Research & Ideas

Illustration of a billboard depicting a kidney bean with the text

Pssst, Wanna Buy a Kidney?

Most people recoil at the thought of selling human organs. But supplying the right information can change attitudes, a U of T study finds

Close-up photo of a teenged boy in a tank top holding a basketball

Team Spirit

Adolescents who play team sports are less likely to experience mental illness later in life, study finds

Illustration of two surgeons operating within a box being opened

A Cut Above

A “black box” for the operating room is leading to improved training for physicians and better knowledge of surgical errors

Photo of a doctor with a mobile phone.

Healthy City

How can we improve the health of some of the city's most vulnerable residents?

James Till (left) and Peter Zandstra celebrate the announcement of U of T's Medicine by Design initiative .

Regenerating the Body

U of T scientists will help usher in a new era of designing and creating cells, tissues and organs, thanks to historic $114-million federal grant

Lingo: Hyperpalatable

Some foods are engineered to be so tasty they're difficult to resist, says nutritional scientist Venket Rao

A U of T medical student examines a patient at the IMAGINE clinic.

Team Health

City residents without a health card get care from U of T undergrads

The Power of Three

The Ted Rogers Centre for Heart Research brings together three of Canada’s leading centres for cardiac care and research

Illustration of a person waving at a Canadian flag with a brick wall between them.

Barrier to Entry

Canada’s process for screening potential immigrants for HIV is opaque and unfair, says prof Laura Bisaillon

Photo of many types of sugar in piles.

Sugar Rush

Foods that seem healthy often aren’t, and sugar is the latest culprit

From left to right: Prof. Stan Zlotkin, Prof. Yu-Ling Cheng, Prof. Joseph Wong, Mimi Liu, Hayden Rodenkirchen, Kay Dyson Tam, Poornima Vinoo, Tameka Deare, Anandan Sundarmurthy (Prakti Manufacturing Director), and Dr. Mouhsine Serrar (Prakti Founder and CEO) at Prakti’s clean cook stove factory in Chennai, South India.

Healthier Cooking

U of T students are collaborating with an Indian social enterprise to reduce the health hazards of indoor smoke

Illustration of a woman in a force field protecting from oncoming blackness.

Superbugs

Drug-resistant infections are a man-made problem. Is it one we can solve?

Illustration of C Difficile.

The Superbug Hitlist

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), these are considered the most urgent or serious threats

Illustration of DNA.

Visual Aide

The biomedical communications program at U of T Mississauga helps students communicate complex ideas

Photo of hands holding a cannabis plant.

Herb Appeal

Scientists aim to isolate and harness marijuana’s pain-killing properties to create more effective medicines

Help in a Heartbeat

Toronto’s public defibrillators could save more lives if they were placed in better locations, U of T researchers find

Photo of a cup of orange lique that appears to be sinking into the table.

Iron Man

By fortifying two everyday foods, Prof. Levente Diosady aims to reduce malnutrition worldwide

Photo shows a hand holding a movile device with the Seamless app open.

Get Better, Sooner

Seamless Mobile Health aims to reduce hospital readmissions following surgery and save millions in medical costs

Prof. Matt Ratto holds a conventional prosthetic socket (left) and one his lab printed.

A Foot in Two Worlds

3-D printing is creating new opportunities – and raising intriguing questions – as digital and physical realms meld

Illustration of medical professionals attempting to capture disease in a book.

When Germs Get Tougher

An Internet-based surveillance system gives physicians the ability to track dangerous new strains of tuberculosis in real time

Rose Harrison in her Yonge and Eglinton apartment

Housing First

It turns out that a good way to help homeless people is to actually give them a home

Patrick Gunning. Illustration by Adam Cruft

Starving Cancer Cells

Many scientists work for years to find a cure for a single type of cancer - Patrick Gunning has his sights set on four

Samir Sinha. Illustration by Adam Cruft

Aging Well

Samir Sinha wants to help keep older Canadians healthy and independent for longer. As the population ages, the viability of our health-care system depends on it

Illustration of people under a tree in the light with an individual who is sad directly under the tree in opposite colours.

Peace of Mind

A U of T project aims to bring better mental health to a country where most illnesses go untreated

Image of a syringe.

Neighbourhood Health

People who live in less “walkable” communities, especially new Canadians, are more likely to develop diabetes

Frugal Fortification

A U of T nutritional scientist has developed a low-cost product to fight vitamin and mineral deficiency in developing countries

Illustration of human figures with pills above their heads.

Ingenious Medicine

Genetic testing may soon reveal what pharmaceutical drugs work best for you, with fewest side-effects

Personalized Medication

Genetic testing may reveal what pharmaceutical drugs work best for you, with the fewest side effects

Illustration by Pui Yan Fong

Perfect Harmony

A new U of T research centre will investigate the curative power of music

Dr. Marcelo Cypel and Dr. Shaf Keshavjee.

A Cut Above

U of T researchers have devised a way to refurbish donor lungs before they’re transplanted

Illustration of a computer screen window over a medical illustration of a body.

Seeing Disease

Researchers are developing better ways to detect serious illnesses before they become life-threatening – and while they’re still treatable

Safer Births

Equipping health workers in Kenya with smartphones could bring better care to pregnant women and their infants

Eggplants

Roadside Harvest

Toxic elements in most city-grown vegetables are at acceptable levels, according to a new study. But be careful of the eggplant!

Peer Pressure

A nursing prof is using social networks to help reduce the spread of HIV-AIDS in Ghana

Bev Bradley

Breath of Life

Bev Bradley is developing technology to give hospitals in low-income countries a more reliable supply of medical oxygen

Illustration of an elderly person's face in puzzle pieces.

Defeating Dementia

Mark Tanz’s $5-million gift will support research into Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases