| News Releases | Special Bulletins | Daily News Archives | Feature Archives |

| The View from Trent | Trent Magazine | Focus Trent | Build 2000 |

Calendar of Events

Search the Site

Trent at Centre of DNA Cluster Project

"DNA is the first information technology -- and the most important information technology." Dr. Bradley D. White has a knack for summing up his reasons for a career focused on the tiny complex building blocks of life: DNA. It's likely he's noticed an increase lately in the number of individuals, from all walks of life, interested in his research. Recent developments have put Professor White's work and his laboratory at Trent University at the centre of the hopes and dreams of not just researchers, but an entire community. And he couldn't be more pleased.

The "DNA Cluster Project," as it has become known, is an initiative to bring together a multi-tiered partnership to make the greater Peterborough area a centre for excellence in DNA research and its limitless public and commercial applications. At the heart of the concept are Prof. White's Wildlife DNA Laboratory, which he moved to Trent University in 1997, and the Natural Resources DNA Profiling and Forensic Centre (NRDPFC), an internationally-renowned centre jointly run by Trent University and the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR). The NRDPFC was formed after Prof. White was awarded the Senior Canada Research Chair in Conservation Genetics and Biodiversity. Prof. White is known as the first researcher to use DNA markers for assessing the parentage of certain species in the wild. His group recently identified a new species of wolf in Canada.

But it’s the broader focus of his work at Trent University – and the partnerships that have sprung from it – that have spurred interest from industry, community groups and all levels of government. Prof. White is developing a versatile robotic system to provide large scale, inexpensive DNA profiling. The technology is already being used to conduct wildlife management programs through the NRDPFC. One key project is tracking the spread of rabies through raccoon populations across U.S. and Canadian provincial borders. Other studies underway include the health and biology of the St. Lawrence estuary beluga whale, sex identification of ungulates, population identification, and the identification of mixed game animal tissue with domestic animal tissue in products such as sausages. Trent University is also using its technology and resources to work with Queen’s University to locate the genes responsible for autism.

As Prof. White says, "It’s hard for me to envision any future technology that won’t have underpinnings in DNA technology. I’m trying to get people to think in terms of what could be in 50 to 100 years." It seems this message has been successful in getting across, if the partners lined up to join in this regional strategy are any indication. Among them are Fleming College, the MNR, Police Services, Maxxam Analytics, a company with considerable commercial experience in DNA Profiling and forensic testing and LABInterlink, known for the top automation technologies it provides to hospitals and medical laboratories. Helping pull it all together is the Greater Peterborough Economic Development Corporation (GPAEDC).

The next step for the DNA Cluster Project strategy hinges on securing funding for a co-ordinator to support the approach and a new, multi-faceted research and development centre to house public and private sector laboratories and associated operations at Trent University - with DNA profiling, automation, molecular diagnostics, geomatics and forensics at the centre.

Big concepts and ambitious goals, but as usual, Prof. White boils it down to one salient point: "DNA will be the driving technology in the economy of the future - and Trent University will be a part of it."

More about Dr. Bradley D. White: Bradley White obtained his BSc in Botany at Nottingham University in 1967. He emigrated to Canada and then obtained his PhD at McMaster University working on the molecular biology of extremely halophilic bacteria. He has published over 170 papers and trained over 30 graduate students and post-doctoral fellows during his research career.

Back to Trent's Daily News