Past Research Project Topics

Antibodies provide all vertebrate species with an essential means of protection against infectious pathogens. The repertoire of specific antibodies available to the individual is in the billions and so a major challenge in Immunology has been to clarify the molecular mechanisms by which these antibody repertoires are generated. In mammals, genetic recombinational mechanisms that are by now well understood represent the major mechanism for generating antibody diversity and so it was a great surprise to find that in some species, both mammalian and avian, a distinct process of somatic gene conversion has evolved to generate antibody diversity. Given the similarities and differences between these recombinational and gene conversional mechanisms, the question of how these distinct mechanisms might have evolved represents an important unresolved issue in Immunology. The paper will explore these different mechanisms, discuss the distinct advantages of each and explore the evolutionary pathways by which these mechanisms have developed.

An effective immune response against pathogens requires the generation of antigen-specific receptors on both B cells and T cells. B cell receptors are secreted as antibodies that neutralize pathogens, while T cell receptors are used by T cells determine whether the cells are infected. Generation of these receptors requires recombination of DNA, a finding that led to the awarding of a Nobel Prize to Susumu Tonegawa. The student will write a review article that summarizes the contents of 20 review articles on this topic that were written for the Encyclopedia of Immunobiology.

The student will review the literature on hormonal changes in HIV+ individuals receiving combination anti-retroviral therapy. Sections will focus on changes in males, females, and pregnancy and how these relate to the development of adverse outcomes.

It has been called “the social vaccine of the 21st century”.

Parliaments around the world are looking at it, as are international aid organizations, as are Silicon Valley entrepreneurs. Ontario was a world leader here. The government in its March 2016 budget announced that it would develop a basic income pilot, which launched in 2017 and terminated in 2019.

In this Ontario became one of three countries in the world (along with Finland and The Netherlands) with actual activities in this area. Other Canadian provinces are looking at it. Quebec tabled a proposal in 2017. The PEI legislature passed a unanimous resolution on it. The BC budget in March 2018 allocated $4M to explore the feasibility of a BI program. What many don’t know is that Canada did groundbreaking work in the 1970s in a joint federal-provincial project in Dauphin, Manitoba. It attracted international attention.

The pandemic has refocused the world’s attention in this area. It has been given a recent boost when Spain announced on May 23, 2020 its intent to launch a basic income program.

The student in this course will choose an aspect of basic income to study, with the aim of publishing a paper that will advance our understanding of this crucial subject.

The health status of indigenous peoples worldwide is an issue of concern. Canada has an especially challenging issue in this regard owing to its geography. This course will look at the issue on a comparative basis, i.e., what other countries are doing and the possible lessons for Canada. The Scandinavian countries have some very innovative initiatives with their Sami people, New Zealand with the Māori, and Alaska with its Nuka System of care. Some of these, the Nuka System in particular, with its emphasis on relationship and ‘customer-owners’ have lessons not only for indigenous health but for the entire country. The student will survey initiatives such as these and develop a paper with recommendations.

The student will be conducting a project looking at issues arising for democratic theory and justice out of the rise of cryptocurrencies. We will discuss the implications of digital money for economic policy as well as the role that currency plays in civic identity, contracts, and trust.

This project looks at how courts evaluate a suspect’s privacy interest in an item or piece of information, such that the evidence should not be used at trial. Generally, courts treat various categories as worthy of privacy protection—e.g., backpacks, cars, mobile phones. Courts also (try to) categorize sources of information this way – e.g., text messages, bank records. Sometimes, however, courts instead ask if a particular item (a text message, a credit card receipt) has features that endow it with a privacy interest. This project will seek to understand why courts depart from the categorical approach, what problems result when this happens, and how that practice can be curbed.