Inside the Montreal lab preparing Canada for the next pandemic
Polytechnique Montréal is leading a federal initiative called 'Ramp Up' to improve Canada's biomanufacturing capabilities and pandemic preparedness. The lab focuses on vaccine development and training to ensure the country is better equipped for future health crises.
Why it matters
Strengthening domestic biomanufacturing is a critical component of national security and public health strategy in a post-COVID world.
Six years after the spread of COVID-19 caught the world by surprise, the Polytechnique Montréal lab is spearheading efforts to prepare Canada against future pandemics. (Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press)
Photo: (Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press)
Erika Morris (new window) · The Canadian Press
In a biomedicine laboratory at Polytechnique Montréal, animal protein grows in a bubbling orange solution as researchers in white lab coats take samples with large syringes.
Neatly-labelled glass bottles filled with clear liquid line the shelves next to computer monitors, where the scientists examine the antibodies produced by the cells.
In a room down the hall, a large cryogenic freezer is filled with tubes containing samples of proteins and cells that can be used to develop vaccines and medicines.
Six years after the spread of COVID-19 caught the world by surprise, the Polytechnique lab is spearheading efforts to prepare Canada against future pandemics.
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