other coronaviruses 

More importantly, this technology can easily be adapted to other coronaviruses and flu viruses as well.  

“It’s for future pandemics and other types of viral disorders,” Nafissi says. “It’s not just one product that we are developing. It's a platform technology.” 

A new vaccine platform could provide a faster and better response to future pandemics, she adds. The technology Mediphage is working on is “redosable,” meaning that the vaccine can be administered more than once, and the immune response should be long lasting, she adds.  

“In terms of global impact, this would be a very safe and affordable technology. More importantly, unlike traditional vaccine products, ministring DNA does not need to be kept in cold storage. Our product is stable at room temperature, which makes it much more accessible to people in remote parts of the world where cold storage facilities may not be available.” 

Small startup can be more innovative than large vaccine companies 

A small startup like Mediphage has the flexibility to pursue a new vaccine platform, whereas bigger companies are focused on adapting technology that is proven and has worked well in the past, Nafissi says.  

“They need to scale up the vaccine and bring it to market as quickly as possible in response to global needs. That is really great, but we always need to think about alternative approaches and novel technologies to prepare for future pandemics.” Nafissi says.  

Mediphage is now partnering with several academic institutions in the United States and Canada with the goal of starting animal trials.  

“This part of the study needs to be done with partners in academia who are experts in vaccine design, immunology and epidemiology, to determine the right animal models for this type of vaccine,” Nafissi says. “We are optimizing the protocols and getting all the information about the type and size of the animal models, the specific routes of injection and other elements.” 

A nasal spray vaccine 

Mediphage is also looking at developing this technology as a nasal spray. “In the past few months, we have been working to find the device companies, the right manufacturing companies, and start testing these materials,” Nafissi says. 

This technology evolved from research Nafissi was doing for her PhD at Waterloo. She and Slavcev, her PhD supervisor, had been developing the DNA ministring technology platform to combat chronic and genetic disorders such as Stargardt’s disease, which causes vision loss in children.  

But “the platform is modular, so we can very quickly switch it to different applications,” Nafissi says. When COVID-19 hit, they quickly pivoted to adapting it to coronaviruses. 

Nafissi says her work at Mediphage keeps her in contact with Waterloo faculty across many departments, from chemical engineering to biology and the School of Pharmacy. “We can always count on the support of the faculty at Waterloo,” she says. 

Mediphage Bioceuticals has been listed by StartUs Insights as one of the top five gene therapy companies impacting the pharma sector. As a University of Waterloo spinoff company, it hopes to demonstrate that Waterloo is not just an IT powerhouse but can and will also lead future of medical technology, Nafissi says. 

By allowing researchers to own what they create, Waterloo is a tremendous launchpad for startup companies like Mediphage, Nafissi says. “The fact that we see all these spin-off companies shows the strength of Waterloo in creating the future scientists and the future leaders in industry."

Proposals sought for new WatPD course

The Co-operative Education Council is requesting proposals for the re-development of a PD course that focuses on critical reflection and workplace success. Development will take place August 2021 to July 2022.

This course will be the second core PD course that students in the faculties of Arts, Environment, and Health take and is typically completed during their first work term. A major reflective report will serve as the final assignment and counts as the first work term report for these students. The course is also available as a PD elective to co-op students in other faculties.

The proposed objectives for the course are:

• Provide strategies to help students make the most of workplace opportunities and challenges
• Introduce the value of professional development and work-integrated learning
• Demonstrate the value of critical reflection for personal and professional growth
• Reinforce the importance of planning for the future of work, through integration of Waterloo’s Future Ready Talent Framework

Authoring a PD course means participating in the development of an innovative online course and gaining experience with work-integrated learning. It also offers members of the University community a unique opportunity to reach thousands of co-op students across multiple faculties each term. Since this course is typically completed during the students’ first work term, its instructor can make a positive impact on student learning and workplace success at a critical juncture in their co-op journey.

Additional information can be found in the Request for Proposals on WatPD’s website. In advance of submitting a proposal, interested applicants are strongly encouraged to contact Natalie Clifford, Manager of Academic Programs, by sending an email to natalie.clifford@uwaterloo.ca.

Proposals need to be submitted to Natalie Clifford by May 23, 2021.

What's open and closed this long weekend

It is Easter weekend, with the Good Friday holiday tomorrow. There will be a number of closings and service modifications to note for the long weekend:

• The Student Life Centre (SLC) will be closed on Friday, April 2.
• The Library's virtual reference services (chat or email) will be available between 12 noon and 6:00 p.m. on Friday, April 2. All Library locations remain closed, except for DC study carrels and book pickup services, until further notice.
• W Store | Gifts + Apparel will be closed on Friday, April 2. W Store will begin processing online orders and responding to inquiries placed over the long weekend on Monday, April 5. Print + Retail Solutions reminds campus that W Store | Course Materials + Supplies and W Store Essentials locations remain closed to the public until further notice.
• On the Food Services front, The Market at UWP will be operating from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. from Friday, April 2 to Sunday, April 4 and Tim Hortons at the SLC will be closed on Friday, April 2. Check the UW Food Services website for full locations and hours.

The Daily Bulletin will return on Monday, April 5. Have a wonderful long weekend.