MISSION OF CSV
The Canadian Society for Virology (CSV) is an organization that fosters and supports virology research across Canada.
Virology is the study of viruses – submicroscopic, parasitic particles of genetic material contained in a protein coat. Viruses are remarkably diverse, and comprise the large majority of the genetic diversity on planet Earth.
Successful systems attract parasites; distinct viruses infect every living organism on the planet. Viruses are relatively simple biological machines, and they depend heavily on host cells for energy and biosynthetic capacity.
Because of this dependence, viruses have evolved many ways to co-opt and subvert host cell processes; viruses are excellent teachers, and we have learned a great deal about the cell, the immune system, and other aspects of animal, plant and bacterial physiology, by studying viruses.
Some viruses cause disease (not just in humans), so virus research is essential for understanding viral causes of disease, and discovering new vaccines and therapies.
The CSV was founded in 2016 by Drs. Nathalie Grandvaux (Université de Montréal) and Craig McCormick (Dalhousie University). CSV has members representing universities, hospitals, and research institutes across Canada.
The society provides a focal point for Canadian Virology by organizing a biennial symposium. The CSV also recognizes scientific excellence via a number of awards including investigator awards at various career awards, trainee awards including, poster and oral presentation awards, and travel awards that allow graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and new investigators to attend biennial CSV meetings and international virology meetings. In addition, CSV provides support for a Lab Exchange Program that enables trainees to obtaining training in a visiting institution.
The CSV acts as a liaison for communication between its membership and national funding agencies such as the Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR) Institute of Infection and Immunity. Internationally, the American Society for Virology strongly supported the establishment of CSV, and we have plans for continued partnerships via future co-hosted Workshops.
The CSV also provides exclusive privileges to its membership by providing CSV member-specific publication rates to internationally recognized journals in the field of virology.
CSV executive members
The CSV is managed by an executive committee consisting of a President, a Vice President, a Past president, a Secretary-Treasurer, 3 Directors and a Trainee Representative. The CSV Executive committee members are elected by full CSV members and serve one-year or two-year terms.
The current members of the board of directors are:
President:
Dr. Selena Sagan (University of British Columbia)
Vice-President:
Dr. Jennifer Corcoran (University of Calgary)
Secretary/Treasurer:
Dr. Sarah Wootton (University of Guelph)
Director:
Dr. Carolina Ilkow (Ottawa Hospital Research Institute/University of Ottawa)
Director:
Dr. Arinjay Banerjee (Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization/University of Saskatchewan)
Director – Early Career Investigator:
Dr. Ann Gregory (University of Calgary)
Trainee representative:
Trinity Tooley-Macarandang (Queen’s University)
Past President (non voting):
Dr. Rod Russell (Memorial University)
CSV University Delegates
Université de Montréal: Nathalie Grandvaux
Dalhousie University: Craig McCormick
McGill University: Selena Sagan
University of Alberta: Maya Shmulevitz
University of Manitoba: Jason Kindrachuk
University of Western Ontario: Jimmy Dikeakos
Memorial University of Newfoundland: Rodney Russell
Université Laval: Amelie Fradet Turcottte
McMaster University: Matthew Miller
Queen's University: Che Colpitts
Simon Fraser University: Zabrina Brumme
University of British Columbia: Eric Jan
Universty of Calgary: Jennifer Corcoran
University of Guelph: Sarah Wootton
University of Ottawa: Marceline Côté
University of Saskatchewan: Vikram Misra
University of Toronto: Samira Mubareka
University of Waterloo: Josef Nissimov
York University: Andrew White
VIDO Intervac: Darryl Falzarano
University of Sherbrooke: Brendan Bell
Institut Armand Frappier: Alain Lamarre
Wilfrid Laurier University: Stephanie DeWitte-Orr
Université du Quebec: Benoit Barbeau
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada: Helene Sanfacon
University of Lethbridge: Trushar Patel
Public Health Agency of Canada: Logan Banadyga
University of Winnipeg: Renee Douville
Dalhousie University: Craig McCormick
McGill University: Selena Sagan
University of Alberta: Maya Shmulevitz
University of Manitoba: Jason Kindrachuk
University of Western Ontario: Jimmy Dikeakos
Memorial University of Newfoundland: Rodney Russell
Université Laval: Amelie Fradet Turcottte
McMaster University: Matthew Miller
Queen's University: Che Colpitts
Simon Fraser University: Zabrina Brumme
University of British Columbia: Eric Jan
Universty of Calgary: Jennifer Corcoran
University of Guelph: Sarah Wootton
University of Ottawa: Marceline Côté
University of Saskatchewan: Vikram Misra
University of Toronto: Samira Mubareka
University of Waterloo: Josef Nissimov
York University: Andrew White
VIDO Intervac: Darryl Falzarano
University of Sherbrooke: Brendan Bell
Institut Armand Frappier: Alain Lamarre
Wilfrid Laurier University: Stephanie DeWitte-Orr
Université du Quebec: Benoit Barbeau
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada: Helene Sanfacon
University of Lethbridge: Trushar Patel
Public Health Agency of Canada: Logan Banadyga
University of Winnipeg: Renee Douville
CSV EXECUTIVE BIOS
President: Dr. Selena M. Sagan (University of British Columbia)
Dr. Selena M. Sagan received a Hon. B.Sc from McGill University and Ph.D. in Microbiology & Immunology from the University of Ottawa. She completed postdoctoral training at Stanford University under the mentorship of Dr. Peter Sarnow, where she studied an unusual interaction between a liver-specific microRNA, miR-122, and the hepatitis C virus (HCV) genome. In 2013, she was recruited to McGill University where she established a research program studying RNA viruses. In 2023, she was recruited to the University of British Columbia where she is currently a Canada Research Chair in RNA Biology & Viral Infections, Co-Director of the Prepare for Pandemics through Advanced Research in Evolution (PrePARE) Research Cluster, and Professor in the Department of Microbiology & Immunology. Her laboratory studies positive-sense RNA viruses of the Flaviviridae family (including hepatitis C virus, dengue and Zika viruses) as well as respiratory viruses (including respiratory syncytial virus and human coronaviruses). The focus of her research program is RNA-RNA and protein-RNA interactions at the host-virus interface.
