OTTAWA, December 6, 2023 – This morning, Collège La Cité announced a major investment by an Ontario-based pharmaceutical company, which has chosen it for its expertise in advancing research into the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.
Motigenix Inc. is investing over $1.8 million to gain access to a College research laboratory for five years, and to acquire a microscope with exceptional capabilities – the only one of its kind in the Greater National Capital Region.
“Thanks to Motigenix’s support, future graduates of the Collège’s Specialized Biotechnology Baccalaureate program will be able to live an exceptional authentic experience, being the only college graduates in Canada to have the opportunity to familiarize themselves with this state-of-the-art equipment during their academic career,” said Lise Bourgeois, President and CEO of La Cité. “I’m very proud of this partnership and grateful to the pharmaceutical company.”
As for the new R&D laboratory, it will be used in collaboration with Motigenix and La Cité’s Technology Access Centre in Bio-Innovation (TAC-B). This research partnership came about naturally, thanks to the expertise of TAC-B’s research staff in cell biology and disease studies.
“With a focus on practical applications and impact, La Cité’s research projects not only contribute to the enrichment of academic knowledge but also drive real-world changes in various sectors. Their extensive collaboration with industry professionals ensures the relevancy and applicability of their research, further reinforcing La Cité’s standing as a leading research institution. We believe that our shared commitment to driving real-world changes in the pharmaceutical sector could potentially lead to significant advancements in the field,” declared Mohsen Amir, President and CEO of Motigenix.
The LSM 980 AiryScan confocal microscope from Zeiss is the equipment of choice for identifying new drugs. It enables the visualization of molecular mechanisms at the sub-cellular level in three dimensions, in real time and at high throughput. This equipment has been carefully selected for its versatility, as well as for the features of interest that make it a unique microscope on the market:
- high sensitivity for organelle visualization, enabling images to be obtained over long periods with little or no heat release;
- high resolution to examine multiple subcellular mechanisms in parallel in real time, thanks to five laser beams;
- Zeiss proprietary AI-based software for processing large quantities of acquired data.
To visit Collège La Cité’s Office of Research and Innovation website, go to: https://www.collegelacite.ca/bri
As the largest French-language College of Applied Arts and Technology in Ontario and outside of Quebec, La Cité puts the success of its students first and foremost, offering them more than 140 programs in facilities with leading-edge technology and a learning environment focused on practical, modern, forward-looking experiential learning practices. In addition to having its main campus in Ottawa, La Cité also has a Skilled Trades Institute in Orléans, a satellite campus in Toronto, in Hawkesbury and in Ottawa West.
Information :
Pascale Montminy
Director, Communications, Public and Government Relations
613 316-1377
pmontm@collegelacite.ca
www.collegelacite.ca