Latest news with #UniversityofAlberta
Global News
2 days ago
- Health
- Global News
Alberta health experts say wastewater testing may offer early detection of measles
Health experts embraced it as a valuable tool to help track the spread of COVID-19 during the pandemic. Now, those same experts say it may also help health officials get the jump on preventing measles outbreaks in places like Alberta, a province that now has the notorious reputation of having surpassed the entire United States for the number of lab-confirmed cases of the highly-infectious virus. 'I think surveillance is best when you have a number of different ways of following the disease and molecular testing of wastewater proved its worth during COVID,' said Alberta's former chief public health officer, Dr. James Talbot. 'It identifies when a virus has moved into new territory. It can be the earliest signal for that. It tells you whether the situation is getting better or worse, which is very important to know,' added Talbot. Story continues below advertisement 'And finally, when you're taking measures to control it, that kind of surveillance can tell you whether the measures are working or not.' 2:09 Data from wastewater helps ease Alberta's pandemic data problem Dr. Xiaoli Pang, a professor in the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology at the University of Alberta, has been testing wastewater from 12 treatment plants across Alberta, once a week, since April 1. 'We never can replace clinical testing, because we are not able to detect who is infected, how many people are infected — we are just, through the community, (doing) population-based monitoring,' said Pang. Get weekly health news Receive the latest medical news and health information delivered to you every Sunday. Sign up for weekly health newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Because the incubation period for measles can be up to three weeks — from exposure to the appearance of symptoms — Pang said the testing may be able to provide health officials with early detection of where outbreaks could occur, providing them with valuable information on where to focus their vaccination and education efforts. Story continues below advertisement The testing can also distinguish between the disease strain of measles and the strain used to produce the vaccine — which means it might also be useful to help determine how much of the population in a particular region has already been vaccinated. 'This disease is a predictable disease. If you apply a vaccine, you get protected, so that is important information for public health,' added Pang. One of the shortcomings of the wastewater testing is it likely does not accurately reflect the infection rate in babies or young children who may still use a diaper. According to the Alberta government, about a third of the people in the province infected with measles are under 5 years of age. But many health experts claim use of the existing system of clinical testing is likely also underestimating the size of the measles problem in Alberta. 'The surveillance system that's in place right now is likely to be undercounting the number of cases,' said Talbot, 'particularly in the summer, because there's so many opportunities during the summer for the measles virus to spread, as kids go to sports camps, Bible camps, family gatherings, summer camps and big events too, like the Calgary Stampede.' View image in full screen A special computerized device, installed over a modified manhole in Calgary, was used to help test for the Covid-19 virus during the pandemic. Global News Despite the promising results, however, Pang said the wastewater testing program is short on funding. Story continues below advertisement 'I'm only able to plan to monitor measles until end of this year,' said Pang. 'I believe this virus is (going to) continue to cause a huge problem and we may not be able to continue. 'So that is a challenge.' 2:05 COVID-19: What is wastewater testing, and how effective is it? Global News asked the Alberta government if it plans to use wastewater testing to help in the fight against measles. The Ministry of Primary and Preventative Health Services provided a written statement that said, 'public health officials are reviewing this data to determine its relevance during the current outbreak. However, because measles is a notifiable disease with clear, recognizable symptoms, the vast majority of cases are identified through routine public health surveillance.' The statement continued, 'At this stage, measles wastewater surveillance is considered an exploratory tool and is not anticipated to support earlier case detection, as public health already has a clear understanding of where cases are occurring and how the virus is spreading.' Story continues below advertisement Talbot, however, who has been highly critical of the province's efforts to prevent the spread of measles, believes wastewater testing could be another valuable tool for the province to use. 'You know, the provincial government is fond of saying that getting immunized is a personal decision, which of course it is,' said Talbot. 'But they never go on to make the second point, which is that although it's a personal decision, it has consequences for other people.'
4 days ago
- Health
Alberta wastewater unlocked key information about COVID-19. Could it help with measles too?