Lab website: saganlab.com
X: @SaganLab
Vice President: Dr. Jennifer Corcoran (University of Calgary)
Dr. Jennifer (Jenn) Corcoran is an Associate Professor in the Microbiology, Immunology, and Infectious Diseases department at the University of Calgary. Jenn worked with Dr. Roy Duncan (Dalhousie University) on the discovery of a novel class of viral fusion proteins from non-enveloped viruses for her doctoral studies, with Dr. Jim Smiley (University of Alberta) on herpes simplex virus mechanisms of host shutoff for a first postdoctoral fellowship, and with Dr. Craig McCormick (Dalhousie University) on endothelial cell reprogramming mediated by viral genes encoded by the oncogenic Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) for a second postdoctoral fellowship. Jenn started as faculty in 2014 at Dalhousie University and moved to the University of Calgary in 2018. The Corcoran lab currently studies KSHV and human coronaviruses (CoVs) including SARS-CoV-2 and is most interested in the first steps of virus infection. At this crucial stage, the goal of a virus is to establish infection in the host cell and the goal of the host cell is to stop the virus from a successful infection. Which factors lead the virus to ‘win’ this battle is a central research question that permeates many projects. The Corcoran lab is composed of vibrant and fun-loving junior scientists, who like Jenn, are passionate about virology.
Secretary/Treasurer: Dr. Sarah Wootton (University of Guelph)
Dr. Sarah Wootton obtained her Ph.D. from the University of Guelph in 2002 before completing a post-doctoral fellowship at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, Washington where she studied oncogenic retroviruses and lung gene therapy in the laboratory of Dr. Dusty Miller. In September 2007, she joined the faculty at the University of Guelph and is now an Associate Professor of Virology in the Department of Pathobiology. She currently holds funding from several granting agencies including CIHR, NSERC, and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Dr. Wootton’s research program is focused on engineering viral therapies to prevent, treat, or cure illnesses including infectious diseases, monogenic lung disorders and cancer. One of her core research areas focuses on gene therapy. Work in her lab centers on developing adeno-associated virus (AAV)-based gene therapies for the treatment of monogenic lung diseases, including surfactant protein B deficiency and cystic fibrosis, as well as developing a robust platform for “Vectored Immunoprophylaxis” or VIP, in which AAV vectors are used to deliver broadly neutralizing monoclonal antibody genes to mediate robust and prolonged protection from pathogens which lack suitable vaccines or therapies. Another major focus of her lab is the development of viral vectored vaccines and oncolytic viral therapies based on Newcastle disease virus (NDV) and parapox Orf virus (ORFV).
Director: Dr. Arinjay Banerjee (Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization/University of Saskatchewan)
Dr. Arinjay Banerjee (PhD) is a virologist and the Principal Investigator of the Laboratory of Zoonotic Viruses and Comparative Immunology at the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization, University of Saskatchewan, Canada. Dr. Banerjee is the co-lead for One Health at the University of Saskatchewan, and affiliate member of the Global One Health Academy, NC State University, USA, and Bat One Health. Research within Dr. Banerjee’s laboratory focuses on three main themes that are inspired by the One Health ideology, (1) virus-host interactions in wildlife reservoir species, such as bats, (2) virus-host interactions in spillover species, such as humans, and (3) viral vaccine development.
