Experimental bacteriology Unit

The CRB-IPM uses state-of-the-art equipment such as the Microflex Bruker MALDI-TOF (Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption Ionisation – Time of Flight) mass spectrometer and a flow cytometer (cell culture collections to come), as well as its skills in strain typing and bioinformatics to guarantee the identity and characteristics of the strains in the collection.

The Unit is in charge of:

  • Measuring the impact of malaria control measures and epidemiological changes on transmission and the reservoir.
  • Studying of Host-Parasite interactions during Plasmodium vivax infections – one of the parasites responsible for malaria in Madagascar.
  • the development of serological diagnostic tests that can be easily used in Basic Health Centers and allow rapid diagnosis of pathologies such as Leptospirosis and Cysticercosis/Neurocysticercosis.
  • Studying the prevalence of parasitoses associated with diarrhea and malnutrition in children in Madagascar.
  • Capacity building in immunology to improve the use and mastery of the main immunological techniques necessary for the development of research projects against infectious diseases.

The VITEK MS is an automated system that uses MALDI-TOF (matrix-associated LASER desorption and ionization, time of flight) mass spectrometry; Developed in 1980 by Karas & Hillenkamp (Germany) and Tanaka et al (Japan) analysis technique allowing the detection and identification of molecules by measuring their “time of flight” (proportional to their mass and their charge) First device marketed in 1991.

In Central Africa, Cameroon and particularly the “ Centre Pasteur du Cameroun” is the only laboratory to have a VITEK MS since 2019.

Third generation ONT Sequencer.

MinIon – Genomic Surveillance Platform

Pathogens characterization: Sars-CoV-2, Rift and Mpox.

An Illumina’s Iseq100 will be available soon.

The building’s technological flagship is its level 3 biosafety laboratory designed to perform experimental infections of insects or vertebrates in order to study their role as vector and/or reservoir and to understand the interactions between hosts and pathogenic, particularly for arboviruses.

With a total surface area of 100 m2, composed of five rooms as well as its own laundry, the laboratory is notably equipped with several microbiological safety stations as well as all the prescribed and necessary equipment.

The MAGPIX Luminex Technology is available at the Virology Laboratory

The LoopampTM MTBC assay (Eiken Chemical Company Ltd, Tokyo, Japan) is a rapid molecular diagnostic that uses the loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) technique for the detection of tuberculosis (TB). This assay is commonly known as TB-LAMP. In 2016, based on a systematic review and meta-analysis of data from 20 studies conducted in 17 countries, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended the use of TB-LAMP as a replacement for sputum smear microscopy.

TB-LAMP’s minimal infrastructure requirements and simple instrumentation make it an attractive option for laboratories at the peripheral level in low-and middle-income countries, as well as for active case-finding activities that result in significant numbers of samples that can be batch tested using the HumaLoop T instrument (up to 70 samples per 8-hour shift). The price of $6.00 per sample when batching optimally means TB-LAMP is currently the only WHO-recommended rapid molecular diagnostic that meets the target price established by WHO for a replacement test for microscopy.

Illumina, Nanopore technologies are available.

The Computational System Biology Laboratory (CSBL) provides comprehensive bioinformatics support, assisting researchers with their computational data analysis needs. Offering expert consultation, CSBL has a broad research scope, capable of analyzing data from fields as varied as neuroscience to infectious diseases. With specialized knowledge in transcriptomics, the laboratory can provide in-depth analysis of single-cell RNA-seq and spatial RNA-seq datasets. Furthermore, CSBL employs machine learning methods for integrative omics analysis, ensuring a holistic understanding of complex biological datasets.

The Platform for the Characterization of Biological and Synthetic Nanovehicles (VBS) has applications primarily in active-ingredient delivery. Unique in Quebec, it works in close synergy with industry.
VBS provides a wide range of services to meet the needs of the university research community and healthcare, research, and biotechnology companies. Apart from the technical services it offers, VBS provides high-level training in bioimaging.

Located in Laval on the INRS – Armand-Frappier Santé Biotechnologie campus, the Electron Microscopy Platform (EM) has been offering you a range of high-quality imaging services since 1963. The platform makes it possible to carry out research using transmission and scanning electron microscopy technologies to meet the needs of universities, scientific communities and health, research or biotechnology industries. In addition to the technical services offered, the EMP allows the training of a high-level succession in life imaging.