University of Guelph

Temporary Enhanced Biosecurity Protocol

There are important, temporary changes to the biosecurity protocol for animal facilities managed by the Office of Research in consideration of coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The present risk necessitates modifications to our biosecurity protocol to protect staff and ensure continuity of animal welfare and care.

By Ariana Longley

Connections within your brain help to shape who you are. Deterioration of these connections affects your memories and cognitive abilities, which is what happens with Alzheimer’s disease.

Despite how debilitating and emotionally devastating Alzheimer’s is, treatments remain ineffective to halt or slow disease progression. That’s why University of Guelph researchers are investigating new molecular targets to address this common disorder.

By Owen Roberts and Ariana Longley

One of North America’s biggest shopping days, Black Friday, has arrived -- November 23, the day after Thanksgiving Day in the US.

Since the 1980s, Black Friday has taken conspicuous consumption to the max. It started out innocent enough, with retailers offering super prices to kick start the Christmas shopping season.

The University of Guelph was the “go-to place” this week for senior regulators, policy-makers and researchers from the Philippines who spent Oct. 26 and 29 on campus learning about U of G crop and livestock research and touring the University’s world-class research facilities.

The delegation’s Guelph stop was part of a cross-country fact-finding tour to develop and support collaborations in crop and livestock research between Canada and the Philippines.

By Samantha McReavy

The Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP) fills a significant labour shortage in Ontario’s agri-food system and is a critical part of production here, says a University of Guelph researcher.  

Prof. Sara Mann, Dept. of Management, at the University of Guelph, says the program has a significant social and economic impact on Canadian farmers, on the workers’ home countries and on Ontario’s agriculture and agri-food sectors.

“To maintain the viability of SAWP, it is vital to fully understand its impact,” she says.

By Sydney Pearce

Many students eat out regularly instead of cooking at home, so University of Guelph researchers are testing out a new way to subtly promote healthy choices – vegetables, specifically -- when ordering food.

By Gillian Beatson

A huge $15.5-million facelift is underway at the Elora Research Station, with the construction of a new cow-calf research centre, a facility owned by the Agricultural Research Institute of Ontario and managed by the University of Guelph under the OMAFRA-U of G Agreement. A separate project will repurpose 200 acres of land to create pasture at the station and almost double the capacity for livestock on site.

By Sydney Pearce

This holiday weekend, as you finalize your plans, make sure to prepare yourself for the insects that accompany the great outdoors – like ticks.

Ticks can transmit pathogens that cause disease. In Ontario, the blacklegged tick poses the greatest risk; it can transmit several pathogens including the bacteria (Borrelia burgdorferi) that causes Lyme disease in humans, dogs and horses.

By Sandra Clark

Using an advanced computing network to visualize interactions between two key proteins has brought researchers in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology one step closer to understanding the molecular structure of the white matter of the brain – findings that could also lead to important insights regarding the onset of multiple sclerosis (MS).

By Shannon Mustard

Researchers have found that a community-based cycling exercise program improved the gait, posture, and muscle strength for patients with Parkinson’s disease, a neural disorder that results in freezing episodes (the inability to move involuntarily), rigidity, and tremors in the body.