As Alberta's measles outbreaks grow, researchers are now watching the province's wastewater for the highly contagious virus and hoping to determine if the technology could eventually serve as an early detection tool. The magnitude of Alberta's outbreaks and the speed at which cases are climbing has sparked widespread concern. As of midday Tuesday, 1,323 cases (new window) had been confirmed since the outbreaks began in March. Piggybacking off weekly wastewater samples, collected through the provincial COVID-19 surveillance program, the team has designed a test that can identify both the wild type measles virus (indicating actual infection) and vaccine-related shedding in the wastewater. Wastewater surveillance was shown to be very useful globally — internationally — during COVID-19, said Dr. Bonita Lee, a co-lead with the pan-Alberta Network for Wastewater Monitoring, which includes researchers from both the University of Alberta and the University of Calgary. Samples are taken from 12 Alberta wastewater treatment plants sites each week and sent to the provincial lab for analysis. Once the testing for SARS-CoV-2 is complete, the researchers analyze the same samples for measles. Without any additional funding, the team began looking for the virus at the beginning of April, after the first cases were confirmed in Edmonton, according to Lee. They found measles virus signals in the water for that time period and they've since tracked provincial trends. Basically we have a lot of measles activity and it's increasing, said Lee, a professor of infectious diseases in the department of pediatrics at the University of Alberta. Scientists can't identify individual cases through this molecular testing. Instead they get a population-level view, she explained. Enlarge image (new window) Dr. Bonita Lee is a professor of infectious diseases in the department of pediatrics at the University of Alberta and a co-lead with the PAN Alberta Network for Wastewater Monitoring. Photo: Bonita Lee Alberta's official measles case count is widely believed, by doctors and scientists, to be an underestimate. And the provincial government's website (new window) acknowledges cases are likely going unreported and undetected in the hardest hit parts of the province. According to Lee, wastewater monitoring could be most helpful in areas where measles cases may be going undetected and public health officials want to better understand what's happening. It's never useful by itself. It will always be useful as a supplementary surveillance tool, she said. Early detection hopes Dr. Xiaoli Pang recently retired after working as a virologist in the provincial lab for 25 years and leading the wastewater surveillance program. Pang developed the initial SARS-CoV2 wastewater monitoring technology for the provincial lab and she designed the molecular test for measles as well. I believe measles is going to continue — probably getting worse and worse, she said, noting funding for wastewater monitoring has been dwindling since the peak of the pandemic. Our wastewater plays a very important role. So we really need to continue. The incubation period for measles can last up to two weeks, according to Pang, and this has sparked hopes that the technology could lead to earlier detection and provide information that could be used by health officials to take action. With SARS CoV2 monitoring, the team was able to identify peaks one to two weeks before actual case counts would rise, she said. They want to know if wastewater signals will work in the same way for measles. Enlarge image (new window) Dr. Xiaoli Pang is a professor in the department of laboratory medicine and pathology at the University of Alberta. She recently retired after working for 25 years as a virologist in the provincial lab and leading the provincial wastewater surveillanec program. Photo: University of Alberta More research is needed, she said, and it would require access to clinical case information data to determine the science behind how the wastewater signals correlate with actual confirmed case counts. We want to get clinical information … to compare the correlation. Are we really able to do earlier detection and provide useful information to public health [so they can] make some kind of decisions? said Pang, a professor in the department of laboratory medicine and pathology at the University of Alberta. For an effective monitoring program, more frequent sampling would be needed as well, according to the researchers. Alberta's wastewater surveillance program has been scaled back since the peak of the pandemic. Testing is done weekly rather than daily, she said, and they have to wait for access to the samples, which means real-time monitoring for measles is not possible. Measles is highly contagious and can lead to serious complications including pneumonia, brain inflammation, premature delivery and even death. The vast majority of Alberta's cases are among the unimmunized and more than 100 Albertans have been hospitalized due to the illness this year. The team has shared its early findings with provincial health officials. A spokesperson from the Alberta government confirmed it is aware of the research. Researchers from the University of Alberta have been exploring the use of wastewater surveillance for measles, an emailed statement said. Public health officials are reviewing this data to assess its relevance in the context of the current outbreak. In the long-term, Pang believes wastewater could play a key role in fighting new and emerging pathogens and even help identify the next pandemic. She hopes funding will be increased. Something may be new coming. If something really causes a huge problem in the near future, I think wastewater [will] play some kind of important role, she said. Wastewater we see as a really important complementary tool, especially for pandemic preparation. Jennifer Lee (new window) · CBC News · Reporter Jennifer Lee is a CBC News reporter based in Calgary. She worked at CBC Toronto, Saskatoon and Regina before landing in Calgary in 2002. If you have a health or human interest story to share, let her know.
