Awards
New Awards : International Trainee Travel Award
The Canadian Connective Tissue Society (CCTS) will be launching the international trainee travel awards program to support participation of talented research trainees in international meetings or conferences in the field of connective tissue research.
CCTS will offer two international travel awards of amount $1000CAD each every year
Application Process begins 1 February 2024
Further information will be posted on this page close to the application start date and announcements will also be sent via email
Past Awards:
The Canadian Connective Tissue Society (CCTS) is pleased to announce the Life Time Achievements Awards (2018) for two exceptional scientists, mentors and visionaries:
S. Jeffrey Dixon PhD., D.D.S
Professor, Western University
Dr. Dixon studies of mineralized tissue biology are widely recognized nationally and internationally. He is known for his pioneering work on osteoclasts and the mechanisms underlying the resorption of bone. In 2015, Dixon was honored with a “Distinguished University Professorship”, Western University’s top award for faculty. Dr. Dixon’s research focuses on skeletal tissues in development, during mechanical stimulation and in diseases such as osteoporosis. He has published 143 peer-reviewed papers, many in high impact journals, including Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA, Journal of Cell Biology, Nature, Physiological Reviews, Biomaterials, Journal of Bone and Mineral Research and Journal of Biological Chemistry. Dr. Dixon was the first to use patch-clamp electrophysiological techniques to study osteoclasts. With collaborator Stephen Sims, he has maintained a leading role in the study of ion channels in osteoclasts.
Dr. Dixon also pioneered studies of osteoclast motility and chemotaxis. In collaborative work, he found that RANK ligand induces chemotaxis of epithelial tumor cells and osteoclasts, playing important roles in skeletal metastases (published in Nature, 2006). Together with industry partner Horiba-PTI, Dr. Dixon is now using state-of-the-art live-cell calcium imaging to reveal novel roles for subcellular Ca2+ in osteoclast migration and mechanotransduction.
Nucleotides – released in response to mechanical stimulation – are now known to regulate bone cell function and contribute to mechanotransduction. Dr. Dixon is credited with being the first to discover “A role for extracellular purines in bone biology”, when he showed that nucleotides interact with osteoblasts through two P2Y receptors (quote from preface of “Nucleotides and Regulation of Bone Cell Function” by authorities Geoff Burnstock and Tim Arnett, 2007, see http://www.crcnetbase.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1201/9781420005059.fmatt).
Dixon’s landmark 1992 publication initiated an area of research that is now pursued worldwide. In collaboration with Pfizer, Dixon characterized the novel skeletal phenotype of the mouse lacking the P2X7 nucleotide receptor. In a series of highly-cited publications, Dr. Dixon has gone on to dissect the pathways activated by this pleiotropic receptor. Roles for P2X7 are now emerging in many processes, including skeletal mechanotransduction. Evidence of Dr. Dixon’s leadership in this field includes invitations to speak at major international symposia.
Extracellular pH influences the mineralization and osteoclastic resorption of bone. Dr. Dixon discovered that acidification acts through the transcription factor NFAT to enhance osteoclastic resorption (published in PNAS, 2005). This discovery was selected by the Canadian Institutes of Health (CIHR) as one of the most notable of the decade in its publication “To Your Health: Celebrating 10 Years of Research Success” (www.cihr-irsc.gc.ca/e/41832.html).
Besides contributing to fundamental research in skeletal biology, Dr. Dixon has been active in translational studies. This is evidenced by 1) several patents, in collaboration with researchers from the Université de Sherbrooke, University of Toronto and McGill University; and 2) Dr. Dixon’s successful collaborations with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, including: Pfizer, Eli Lilly, Merck, Nobex Corporation, MedImmune, Alethia Biotherapeutics, and Gilead Sciences, attesting to national and international recognition of his expertise. In each of these cases, pharma and biotech were interested in developing new antiresorptive therapeutics and sought collaboration with Dr. Dixon because of his expertise in studying the mechanisms and control of osteoclastic resorption.
In terms of leadership, Dr. Dixon spearheaded the development of skeletal biology and musculoskeletal health as one of two research strengths within Western University. At the national level, Dr. Dixon is a past-president of the Canadian Association for Dental Research and was a founding member of the Canadian Arthritis Network (CAN), one of Canada’s Networks of Centres of Excellence. Dr. Dixon served from 2010-2016 and currently (2017-2018) as a member of the Advisory Board of the CIHR Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis. In this capacity, he tirelessly promotes musculoskeletal research; training and mentoring of the next generation of researchers; and increased collaboration among basic, clinical and health services researchers across Canada and internationally.
Dr. A. Robin Poole PhD., DSc
Professor Emeritus, McGill UniversityIn 1977, Dr. Robin Poole moved from the University of Cambridge, England to establish and become director of the Joint Diseases Laboratory, Shriners Hospital, McGill University. Appointed Professor in the Departments of Surgery and Microbiology/Immunology, he researched the molecular basis of skeletal development and joint damage in arthritis. His research led to the identification of new therapeutic targets and the development and commercialization of blood and urine biomarkers of skeletal growth and disease onset and activity in arthritis. He played a leading role in the NIAMS, National Institutes of Health/Industry OA Initiative that is leading to new ways of detecting and treating osteoarthritis. He was a co-founder and scientific director of the Canadian Arthritis Network, a National Center of Excellence, funded for its full term of 14 years by the Canadian government.
He has received numerous awards including the Holley Research Prize and Master, both awarded by the American College of Rheumatology; the Carol Nachman International Research Prize in Rheumatology; the Kappa Delta Award of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and Orthopaedic Research Society (ORS); President of Canadian Orthopaedic Research Society; Honorary Doctor of Science degree; Professor Emeritus, McGill University and the Lifetime Achievement Awards of the Osteoarthritis Research Society International and the International Cartilage Repair Society.
He has published 258 peer reviewed papers and 96 invited reviews and textbook chapters. He was co-founder and a Scientific Director of the Canadian Arthritis Network, a National Centre of Excellence. He remains involved in collaborative research programs, particularly in ongoing biomarker R&D, mentoring students and young scientists, peer review and, since its inception, chairs the International Academic Advisory Board of the Toronto Western Hospital, University of Toronto Arthritis Program.
In recent years, since “retiring” from the Shriners Hospital in 2005, he enjoys more time with his family, his hobbies of wildlife photography, birding and the cottage in Vermont. In giving back to the local community, he is actively involved in major wetland and environmental conservation and restoration projects as Chair, Cooper Marsh Conservators Inc. and as Board Secretary and Chair of the Research Advisory Council and Animal Care Committee of the St. Lawrence River Institute of Environmental Sciences, Cornwall, Ontario.