About The Committee

The CSN Scientific Committee was set up to continue the work of a prior ad hoc committee arising from the original Horizons 2000 Conference with the main goal of advancing the cause of kidney research in Canada.  Currently, the CSN Scientific Committee is chaired by Dr. Norman Rosenblum assisted by Dr. Neesh Pannu (Vice Chair).
Visit the full Scientific Committee membership list.

The Scientific Committee's mandate includes helping promote development of capacity for kidney research in Canada, including recruitment and retention of scientists, development and support of infrastructure, training, communications, liaison with academic centers and other national agencies, including Kidney Foundation of Canada and the Canadian Society for Transplantation.

During the past 2 years the Committee has focused its efforts on developing a national research strategy to enable the Canadian nephrology community to respond to emerging opportunities including the CIHR Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research.

The Committee undertook an analysis of gaps in Nephrology research with great potential for development in the present Canadian nephrology research environment and for collaboration across stakeholders including funding agencies and provincial renal agencies using previous analyses performed via Horizons Conferences and broad consultation with stakeholders in the renal community.

This resulted in a decision to focus strategic efforts on ‘pre-dialysis chronic kidney disease’ as a theme. A workshop aimed on further developing a supporting rationale for this theme and major research objectives was organized in partnership with the Kidney Foundation of Canada and the CIHR Institute of Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes and held in in November, 2013. The proceedings of the workshop provide a basis for the work of a national steering committee established in May, 2014. The National Steering Committee is currently engaged in developing a national research strategy for pre-dialysis chronic kidney disease as a means to respond to expected requests for applications from the CIHR.

The National Steering Committee organized a meeting in November 2014 including 52 participants from across Canada. In this planning meeting, participants developed the framework, identified the necessary infrastructure to establish a national patient-oriented research network in chronic kidney disease, and finalized consensus on the highest priority questions that best addressed the questions previously identified by patients, caregivers, clinicians and health care decision makers. The Canadian Society of Nephrology (CSN) and the Kidney Foundation of Canada (KFOC) provided financial support for this necessary strategic planning meeting. A workshop report is available for download below.

Download Workshop Report [PDF]

In June 2015, another workshop was held in Toronto which brought together key partners in kidney disease, in addition to patients, policy-makers and researchers in order to further advance planning for the Canadians seeking Solutions and innovation to overcome Chronic Kidney Disease (Can-SOLVE CKD) Network.

Download June 2015 Workshop Report

Scientific Committee Survey (Nov, 2015)

Committee Members

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Dr. Michael
Walsh

Chair, Scientific Committee

Dr. Michael Walsh
Chair, Scientific Committee

Dr. Walsh obtained his MD in 2001, completed internal medicine in 2005, Nephrology training in 2006 and a MSc in Community Health Science in 2008 all at the University of Calgary. He then trained in lupus and vasculitis in Cambridge, UK as KRESCENT fellow until 2009, followed by a PhD in Health Research Methods at McMaster University until 2014 under a RCT Mentorship Award from CIHR. He is now an Associate Professor of Medicine (Nephrology) and Health Research Methods, Evidence & Impact at McMaster University, medical director of the Glomerulonephritis Clinic and the director of the Clinical Nephrology Research Group at St. Joseph’s Healthcare, and Scientist at the Population Health Research Institute where he leads research investigating treatments for patients with kidney diseases with particular interests in glomerular diseases, vasculitis, symptoms of kidney failure, and cardiovascular complications of kidney diseases.

Dr. Walsh's Bio
SURI_Rita

Dr. Rita
Suri

Past-Chair, Scientific Committee

Dr. Rita Suri
Past-Chair, Scientific Committee

Dr. Suri is a nephrologist, Associate Professor and Director of the Division of Nephrology at McGill University. She is actively engaged in clinical practice, teaching, and research, and is nationally recognized for her leadership in research, network development, and teaching. Dr. Suri is a CIHR-funded clinical researcher with >90 publications and 5 book chapters. Her research is focused on improving outcomes for patients receiving hemodialysis. She has served on multiple Guideline Committees for the CSN, KDOQI, and KDIGO. She is a Chair of the CIHR Randomized Controlled Trials panel, a member of the CIHR Advisory Board for the Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health, and founder and past chair of the Canadian Nephrology Trials Network. Dr. Suri is an active member in the Canadian Society of Nephrology, having served on the Board of Directors, participated in several program planning initiatives and committees for the Society, and delivered many lectures at the CSN pre-course. She is honoured to now serve as the CSN Scientific Committee Chair.