CBC
4 days ago
- Health
- CBC
Alberta wastewater unlocked key information about COVID-19. Could it help with measles too?
Social Sharing As Alberta's measles outbreaks grow, researchers are now watching the province's wastewater for the highly contagious virus and hoping to determine if the technology could eventually serve as an early detection tool. The magnitude of Alberta's outbreaks and the speed at which cases are climbing has sparked widespread concern. As of midday Tuesday, 1,323 cases had been confirmed since the outbreaks began in March. Piggybacking off weekly wastewater samples, collected through the provincial COVID-19 surveillance program, the team has designed a test that can identify both the wild type measles virus (indicating actual infection) and vaccine-related shedding in the wastewater. "Wastewater surveillance was shown to be very useful globally — internationally — during COVID-19," said Dr. Bonita Lee, a co-lead with the pan-Alberta Network for Wastewater Monitoring, which includes researchers from both the University of Alberta and the University of Calgary. Samples are taken from 12 Alberta wastewater treatment plants sites each week and sent to the provincial lab for analysis. Once the testing for SARS-CoV-2 is complete, the researchers analyze the same samples for measles. Without any additional funding, the team began looking for the virus at the beginning of April, after the first cases were confirmed in Edmonton, according to Lee. They found measles virus signals in the water for that time period and they've since tracked provincial trends. "Basically we have a lot of measles activity and it's increasing," said Lee, a professor of infectious diseases in the department of pediatrics at the University of Alberta. Scientists can't identify individual cases through this molecular testing. Instead they get a population-level view, she explained. Alberta's official measles case count is widely believed, by doctors and scientists, to be an underestimate. And the provincial government's website acknowledges cases are likely going unreported and undetected in the hardest hit parts of the province. According to Lee, wastewater monitoring could be most helpful in areas where measles cases may be going undetected and public health officials want to better understand what's happening. "It's never useful by itself. It will always be useful as a supplementary surveillance tool," she said. Early detection hopes Dr. Xiaoli Pang recently retired after working as a virologist in the provincial lab for 25 years and leading the wastewater surveillance program. Pang developed the initial SARS-CoV2 wastewater monitoring technology for the provincial lab and she designed the molecular test for measles as well. "I believe measles is going to continue — probably getting worse and worse," she said, noting funding for wastewater monitoring has been dwindling since the peak of the pandemic," she said. "Our wastewater plays a very important role. So we really need to continue." The incubation period for measles can last up to two weeks, according to Pang, and this has sparked hopes that the technology could lead to earlier detection and provide information that could be used by health officials to take action. With SARS CoV2 monitoring, the team was able to identify peaks one to two weeks before actual case counts would rise, she said. They want to know if wastewater signals will work in the same way for measles. More research is needed, she said, and it would require access to clinical case information data to determine the science behind how the wastewater signals correlate with actual confirmed case counts. "We want to get clinical information … to compare the correlation. Are we really able to do earlier detection and provide useful information to public health [so they can] make some kind of decisions?" said Pang, a professor in the department of laboratory medicine and pathology at the University of Alberta. For an effective monitoring program, more frequent sampling would be needed as well, according to the researchers. Alberta's wastewater surveillance program has been scaled back since the peak of the pandemic. Testing is done weekly rather than daily, she said, and they have to wait for access to the samples, which means real-time monitoring for measles is not possible. Measles is highly contagious and can lead to serious complications including pneumonia, brain inflammation, premature delivery and even death. The vast majority of Alberta's cases are among the unimmunized and more than 100 Albertans have been hospitalized due to the illness this year. The team has shared its early findings with provincial health officials. A spokesperson from the Alberta government confirmed it is aware of the research. "Researchers from the University of Alberta have been exploring the use of wastewater surveillance for measles," an emailed statement said. "Public health officials are reviewing this data to assess its relevance in the context of the current outbreak." In the long-term, Pang believes wastewater could play a key role in fighting new and emerging pathogens and even help identify the next pandemic. She hopes funding will be increased. "Something may be new coming. If something really causes a huge problem in the near future, I think wastewater [will] play some kind of important role," she said.