Dr. Banerjee completed his Master of Science degree in virology from the National Institute of Virology in India where his master’s thesis was awarded the university gold medal. Next, Dr. Banerjee completed his PhD from the University of Saskatchewan, Canada where his doctoral thesis on coronavirus-host interactions was awarded Canada’s Governor General’s Gold medal. Dr. Banerjee’s postdoctoral research at McMaster University, Canada was awarded the Gerard Wright postdoctoral award in Infection Research and the postdoctoral fellow impact award. Dr. Banerjee was recruited to the University of Toronto, Canada to contribute to the COVID-19 pandemic response in 2020. Dr. Banerjee started his independent research laboratory in 2021. Recently, Dr. Banerjee was selected among 10 individuals as part of CBC Saskatchewan’s Top 40 under 40.
Laboratory Website: BanerjeeLab.ca
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/arinjaybanerjee
X: @sci_questions
Director: Dr. Carolina Ilkow (Ottawa Hospital Research Institute/University of Ottawa)
Carolina is originally from Buenos Aires, Argentina, where she earned a combined Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Science. She then moved to Edmonton, Canada, to pursue graduate studies at the University of Alberta under the supervision of Dr. Tom Hobman. During her time there, Carolina’s research focused on virology and virus engineering, where she identified novel interactions between pathogenic RNA viruses and their host cells.
After obtaining her Ph.D. in Cell Biology, Carolina joined Dr. John Bell’s lab at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (OHRI) as a postdoctoral fellow. Her work in the Bell lab centered on developing novel, tailored virotherapies for cancer treatment.
In July 2016, Carolina began her independent research career. She is now a Senior Scientist at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute’s Centre for Cancer Therapeutics and an Associate Professor in the Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology, and Immunology at the University of Ottawa. Her research focuses on developing innovative virus-based immunotherapeutics for cancer treatment.
Carolina is also deeply committed to training the next generation of scientists. She coordinates the Microprogram in Biomanufacturing at the University of Ottawa, fostering education and mentorship in this rapidly evolving field.
Director – Early Career Investigator: Ann Gregory (University of Calgary)
Dr. Ann Gregory is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Calgary. She began her research career studying viral community structure and function across the global oceans and has since expanded her work to study viral communities across the human body. In December 2018, Dr. Gregory earned her PhD from Ohio State University, followed by a EMBO postdoctoral fellowship at KU Leuven in Belgium. After completing her fellowship, she delved into the biotech industry, serving as a computational biologist at the gene therapy company, Aera Therapeutics. As of January 2024, Dr. Gregory has returned to academia. She is currently the CRC Tier II in Viromics & One Health and a CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholar. She is working on starting up the fledgling Integrative Viromics Lab at the University of Calgary.
Her lab is focused is the human virome, which is the collection of viruses that reside in and on the human body. While research on the human microbiome has found that our resident bacteria and archaea have profound effects on our development, physiology and health, we know relatively little about the role of viruses. Dr. Gregory’s lab combines systems biology (‘omics tools) and reductionist (culturing and synthetic ecology) approaches to explore (1) how the virome interacts with other microorganisms and our immune system, (2) how the virome contributes to our development and health, and (3) how can we utilize the virome to develop novel disease management strategies for microbial-associated diseases.
Trainee Representative: Trinity Tooley-Macaradang (Queen’s University)
Trinity Tooley-Macarandang is a first-year PhD student in Dr. Che Colpitts’ lab at Queen’s University and a Canadian Network on Hepatitis C trainee. She obtained her BSc (Honours) in Microbiology and Immunology at Dalhousie University in 2023. During her undergraduate studies, Trinity worked extensively in Dr. Craig McCormick’s lab developing a reverse genetics system for a common cold coronavirus HCoV-OC43 and investigated endoplasmic reticulum stress responses during HCoV-OC43 infection. Her current research focuses on endoplasmic reticulum stress responses during hepatitis C virus and dengue virus infection, aiming to enhance our understanding of Flaviviridae pathogenesis.
Past President (non voting): Dr. Rod Russell (Memorial University)
Dr. Rod Russell is a Professor of Virology and Immunology within the Division of BioMedical Sciences, and Vice Dean of Research and Graduate Studies in the Faculty of Medicine at Memorial University of Newfoundland (MUN). He obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Biochemistry and a Master’s Degree in Medicine studying HIV under the supervision of Dr. Michael Grant at MUN, and then did a PhD at McGill University with Drs. Mark Wainberg and Chen Liang in the field of HIV research. Dr. Russell carried out Postdoctoral training at the National Institutes of Health (USA) under the supervision of Drs. Suzanne Emerson and Robert Purcell where he switched his research focus to the hepatitis C virus. In 2008, he returned to MUN to establish a research program that now covers fundamental virology, viral immunology and viral pathogenesis, as well as antiviral drug discovery and development. His team’s research has been funded by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research to study virus-induced cell death and inflammasome activation, and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada to develop novel virus imaging techniques. He is currently the Past-President of the Canadian Society for Virology and a member of the Canadian Network on Hepatitis C. Dr. Russell sits on Editorial Boards for Pathogens & Immunity, Frontiers in Immunology, and Viruses, and he is the Editor-in-Chief of Viral Immunology.
