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The Armand-Frappier Santé Biotechnologie Research Centre, is part of the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS). It is an important centre for research, training and technology transfer (see Medical Education).

George Cornell Ebers, neurologist, researcher (born 24 July 1946 in Budapest, Hungary). Ebers has published extensively with more than 300 publications in peer-reviewed journals, three books, 25 book chapters, and multiple editorials to his name. He has contributed significant medical research into multiple sclerosis (MS). A former professor at Western University and the University of Oxford, Ebers was awarded the John Dystel Prize for Multiple Sclerosis Research.

The Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada is a charitable voluntary agency. Founded in 1948, the organization funds medical research, promotes awareness and offers services to individuals and families who live with multiple sclerosis (MS). Canada has one of the highest rates of MS in the world. As of 2020, approximately 90,000 Canadians live with the disease.

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease that impacts the body’s central nervous system. As of September 2020 an estimated 2.8 million people are living with MS worldwide. Canada has one of the highest rates of MS in the world with over 90,000 Canadians living with the disease. There is no known cure for MS, but treatments can help address symptoms and slow the progression of the disease.

The Canada Gairdner Awards were established in 1959 by the Gairdner Foundation to recognize medical research that contributes to the advancement of human health. Leading biomedical and global health researchers from around the world are honoured by seven awards every year. The Canada Gairdner Awards are among the world’s foremost honours in the field of medicine. Numerous awardees are also laureates of the Nobel Prize.

Pablum is a multi-grain processed cereal developed as a nutritious, precooked digestible food for infants. The cereal was first developed at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto in 1930 by pediatric doctors Theodore Drake and Frederick Tisdall under the supervision of physician-in-chief Alan Brown. Pablum became commercially available in 1934 through an agreement with the Mead Johnson & Company and was used as a brand name through the early 21st century.

John Charles Fields, mathematician (born 14 May 1863 in Hamilton, ON; died 9 August 1932 in Toronto). Fields was an advocate for scholarly and scientific research. He was responsible for the 1924 International Mathematical Congress in Toronto. He also established the Fields Medal, which is awarded every four years at the International Congress of Mathematicians. (See also Mathematics; Mathematics and Society).

Charles Herbert Best, physiologist, co-discoverer of insulin (born 27 Feb 1899 in West Pembroke, Maine; died 31 Marh 1978 in Toronto, ON). Best is perhaps best known for his role in the discovery of insulin, a treatment for diabetes mellitus. He was posthumously inducted into Canada’s Walk of Fame in 2021.

Annette Herscovics, FRSC, biochemist (born 29 June 1938 in Paris, France; died 6 September 2008 in Montreal, QC). Annette Herscovics is best known for her pioneering work on glycoproteins. She discovered where and how in our cells these modifications occur and their relevance to health and disease. Her discoveries are a key development in the field of glycobiology.

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In 1950, one of Canada’s greatest medical innovations was developed at the University of Toronto’s Banting Institute. Cardiac surgeon, Dr. Wilfred Bigelow and research fellow, Dr. John Carter Callaghan were trying to understand how hypothermia (see Cold-Weather Injuries) could slow the beating of an animal’s heart before surgery. They were also looking for a way to stimulate the heart when it faltered as it cooled. This largely unknown area of research could have tremendous applications for humans. The doctors partnered with Dr. John A. Hopps from the National Research Council of Canada, who created a portable artificial external pacemaker. It was designed to send electric pulses to the heart, which caused the heart to contract and pump blood to the body. The device was successfully tested on a dog in 1950. This landmark discovery paved the way for the use of implantable pacemakers in humans.

John Carter Callaghan, OC, AOE, FRCSC, heart surgeon (born 1 October 1923 in Hamilton, ON; died 6 April 2004 in Orillia, ON). Callaghan is perhaps best known as the surgeon who performed Canada’s first successful open-heart surgery in 1956. Callaghan also co-developed a portable artificial external cardiac pacemaker in 1950. This revolutionary discovery laid the groundwork for the development and use of implantable external pacemakers in humans.

Sylvia Olga Fedoruk, OC, physicist, educator, 17th lieutenant-governor of Saskatchewan (1988-94) (born 5 May 1927 in Canora, SK; died 26 September 2012 in Saskatoon). Fedoruk was a medical physicist who helped advance cancer treatment (see Physics; Contemporary Medicine).

Joey Angnatok, hunter, fisherman, social entrepreneur, businessman, community leader (born May 1976 in Nain, Newfoundland) has worked with university researchers and his fellow Inuit for more than 30 years collecting climate and other environmental data. At the end of each fishing season, he turns his fishing boat into a marine research vessel.

James Bertram Collip, biochemist, educator, co-discoverer of insulin (born 20 November 1892 in Belleville, ON; died 19 June 1965 in London, ON). Collip is perhaps best recognized for his work into endocrinological research. He was one of the first to isolate the parathyroid hormone. He also contributed to the discovery of insulin in 1922.

Louis Siminovitch, CC, OC, OOnt, FRS, FRSC, molecular biologist (born 1 May 1920 in Montreal, QC; died 6 April 2021 in Toronto, ON). Siminovitch served on various national and provincial research and educational organizations. As a founder of the field, his research centered on somatic cell genetics and on the molecular biology of mammalian cells. (See also Genetics.) He has had a major influence on the careers of numerous Canadian molecular biologists, including James Till and Ernest McCulloch with their groundbreaking stem cell research.