Global News
09-07-2025
- General
- Global News
‘Everyone's neighbour is a magpie in Edmonton': Magpies' special place in Alberta's capital
Nita Jalkanen says she checks on the avian neighbours that fly into her Edmonton backyard to drink from her bird bath nearly every day with her dog Ariel. 'I talk to them. I say, 'Good morning or good afternoon, Mr. Magpie' and they feel safe so there's no squawking,' said the 59-year-old in an interview. 'They'll come and approach (Ariel) and play. They'll chase each other around the tree … like they are playing tag. 'They've obviously formed a friendship with my dog and with me.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "They've obviously formed a friendship with my dog and with me." She said despite many locals being divided on their opinions of magpies, Jalkanen said the ones that visit her from their nest sitting on a tree down the boulevard brighten up her days. 'They make me happy because they're so happy,' she said. Story continues below advertisement Black-billed magpies can be seen walking, soaring and chirping in nearly every neighbourhood in Edmonton. The bird is seen in murals around town and locals sometimes wear magpie costumes for Halloween. Elly Knight, an avian ecologist with the Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute, says that's why it makes sense the city declared the conspicuous, clever and chatty corvidae with striking black, blue, green and white stripes its official bird this May. 'Everyone's neighbour is a magpie in Edmonton,' said Knight, also a professor of biological science at the University of Alberta. Nature Alberta says more than 40,000 people cast their vote to choose the city's official bird. '(Magpies) won 16,018 votes in total, meaning nearly 40 per cent of Edmonton-area residents who voted chose this bird to represent their city,' it said in a post on social media. Knight said magpies aren't her first choice of bird species to represent the city. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'I find magpies a little bit brash relative to the average Edmontonian,' she said. 'They're so noisy. They are also, as corvids, sometimes a little bit mean.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "They're so noisy. They are also, as corvids, sometimes a little bit mean." Knight said they are often embroiled in turf wars with their sister species, the crow. 'They will attack each other's nests and attack each other's babies. They will also eat baby squirrels. And it's that element that I know of Edmonton is not as representative.' Story continues below advertisement Knight said their loud chirping also what makes them stand out, sometimes becoming a nuisance to locals. The high-pitched tweets are often of teen magpies looking for attention. 'They've got their full feathers but they're still kind of idiots. And so they are following their parents around basically going, 'Mom, mom, mom,' asking for food. They're learning how to be magpies in the world,' Knight said. Their low-pitched chirp is often magpies warning their relatives of a nearby predator. 'Magpies really don't like outdoor cats because they're a threat. Other than that, they don't have a lot of natural predators in the city. And so they're not really afraid of anything.' Their population has also grown in urban areas in recent decades as humans also migrate to Edmonton, Knight said. 'Part of why they're so strongly associated with urban and suburban areas is they're eating garbage,' she said, adding they also eat worms and berries. But their recognition does also make sense because magpies are more Albertan than people might think, she said. 'It's a bird Edmonton strongly identifies with,' she said. 'They're plucky, they're tenacious, they're smart. They're resilient. They're very family oriented. They stand up for each other,' she said. Story continues below advertisement She said they are monogamous creatures with a low divorce rate and elder offspring often take care of their newborn siblings. Although most magpies only live a couple of years and can produce up to nine babies, Knight added that magpies can live for 20 years in captivity. Unlike other birds, she said, magpies also tend to live in the same nest for years at a time. 'The male and the female will come back to the same location every year, which is unusual in birds to reuse nests.' They also renovate their homes, bringing in new sticks and twigs to maintain them. Some magpie nests have been found with domes above them. Magpies are also not scared of the winter seasons, Knight said, similar to the Albertans who live in the province's north. 