Dr. Barbara Porto
Assistant professor, UM Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases
2025 Forum
The MSHRF will include many familiar elements previously included in the annual Canadian Student Health Research Forum such as the research poster competition, professional development workshop, Drewry Lecture, and graduate student awards.
The event now also features:
- A lecture session and luncheon celebrating the work of the Manitoba Medical Service Foundation, in partnership with the Manitoba Blue Cross.
- Talks from nine early career researcher (ECRs), emphasizing the path each took to get here and showcasing the breadth and depth of our growing research community.
- A lecture by the 2025 winner of the Prowse Prize for Clinical Research.
MSHRF schedule of events
Monday, June 16, 2025
| Time | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. | Poster competition | Brodie Centre atrium |
| 2:30 - 4:00 p.m. | Professional development workshop Presented by: | 050 Apotex Centre |
Tuesday, June 17, 2025
| Time | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 9:00 - 11:00 a.m. | Early career researcher symposium I | Frederic Gaspard Theatre, Basic Medical Sciences Building |
| 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Drewry Memorial Lecture Presented by: | Frederic Gaspard Theatre, Basic Medical Sciences Building |
| 12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Drewry Memorial Luncheon | Joe Doupe Concourse |
| 1:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Early Career Researcher Symposium II | Frederic Gaspard Theatre, Basic Medical Sciences Building |
Wednesday, June 18, 2025
| Time | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 9:00 - 10:00 a.m. | Prowse Memorial Lecture Presented by: | Frederic Gaspard Theatre, Basic Medical Sciences Building |
| 10:00 - 10:30 a.m. | Coffee break | |
| 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | MMSF showcase session Topic: | Frederic Gaspard Theatre, Basic Medical Sciences Building |
| 12:00 - 1:30 p.m. | MMSF luncheon | Joe Doupe Concourse |
| 1:30 - 3:00 p.m. | Core facilities presentation | Frederic Gaspard Theatre, Basic Medical Sciences Building |
| 3:15 - 5:00 p.m | Awards ceremony and reception | Frederic Gaspard Theatre, Basic Medical Sciences Building |
MMSF Showcase session
Manitoba Medical Service Foundation (MMSF) presents: Building and Working in Research Teams – Lessons Learned from Around the World.
Manitoba Medical Service Foundation (MMSF), in partnership with the Manitoba Blue Cross, provides funding to new Manitoba Researchers and students to improve the health and well-being of Manitobans.
Biography
Dr. Porto is an assistant professor in the Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases and a scientist with the Biology of Breathing Group at the Children’s Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba since 2021.
Dr. Porto obtained her PhD at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In Toronto, Dr. Porto pursued post-doctoral research at the Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) working with human airway epithelial cell biology during respiratory syncytial virus infection.
Her research focuses on understanding the mechanisms of disease pathogenesis associated with respiratory viral infections and to discover new therapeutic targets to reduce respiratory morbidity caused by respiratory viruses.
One of the goals of her research program is to uncover how respiratory viruses and their purified proteins trigger the death of innate immune cells and respiratory epithelial cells, and the role of cell death on disease outcomes.
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Dr. Keith Fowke
Professor and head, UM Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases
Biography
Dr. Fowke is Professor and Head of the Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, University of Manitoba. His laboratory focuses on defining cellular immune mechanisms to viral infections and the control of infection if it does occur.
- Current studies include:
novel approaches to HIV prevention by reducing inflammation at the genital tract - understanding how to block the negative effects of elevated immune regulators in HIV infection with the goal to restore the immune system
- determining the effect of solvent use on the immune system and implications on HIV susceptibility
- assessing immune responses to viral infection and vaccine to HIV, HPV, influenza and SARS-CoV-2
Dr. Fowke has a particular interest in training young investigators in multi-disciplinary research and has been involved in a number of workshops and international training programs. Dr. Fowke was elected to the Canadian Academy of Health Science in 2021.
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Dr. Jason Kindrachuk
Associate professor, UM Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases; Tier 2 Canada Research Chair
Biography
Jason Kindrachuk is an associate professor and Canada Research Chair in emerging virus pathogenesis in the Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, and cross appointed in the Department of Internal Medicine and the Manitoba Centre for Proteomics and Systems Biology, University of Manitoba.
His work focuses on viruses that pose the greatest threat to global health, including orthopoxviruses, ebolaviruses, coronaviruses, and influenza viruses. His research program centers on the circulation, transmission, and pathogenesis of emerging viruses. Past and present findings from these investigations will help inform emerging virus therapeutic treatment strategies, outbreak prediction and preparedness efforts with impacts on both human and animal health.