Dr. Suri's Bio
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Dr. Rahul
Chanchlani

Dr. Rahul Chanchlani

Dr. Rahul Chanchlani is an Associate Professor in the Division of Nephrology, Department of Pediatrics at McMaster Children’s Hospital. After finishing his initial medical training from India, he completed a clinical fellowship in pediatric nephrology at the Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, and also pursued a Master's in Clinical Epidemiology and Clinician Investigator Program from the University of Toronto. He is an associate faculty in the Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence, and Impact (HEI), and cross-appointed as a Scientist at ICES and at the Population Health Research Institute (PHRI), McMaster University.

Dr. Chanchlani is one of the 14 participants selected from 12 countries by the International Society of Nephrology for the Emerging Leader’s Program, which helps early-career nephrologists to become qualified for a leadership role in the advancement of global kidney care. In addition to clinical and teaching commitments, Dr. Chanchlani has an established research program that aims to promote interdisciplinary collaborations among peers and experts to address key knowledge gaps in common kidney diseases such as acute kidney injury, kidney transplantation, hypertension and nephrotic syndrome among children. As principal investigator, his research program is supported by grants from various local, provincial and national organizations including CIHR and Kidney Foundation of Canada. He has so far published >55 peer-reviewed papers and has supervised learners at all levels of training.

Dr. Chanchlani's Bio
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Dr. David
Clark

Dr. David Clark

Dr. David Clark is a nephrologist and Assistant Professor of Medicine at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He received his MD at the University of Ottawa and completed Internal Medicine and Nephrology residency training at Dalhousie University as well as a clinical fellowship in Home Dialysis and MSc of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics at Western University. He is the current Medical Lead for the Halifax Home Dialysis & Percutaneous Peritoneal Dialysis Catheter Insertion Programs, as well as the Program Director for the Home Dialysis Fellowship Training Program. He conducts clinical research within his interest areas of home dialysis & interventional nephrology and is an active member of the Kidney Research Institute of Nova Scotia. He is also a member of the CSN Scientific and Clinical Practice Guidelines Committees. 

Dr. Clark's Bio
David Collister

Dr. David
Collister

Dr. David Collister

Dr. David Collister completed his MD at the University of Manitoba, Internal Medicine Residency at the University of Alberta, Nephrology fellowship at the University of Manitoba and PhD in Health Research Methodology at McMaster University. His is clinician-scientist and Assistant Professor in the Division of Nephrology, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry at the University of Alberta. His research focuses on symptom management in patients with kidney disease and in particular, randomized controlled trials of treatments to alleviate uremic symptoms and prospective cohort studies in chronic kidney disease and dialysis.

Dr. Collister's Bio
Maoliosa Donald

Dr. Maoliosa
Donald

Dr. Maoliosa Donald

Dr. Maoliosa (Mo) Donald is an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Cumming School of Medicine (Division of Nephrology) at the University of Calgary and is an Implementation Consultant with The Center for Implementation. She is a health services researcher and physical therapist. Dr. Donald’s research interests include interventions that support person-centered care, and innovations that address the evidence-practice gap for patients with early chronic kidney disease.

Dr. Donald's Bio
Louis Girard

Dr. Louis
Girard

Dr. Louis Girard

Dr. Louis Girard joined the Division of Nephrology at the University of Calgary in July of 2010. He is a Nephrologist and Clinical Associate Professor. He is the medical director of the Glomerulonephritis Clinic and Apheresis. Additionally, he has developed clinics to look after patients with ADPKD, Tuberous Sclerosis complex and inherited disorders of the complement cascade. His work in developing theses clinics was recognized with the Dr. John Conly Innovation award in 2018. Dr. Girard is a member of the Canadian ADPKD recommendations committee and the CanVASC ANCA vasculitis guideline committee. He is heavily involved in randomized clinical trials. He has several peer-reviewed publications and most recently, was honored with a publication in the New England Journal of Medicine. Dr. Girard has a strong commitment to education and has won numerous awards for his teaching contributions at all levels of medical training..

Dr Girard's BIO
Lakshman Gunaratnam

Dr. Lakshman
Gunaratnam

Dr. Lakshman Gunaratnam

Dr. Lakshman Gunaratnam is an Associate Professor of Medicine and clinician-scientist at Western University (Associate Prof.). Lakshman completed his undergraduate and graduate studies at the University of Toronto in immunology and then went on to attend medical school and complete residency training in internal medicine at the University of Ottawa. Dr. Gunaratnam completed research fellowships at the University of Ottawa  (Dr. Stephen Lee) and Harvard Medical School (Dr. Joseph V. Bonventre) in cancer biology and acute kidney injury, respectively. After completing his clinical fellowship in nephrology at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in 2009, he did additional training in renal transplantation with Dr. Anil Chandraker at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. He was promoted to Instructor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School and later served as an associate physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital prior to moving to London, Ontario.