'We don't have a lot of bird species that stick it out here year-round and I think people identify with that resilience.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We don't have a lot of bird species that stick it out here year-round and I think people identify with that resilience." It's tough to say whether Edmonton is 'magpie capital' as some have called the city, Knight said. There are other places in Western Canada and in western American states with large magpie populations. Jalkanen said magpies were the first things she noticed when she moved to Alberta nearly four decades ago. Story continues below advertisement 'When I saw my first magpie here in Edmonton, I said, 'Oh, what a beautiful bird.' And the person I was with said, 'We don't like those.' I still disagree with that. They're a beautiful bird, and they're given a really hard time for no real reason,' she said. 'It just makes sense to treat them nicely and respectfully. And they will do the same to you.'
Hamilton Spectator
09-07-2025
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Glenda Pard, Herman Many Guns vie for open seat on Piikani Nation council
Piikani Nation has released the final list of candidates for its byelection, with two community members vying to fill a vacant seat on council. Herman Many Guns and Glenda Pard were both confirmed after a nomination meeting held June 26 at the community hall in Brocket. Many Guns was nominated by Waylon Yellowhorn and seconded by Trudy Crow Eagle, while Pard was nominated by Katiedel Pard and seconded by Mary Faye Small Legs. The byelection will be held July 22 to fill the seat left vacant after the resignation of Coun. Martin Iron Shirt took effect Dec. 31, 2024. The upcoming vote gives eligible members a chance to elect one councillor to help shape the direction of the First Nation through the remainder of the term. Both candidates spoke to Shootin' the Breeze about their decision to run and their hopes for the future of Piikani Nation. Many Guns emphasized the importance of accountability and unity, pointing to the need for transparency, vision and collective responsibility in council leadership. 'When you run for election, you're there to serve your people,' he said. 'The most important thing is to do things honestly, truthfully, and be transparent.' He spoke about the need to support education and youth, and to develop a stronger local economy. 'You know what I see out there? We don't even have an economy,' Many Guns said. 'We better support our educated people, learn to utilize them, because they're getting pulled away from corporations.' He further talked about uniting the people of the Piikani. 'We've been involved in the colonial system, and it just completely divided everybody in our community,' Many Guns said. '[We need to] pull everything back together and try to be working together with everybody.' Pard (Blackfoot name: Misamohkotoktsipitaaki) brings a background in advocacy and education to her candidacy, having studied Native law and Indigenous studies at the University of Alberta and the University of Lethbridge. 'I've been advocating for our grassroots people for a long time,' she said. 'I feel the time is in essence right now … I could make a difference.' She said there is an urgent need for Piikani Nation to reassert traditional governance and law. 'We need to create our own constitutional law, and that's natural law,' she said. 'My main objective for our youth and our babies is to establish something for them so that they're not left behind.' For Pard, addressing the impacts of hard drugs like fentanyl is an immediate priority. 'It affects the whole community, and that's where healing needs to take place,' she said. 'We need to really focus on the true healing of our youth and the ones that were affected by drugs and alcohol.' Voting will take place July 22 from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Piikani Nation Community Hall. Eligible voters must be age 21 or older on election day, as per the Piikani Nation election bylaw. Voting eligibility can be confirmed with the nation membership manager, Sonia Provost. No campaigning is permitted at the polling station or any nation-owned entities. The use of recording devices is also strictly prohibited. Voting will be conducted manually, with tabulation by hand count. For more information, contact Yvonne Provost, chief electoral officer, at . Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
