Banting Discovery Foundation
Toronto, Ontario – Founded in 1925, the Banting Discovery Foundation is pleased to announce its 100th cohort of Discovery Award recipients. In addition to our returning partners, the Ontario Brain Institute and the Heaslip Foundation, we would also like to thank our new funding partners, namely the Canerector Foundation, and the Novo Nordisk Network for Healthy Populations at the University of Toronto.
A Banting Discovery Award confers prestige and credibility to attract more funds at the early stage in an academic research career.
Our 2025 winners are:
Jessalyn Holodinsky
University of Calgary; the Ontario Brain Institute – Banting Discovery Award
Jessalyn Holodinsky uses AI to discover why some people need to visit the hospital emergency department often, so that their healthcare needs can be addressed early without an emergency visit.
Jennifer Williams
Wilfrid Laurier University; the Ontario Brain Institute – Banting Discovery Award
Jennifer Williams studies how everyday activities such as exercise and diet result in hormonal changes and affect blood flow to a woman’s brain and heart, so that her lifestyle can be adjusted to prevent stroke and Alzheimer’s disease.
Sirui Zhou
McGill University; the Canerector Foundation – Banting Discovery Award
Sirui Zhou analyzes blood samples to uncover what causes a poorly understood medical condition called hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS), for better diagnosis and treatment.
Jessica Willi
University of Lethbridge; the Heaslip Foundation – Banting Discovery Award
Jessica Willi (University of Lethbridge; the Heaslip Foundation – Banting Discovery Award) investigates how a cellular component called the ribosome in bacterial cells contributes to antibiotic resistance, informing better treatments.
Erik Leif Lovblom
University of Toronto; the 100th Anniversary Discovery of Insulin Banting Award
Erik Leif Lovblom uses statistics and a real-time app to help doctors predict complications associated with each diabetes in each patient and make more informed, personalized decisions.
Patricia Comeau
Concordia University; the Banting Discovery Award
Patricia Comeau is developing a natural gel that can be applied directly to bone infections, with enhanced healing and antibacterial properties, potentially offering a safer, more effective alternative to traditional treatments for conditions like osteomyelitis.
Jullien Flynn
Université Laval; the Banting Discovery Award
Jullien Flynn studies why some cells make mistakes when duplicating and passing on their DNA during cell division, which can cause miscarriage in half of all pregnancies.
Teklab Gebregiworgis
Western University; the Banting Discovery Award
Teklab Gebregiworgis studies how a protein called small GTPase is regulated, how its malfunction can drive cancer, and how it can be targeted by new drugs.
Louis-Philippe Picard
Université de Sherbrooke; the Banting Discovery Award
Louis-Philippe Picard is researching how cellular proteins called G proteins control heart and brain functions, with the ultimate goal of finding new ways to treat conditions like heart failure, atrial fibrillation, and Parkinson’s disease.
Zahra Shakeri
University of Toronto; the Banting Discovery Award
Zahra Shakeri uses AI to predict medical complications after surgery in the airway, so that each patient receives customized healthcare.
About the Banting Discovery Foundation
Formerly named the Banting Research Foundation, the Banting Discovery Foundation is a Canadian charity that provides seed grants to budding biomedical researchers, many of whom have produced key findings that have transformed the practice of medicine and health care, reduced illness, and improved wellness.
In celebration of the foundation’s centenary, the Banting Centennial Alumni Award was established with generous support from past Discovery Award recipients. The first recipient will be announced in 2026.
About the Ontario Brain Institute
The Ontario Brain Institute is dedicated to advancing new knowledge, treatments, and technologies that improve the lives of people with brain disorders, and is committed to collaborative research approaches, patient engagement, the connection, and analysis of quality of neuroscience data, and the development of innovative tools and practices.
Media contact
Maurine Kwok
Executive Director, Banting Discovery Foundation
ed@bantingresearchfoundation.ca
Claudio DiCamillo
GRLLP, Communications Director
cdicamillo@grllp.com