Dr. Gunaratnam is currently the Dr. Robert Zhang Chair in Translational Transplant Research at Western and Medical Director of the kidney transplant program at London Health Sciences Centre. His clinical and research interests are in renal transplant-related ischemia-reperfusion injury and repair, kidney transplantation and renal cell carcinoma. His basic research laboratory is funded by independent peer-reviewed grants from Canadian Institutes for Health Research, Kidney Foundation of Canada and the Canadian Foundation for Innovation.

Dr. Gunaratnam has held many leadership positions including Director of the Board of the CSN, member of the Kidney-Pancreas Working Group for Trillium Gift of Life Network, member of Canadian Blood Services Kidney Transplant Action Committee, Chair of the OMA section on Nephrology and Co-Chair of the Scientific Meetings Committee of the CST. He has also served on the peer-review committees of many funding agencies including the CIHR, Kidney Foundation of Canada, Medical Research Council of the UK, Canadian Foundation for Innovation and NSERC.

Dr. Gunaratnam's Bio
Gregory-Hundemer

Dr. Gregory
Hundemer

Dr. Gregory Hundemer

Dr. Hundemer is an Assistant Professor of Medicine with a cross appointment at the School of Epidemiology and Public Health at the University of Ottawa, an Associate Scientist at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, and a Staff Nephrologist at the Ottawa Hospital. He received his MD from Vanderbilt University (2007). Following a 4 year stint as a flight surgeon in the US Air Force, he completed his internship and residency at Massachusetts General Hospital (2015) followed by nephrology fellowship at the joint Brigham and Women’s Hospital/Massachusetts General Hospital program (2018). He was recruited to Ottawa in 2018. His clinical and research interests include secondary hypertension and chronic kidney disease. He is a current KRESCENT New Investigator awardee, and his research has been funded by the CIHR, NIH, and Kidney Foundation of Canada.

Dr. Hundemer's Bio
Konvalinka_Ana

Dr. Ana
Konvalinka

Dr. Ana Konvalinka

Dr. Ana Konvalinka was recruited in 2015, as a Transplant Nephrologist and a Clinician Scientist at Toronto General Hospital, University Health Network. She is an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto. Dr. Konvalinka completed medical studies at the University of Ottawa in 2003. She then completed internal medicine and nephrology training in Toronto in 2008. She subsequently embarked on a PhD in basic science at the University of Toronto. Her PhD thesis addressed the effect of angiotensin II on the proteome of primary human proximal tubular cells, and the relevance of this effect in vivo. Following completion of her PhD in 2013, she went on to complete the clinical kidney transplant fellowship at Toronto General Hospital. Her main clinical and research interests are in antibody-mediated rejection and kidney allograft fibrosis. She utilizes systems biology approaches and proteomics to enhance the understanding of the mechanisms, derive novel markers and to repurpose drugs for treatment of kidney disease. Dr. Konvalinka is the director of the Multi-Organ Transplant biobank for kidney, pancreas and liver transplant programs. She is also the co-director of the Drug Discovery research group. She has received international research awards (the Human Proteome Project (2016), the American Society of Transplantation Faculty-Development Research Grant (2016) and the Advances in Organ Transplantation Award (2015)) and national research awards (Canadian Society of Transplantation Research Excellence Award (2020), Canadian Society of Nephrology New Investigator Lectureship (2017) and the KRESCENT New Investigator Award (2016)).

Dr. Konvalinka's Bio
Ngan Lam, Nephrology

Dr. Ngan
Lam

Dr Ngan Lam 

Dr. Ngan Lam is a clinician-scientist and transplant nephrologist at the University of Calgary where her research focuses on the health outcomes of living kidney donors and kidney transplant recipients.

Dr Lam's BIO
LAMARCHE_Caroline

Dr. Caroline
Lamarche

Dr. Caroline Lamarche

Dr Lamarche is a nephrologist and clinician-scientist at the Centre de Recherche de l’Hôpital Maisonneuve-Rosemont in Montreal. After her nephrology training at the Université de Montréal (2015), she completed a Master’s thesis degree on the use of adoptive immunotherapy to prevent and treat BK polyomavirus in kidney transplant recipients. She then pursued with a post-doctoral fellowship in Megan Levings’ lab at the University of British Columbia on the use of HLA-A2 chimeric antigen receptors (CAR) regulatory T cells (Tregs) to increase transplant tolerance. She developed an expertise in transplant immunology, Tregs and adoptive immunotherapies. She opened her research lab in January 2021 and is interested in the use of immunotherapy in nephrology.

