“A Translational Journey”: A Special Panel Discussion about Queen’s CardioPulmonary Unit (QCPU)

April 25, 2018

Dr. Stephen Archer (Head, Department of Medicine), Dr. Paula James (Professor, Department of Medicine) and Dr. Mark Ormiston (Assistant Professor, Department of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences)

Synopsis: Cardiopulmonary diseases are the leading cause of death in Canada. Queen’s CardioPulmonary Unit (QCPU) – an 8,000 square foot translational research facility located in Queen’s Biosciences Complex – officially opened on October 6, 2017. Funded by a $7.7M joint award from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and the Ontario Ministry of Research, Innovation and Science, QCPU research focuses on the development, preclinical testing and commercialization of new therapies for heart, lung, blood and vascular (HLBV) diseases.

In this episode, Drs. Archer, James and Ormiston discuss the vast array of HLBV diseases impacting Canadians and QCPU’s use of a translational ‘molecules up to populations’ approach with the aim to improve health outcomes for patients of HLBV disease. QCPU features state-of-the-art infrastructure and services (CyTOF mass spectroscopy, 2-photon confocal microscopy, micro PET/SPECT/CT, genome sequencing, etc.). Very few facilities bring this type of high calibre equipment together in a central location. QCPU also features clinical trials space and is a satellite clinic with Kingston Health Sciences Centre (Spring 2018). The proximity between QCPU’s clinic and lab spaces means that, instead of having to carry samples across town, all research can be done efficiently in one space – allowing a patient to take “a translational journey.” The QCPU team encourages collaboration between multidisciplinary research groups and is invested in training the next generation of scientists. Please visit the QCPU website for more information.