Grant: Planning and Dissemination Grant - Institute Community Support

Research using the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster as a model organism has been crucial to our understanding of the genetic basis of many different cellular, molecular, and physiological processes. Four Nobel Prizes have been awarded to researchers who made important contributions using flies as a model. Since the first meeting held over thirty years ago, the Canadian Drosophila Research Conference (or CanFly) has brought together members of the Canadian Drosophila research community every two years to discuss their research and exchange ideas. With the rapid growth of the community during this period, there are now more than 80 labs spread from coast to coast across Canada that use Drosophila models to study a wide variety of human health-relevant research topics. This community has historically made strong contributions with many high-impact publications in biological and biomedical research journals. A lack of critical mass in some institutions leaves many Drosophila researchers and trainees with limited possibilities for the sort of local interactions that are important for successful cutting-edge research. The CanFly meetings thus serve a critical role for the Drosophila research community in Canada, facilitating the exchange of ideas, networking, and fostering collaborations among the groups. With its focus on trainee research and a guiding philosophy that stresses inclusiveness and integration of new trainees and those returning from abroad, the CanFly2025 meeting being planned in Montreal in the summer of 2025 fits well with the mandates of the CIHR Institute of Genetics.