DR. Lamarche's Bio
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Dr. Daniel
Muruve

Dr. Daniel Muruve

Daniel A. Muruve is a Professor of Medicine in the Department of Medicine at the University of Calgary. He is a member of the Immunology Research Group in the Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases. Dr. Muruve is also a practicing nephrologist in the Calgary zone of Alberta Health Services. He is the former Section Chief for Nephrology in the Department of Medicine, University of Calgary and Medical Director of the Alberta Kidney Care - South for Alberta Health Services.

Dr. Muruve graduated with an MD degree from the University of Manitoba in 1989. He did his postgraduate medical training at numerous Universities including a Renal Fellowship at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre, Harvard University in Boston, MA, USA. Following the completion of his medical training, he completed a Research Fellowship in Immunology at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre, Harvard Institutes of Medicine.

Dr. Muruve’s research expertise is in the areas of innate immunity, inflammation and kidney disease. Currently, his research program examines the biology of renal inflammation in acute and chronic kidney diseases with a specific focus on the NLR (Nod-like receptor) family of proteins and inflammasomes. The cellular and molecular biology of the renal epithelium and the role of the immune system in kidney injury and fibrosis are significant interests in the laboratory. Dr. Muruve also leads a precision medicine and translational research program for kidney and glomerular diseases. Dr. Muruve is the Director of the Biobank for the Molecular Classification of Kidney Disease that provides a direct link to clinical patient samples as well as a clinicopathologic database to enable translational research in biomarkers, molecular epidemiology and genetics in kidney disease.

Dr Muruve's Bio
Shaifali Sandal

Dr. Shaifali
Sandal

Dr. Shaifali Sandal

Shaifali Sandal, MD, is an Associate Professor, a transplant nephrologist, and an FRQS and CIHR-funded clinician investigator at the McGill University Health Center.  She is also an Investigator at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre and with the Canadian Donation and Transplantation Research Program. Her clinical and research interest are to improve access to living donor kidney transplantation and re-transplantation using health system approaches. She has over 40 peer-reviewed publications and has received external peer-reviewed funding support from the Canadian Institute of Health Research, the American Society of Transplantation, the Kidney Foundation of Canada, the Canadian Society of Transplantation and the Canadian Donation and Transplant Research Program to support this work.  

 

 

Dr. Sandal's Bio
Tenneenkore

Dr. Karthik
Tennankore

Dr. Karthik Tennankore

Dr. Karthik Tennankore received his MD at the University of Western Ontario, and completed Internal Medicine and Nephrology at Dalhousie University. He went on to complete a two year clinical fellowship in home dialysis at the Toronto General Hospital (University of Toronto), and concurrently obtained a Master of Science in Clinical Epidemiology through Harvard University.

He joined the Dalhousie Division of Nephrology in 2013 and is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine and the QEII Foundation Endowed Chair in Transplantation Research. His research interests are aimed at improving the health of patients with chronic kidney disease, dialysis patients and kidney transplant recipients. In addition, he is heavily involved in both investigator-led and industry clinical trials, he is the current executive committee co-chair and scientific operations committee co-lead for the Canadian Nephrology Trials Network

Dr. Tennankore's Bio

BACKGROUND

Research relevant to individuals with kidney and urological diseases is found in every biomedical research-intensive University in Canada, as well as many of the hospital-based research institutes. For the first time, Canadian researchers from all geographic regions and disciplines gathered at the Horizons 2000 and Horizons 2015 Consensus Strategic Planning Conference along with major stakeholders such as the Kidney Foundation of Canada, as a prelude to the creation of the Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR).

The Horizons 2000 conference identified a critical goal to be achieved over the next 5-10 years: Building research capacity in the fields of kidneys/urological disease/transplantation through enhanced communication, collaboration and funding. Since the CIHR has not provided a specific mandate for targeted research in kidney/urological disease and transplantation, the Kidney Foundation of Canada Research Council recommended that a National Research Coalition be struck (co-chaired by Drs. Patrick Parfrey and David Ludwin) to identify the next steps in advancing the recommendations of the Horizons 2000 Conference. The members of this coalition represent leadership in all areas of kidney disease and transplantation research. A task force was struck to identify potential initiatives, and a final report was submitted to the Kidney Foundation in June 2002. This report identified new opportunities for kidney research in Canada, as well as strategies and tactics to increase research capacity.

The National Research Coalition Task Force recommended that enhanced communication, collaboration and funding for kidney research across Canada requires an organizational structure led by scientific investigators. The Canadian Society of Nephrology (CSN) represents the most appropriate organization to perform this task. In 2002, the CSN created an Ad Hoc Scientific Committee to focus on strengthening kidney research capacity in Canada. In 2005, the CSN reaffirmed the need for the Scientific committee, reconvened the committee and created a standing committee of the CSN.

