Genome Canada funds new platform technologies as it prepares for a new phase of research support

Genome Canada is investing $18.6 million over 15 months in platform technologies at four genome centres as it develops a new targeted approach to future funding competitions. The platform funding was awarded to projects that were successful in Competition III and announced after consulting with recipients on their capacity and equipment requirements. The process marks the first of several changes Genome Canada is contemplating as part of a new five-year strategic plan. The plan is being presented for board approval later this month along with a proposal to launch a modest targeted competition.

The latest funding announcement ends a lengthy period of relative silence surrounding Genome Canada as it allocates remaining funds and gears up for another round of activity subject to new financing. Officials have been working to formulate a new approach to stimulating genomics and proteomics research, placing greater emphasis on social returns and developing a new system for soliciting input from the scientific community and the provinces. The platforms funding is considered key to the evolution of the genome centres under the Genome Canada umbrella (see chart page 2). But unlike previous competitions, Genome Canada will pick up the whole tab and open up the facilities to outside users.

"We pay 100 per cent. It's hard to find co-funding for platforms. During the first competition, both projects and platforms were co-funded but the provinces said they were not comfortable with this," says Genome Canada president and CEO Dr Martin Godbout. "Since we now pay 100 per cent, we have told the platform managers that they need to give 20 per cent access to others doing genomics."

The platforms investments are intended to boost the productivity and efficacy of Genome Canada's core facilities situated in each of the six genome centres. Due to funding constraints, however, Genome Canada is unable to cover the complete three-year cost of the latest awards. The investments cover the first 15 months and Godbout says he hopes the remaining resources will be forthcoming once Genome Canada unveils its new strategic plan.

That plan will also incorporate dramatic changes to the way Genome Canada makes funding decisions. With two notable exceptions since its inception, the agency has held competitions to appeal to all sectors involved in genomics and proteomics research. Modifications to the process for competition III led to a storm of protest from some members of the scientific community. They objected to co-funding and submitted a letter to Science Magazine charging that "co-funded programs imperil scientific credibility and fail to engage the breadth and depth of national scientific expertise".

While Genome Canada refuted the allegations, the reformulation of the process for future competitions implicitly recognizes some of those concerns while moving the funding focus towards areas that the scientific community agrees are of national priority.

Like the Applied Genomics and Proteomics Research in Human Health and the Bovine Genomics competitions in 2003, future competitions will be targeted and will follow a clear process of consultation and prioritization. The new process will involve a series of workshops leading to the development of white papers by small groups of designated scientists which will be prioritized and presented to government, complete with specific funding requirements. The process should be complete by September in order to be considered for the next federal Budget, anticipated for early 2007 barring the fall of the current administration.

"We want to have a more strategic approach. It's an evolution of Genome Canada. We will be asking scientists what they want for new investments," says Godbout. "The new competition will use the white paper approach .... We need to be in a position to justify why we invest in genomics in certain sectors."

WHITE PAPERS IN DEVELOPMENT

Areas that are currently the subject of white papers include nutrition and the pine beetle infestation. A white paper has already been produced for the second phase of Canada's participation in the $105-million Structural Genomics Consortium (SGI), slated to begin in March/07. Led by the Univ of Toronto's Dr Aled Edwards, the SGI is part of Genome Canada's International Consortium Initiative (ICI) - launched in 2002 and designed to provide an international profile for Canadian genomics research and leverage 75% of funding from non-Genome Canada resources.

Other proposals under ICI that have been provided workshop funding include: the International Lepidopteran Genome Consortium (Great Lakes Forestry Centre); Poplar Tree Genomics: Assembly and Function of the First Tree Genome (Univ of British Columbia); Public Population Project in Genomics (Univ of Montreal); International Regulome (Ottawa Health Research Institute & and the Univ of Toronto); and the Wine Grape Genomics (Univ of British Columbia).

Genome Canada researchers are also examining opportunities in the area of nutrigenomics. Ten researchers recently attended a nutrigenomics workshop in Copenhagen at the invitation of the Danish government which is planning to launch a major research program. Genome Canada will hold a series of workshops and then a group of scientists write a white paper for future funding consideration.

"We will end up with a list of priorized white papers and then ask government for specific amounts for each area," says Godbout. "I don't see Canada's genomics investment falling off. The strategic approach will require $125 to $130 million and we spend about $95-100 million a year now."

Other areas in which Genome Canada is seeking new investment are technology development and translational research or commercialization. Godbout says a modest technology development program could be launched for $15-20 million, allowing multidisciplinary research teams to embark on relatively short-term projects to improve existing technologies. Genome Canada also hopes to receive about $15 million to commercialize existing technologies through a bench-to-bedside approach. An earlier request was deferred pending the development of a commercialization strategy by the previous Liberal government, but Godbout says the need remains.

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