Dr. Kindrachuk leads multiple nationally funded emerging infectious disease research investigations with a particular focus on Central and Western Africa. These include as Director for the International Mpox Response Consortium (IMREC), co-lead for Pillar 2 of the Coronavirus Variants Rapid Response Network, and ongoing investigations on the long-term impacts of Ebola virus infection in disease survivors in West Africa.
He also serves as a subject matter expert for multiple emerging infectious disease technical advisory groups including for the Public Health Agency of Canada and the World Health Organization.
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Special lectures
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Drewry Memorial Lecture
Dr. Romaniya (Roma) Zayats
Post-doctoral Fellow, Department of Immunology; Max Rady College of Medicine, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences -
Biography
Dr. Zayats recently completed her PhD at the Department of Immunology under the supervision of Dr. Thomas Murooka.
Her doctoral research focused on uncovering the role of antigen-specific regulatory T cells as part of the Leishmania major immune evasion strategy using 2-photon microscopy. Roma's scientific journey began as a volunteer in Dr. Murooka’s laboratory, and she quickly progressed from a Master of Science program to direct admission into the PhD program.
Dr. Zayats' research has garnered significant recognition, earning her over twenty awards for exceptional performance. Roma's work has been highly valued in the international field, as she was awarded the first-place oral presentation award at the Woods Hole Immunoparasitology meeting in 2023, outcompeting fellow students, postdoctoral scholars, and early career researchers.
During her PhD studies, Roma gave nine oral presentations at international conferences, including American Association of Immunologists meetings (AAI), the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH), and the International Congress of Parasitology in Copenhagen.
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Prowse Memorial Lecture
Dr. Marta Whyte
Surgical Critical Care fellow, Loyola Medical Center, Chicago -
Biography
Dr. Whyte is a Surgical Critical Care fellow at Loyola Medical Center in Chicago, Illinois. She will be pursuing a Trauma Surgery fellowship at JH Stroger Hospital of Cook County in Chicago this coming academic year with plans to return to Canada upon completion of training. She is a fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Canada and is certified in General Surgery by the American Board of Surgery.
Originally from Northern BC, she completed medical school at the University of British Columbia and subsequently her General Surgery training at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg. She holds a Master of Science in Surgery from the University of Manitoba. Her research interests are focused in Indigenous health and wellness, and the reconciliation of Indigenous ways of knowing and being in the context of the Western health care system. Her work has helped to decolonize healthcare spaces and set the stage for more work in this important area to be done in a good way.
Professional Development Workshop
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Dr. Anne Meyer-Miner
Presentation title
Constructing your Career: Planning for Growth, Flexibility, and Employer Expectation’
Presentation summary
Building your career is like constructing a city - you want solid infrastructure and functional design to support whichever direction your career grows. The challenge is knowing what is needed in the future.
During this session we’ll look at methods for taking a phased approach to crafting your career during grad school, so it is both flexible and strategic.
This method allows for gaining varied experiences, but also positions you to pivot as needed in order to meet employer expectations once you graduate. There will be interactive opportunities to better understand employers' wants and to practice leveraging and communicating your grad school experiences for future jobs.
Biography
After a rewarding decade as a molecular geneticist, including obtaining a PhD in molecular genetics from the University of Toronto, Anne Meyer-Miner shifted gears from pipettes and lab coats to focus on enhancing employer engagement and improving career preparation for graduates.
After her PhD, she joined STEMCELL Technologies as a scientific recruiter and gained valuable insight into what employers are looking for when hiring, and built strong relationships in the biotech community. This role led her to become a senior program manager of educational partnerships and create a workforce skills development program from the ground up.
Now Anne is back in academia as a Manager of Graduate and Postdoc Affairs at the University of British Columbia Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences. She’s passionate about preparing graduate students for careers after graduation, and also integrating professional development strategies at any career stage.
Manitoba poster competition
Overview
The Manitoba Poster Competition will take place on Monday, June 16, 2025 in the Brodie Centre Atrium at the University of Manitoba Bannatyne campus.
Deadline for abstract submissions: April 14, 2025.
Eligibility
This competition is open to Manitoba graduate students and postdoctoral fellows undertaking research in the health sciences.
Consideration will be given to students who:
- Have registered by the registration deadline
- Have submitted their abstract by the registration deadline
Note: We welcome posters from across the breadth of the CIHR mandate.
How to register
To register, follow the steps below.
Step 1: Prepare your abstract according to our template
Step 2: Complete the abstract submission form
Step 3: Check your email frequently for updates including judging schedule.
Important: please add srforum@umanitoba.ca to your spam filters to ensure they do not end up in your junk folder.
Format
This event has been planned to take place in person.
Participants will present a poster (no larger than 4 feet wide) to showcase their research. Recommended templates are available.