Between 2002-2005, the committee focused its work on the design, development, and implementation of the Kidney Research Scientist Core Education and National Training Program (Krescent), a unique collaboration between the CSN, KFOC, CIHR, industry, and other stakeholders, which will enhance research training capacity over the next 6 years.

In November 2007, members of the renal research community assembled for a strategic planning initiative called Horizons 2015: Enhancing Excellence and Capacity in Kidney Research, with the mandate to define both the strategic directions and mechanisms for increasing capacity in renal research over the next 8 to 15 years. This meeting was a co-ordinated effort, resulting from collaborations between the Kidney Foundation of Canada, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (Institute of Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes), the Canadian Society of Nephrology, and the Canadian Society of Transplantation. After consideration of the Horizons 2015 Consultation Report, the Kidney Research Recommendation Group (KRG) has been charged with moving forward the recommendations and priorities identified by the Horizons 2015 meeting. The CSN Scientific Committee will work with the KRG to provide input into this process.

STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES

The CSN is the national voice of academic and clinical nephrology in Canada, and the Society has increasingly supported research training and education. The CSN created a standing Scientific Committee, to continue the work of the Ad Hoc Committee to advance the cause of kidney research in Canada, with the following longterm objectives:

  1. The CSN Scientific Committee will continue to promote kidney research in Canada by focusing on the following issues:

    A. Human Resource issues: retention and recruitment of scientists, attention to gender-specific recruitment issues, and appropriate salary support mechanisms to improve infrastructure funding for local research initiatives.

    B. Advocate for the development of infrastructure to support multicentre clinical research in Canada.

    C. Improved availability and funding of research training positions.

    D. Partnerships with industry and other stakeholders, including the Kidney Foundation, to increase kidney research funding and capacity.

    E. Improving communications amongst kidney researchers in Canada.

    F. Development of a website for Canadian Kidney Research containing information about research interests and available technologies, funding opportunities, research positions, highlights etc…

    G. Establishing liaisons and representation, as appropriate, within other academic societies in Canada, which involve kidney research as part of their mandates (eg. CST, CSPN, CHS), in order to showcase kidney research and foster multi-disciplinary clinical trials.

  2. The CSN Scientific Committee will endeavor to increase the attractiveness of the CSN to both basic and clinical research scientists, and to provide a forum for researchers to discuss policy issues.

EARLY DELIVERABLES

Given the current membership of the CSN Scientific committee and considering the areas of need identified within the Horizons 2000 report, the CSN Scientific committee has identified several short-term goals, with relevant action plans designed to enable fulfillment of these goals:

Short-Term ObjectiveAction Plan
Enhance and promote clinical research within Nephrology
  1. Identify the current barriers to clinical research within Nephrology in Canada
  2. Assess whether the current funding structure for clinical research enables the "best" clinical research to be performed
  3. Complete an environmental scan of what is being done in other countries (US, UK, Australia) to promote kidney research
  4. Recommend methods to overcome these barriers
Increase the CSN's role as an advocate for funding for Nephrology research
  1. Meet with the KFOC to determine current strategy to increase research dollars and determine whether the CSN can assist
  2. Investigate the feasibility of supporting patient advocacy strategies to increase kidney research funding
Development of infrastructure to support multi-centre clinical trials in Canada
  1. Encourage kidney researchers to take part in CIHR Clinical Research Initiative Team Grant
  2. Determine whether the CSN can facilitate the set up of such infrastructure
Determine if there are alternate ways in which the CSN can support clinical research
  1. Complete an environmental scan to determine what other National Specialist Societies are doing to promote/vet clinical research.

REPORTING STRUCTURE

The Scientific Committee of the CSN will report to the President and the Executive of the CSN. The committee will hold meetings by teleconferences and prepare a report for submission to the President and the Executive of the CSN. This report will also be communicated to the Kidney Foundation of Canada and the Chair of the Kidney Foundation Research Council.

MEMBERSHIP ON THE CSN SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE

The proposed members of this committee will represent a diversity of basic and clinical kidney research interests across Canada. Members of the committee (and Chairperson[s]) will be selected by the President of the CSN.

TERMS OF MEMBERS/CHAIR

Members will normally serve on this committee for a period not exceeding 3 years. Initial members may be asked to serve shorter terms (1-2 yrs), in order to provide continuity to the committee membership. The Chairperson will serve for a period of 3 years, and for no more than 2 consecutive terms.

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