Poster numbers will be assigned to participants once registration has closed. Participants are invited to mount their poster at their corresponding number upon arrival to the forum and orally present their research to the judges at the scheduled judging time.
Each participant will be assigned a 15-minute judging slot – 10 minutes for presentation and 5 minutes for a question/answer period. Please be sure not to exceed your 10 minutes of presentation time as the judging schedule is very tight.
Judging criteria
Please keep in mind, the judges are most likely not experts in your specific area of research. The topics covered in this competition are very broad and logistically it would be impossible to provide close expertise for all presenters.
However, the judges have been selected based on their success as scientists in their respective fields and their broader knowledge of science.
As with any presentation, the audience must be taken into account and the information delivered accordingly.
Participants will be judged on:
- Organization
- Clarity of presentation, including:
- background
- hypothesis/research question(s)
- methods (eg. study design and analysis technique)
- results
- conclusion
- Visual appearance of your presentation
- Defense of results
2025 MSHRF Sponsors
Thank you to our generous sponsors.
- Rady Faculty of Health Sciences
- Manitoba Medical Service Foundation
- Manitoba Blue Cross
- Faculty of Graduate Studies
- Research Manitoba
- St. Boniface Hospital General Hospital Foundation
- Children’s Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba
- Health Sciences Centre Foundation
- Office of the Vice-President (Research and International)
2024 MSHRF Past award winners
Congratulations to all the award recipients on your well-deserved recognition.
Poster awards
- Bioscience Association Manitoba (BAM) poster award: Gabriella Yakemow
- Women’s Health Research Foundation of Canada (WHRFC) poster award: Courtney Marshall
- Dean of RFHS poster awards:
- Danish Malhotra
- Seyed Mojtaba Hosseini
- Taylor Orchard
- Saeid Maghsoudi
- Claudia Camila Oda Jallime
- MMSF poster awards:
- Diane Tshikudi
- Jarrad Perron
- Jaypee Aguilar
- Jeba Atkia Maisha
- Keshav Alagarsamy
- McKay Lowry
- Mohd Wasif Khan
- Peter O’Reilly
- Toby Le
- HSGSA poster awards:
- Julie Donahue
- Kaden Baskerville
- Mackenzie Alexiuk
- Molly Crandall
- Morgan Taverner
- Rebecca Twilley
- Rubendren Jamilchelvan
- Samah Ahmed
- Tim Rozovsky
- Dean of Graduate Studies poster awards:
- Berardino Petrelli
- Megan Crooks
- Nicolas Leclerc
- Paula Pidsadny
- Abhay Srivastava
Travel awards
- MMCF – Graduate Student Travel Award:
- Gabriella Yakemov
- Jaypee Aguilar
- Jeba Atkia Maisha
- McKay Lowry
- Nicolas Leclerc
- Paula Pidsadny
- Peter O’Reilly
- Dr. Ed Kroeger Travel Award:
- Berardino Petrelli
- Courtney Marshall
- Diane Tshikudi
- Keshav Alagarsamy
- Mohd Wasif Khan
- Toby Le
Dr. Forough Khadem memorial awards
- 2024 recipients:
- Kayla Kostal (MSc)
- Allison Balasko (PhD)
Major awards
- Paul Albrechsten Research Institute Cancer Care Manitoba Award for Research in Cell and Molecular biology: Kailee Rutherford
- Children’s Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba Major Award for Research in Child Health: Saeid Maghsoudi
- Health Science Centre Foundation Award for Research in Neurobiology or Infection and Immunity: Romaniya Zayats
- Infectious Immunology Research Interest Group (IIRIG) Award in Immunology and Infectious Disease: Allison Balasko
- Manitoba Medical Service Foundation Award for Research Excellence:
- Alekhya Lavu
- Laila Aboulatta
- Kayla Kostal
- St Boniface Hospital Foundation Award for Research in Cardiovascular Biology: Akshi Malik
- Drewry Award: Romaniya Zayats
Additional awards
- Karol D. McNeill Research Technician Award: Lianyu Shan
- Graduate Student Excellence Award:
- Sikta Chattopadhyaya (PhD)
- Narges Khodabandehloo (MSc)
- Dr. Edwin Kroeger Mentorship award: Dr. Michael Czubryt
- Aubie Angel Young Investigator Award for Clinical Research: Jennifer Yamamoto
- Kenneth Hughes Young Investigator Award for Medical Research: Dr. Christopher Pascoe
- Outstanding Contribution to Research: Children’s Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba
Contact us
MSHRF planning team
A202 Chown Building, 753 Mcdermot Avenue
University of Manitoba (Bannatyne campus)
Winnipeg MB R3E 0T6
204-789-3402