Healthy Starts | Lab, Project & Program Websites

We can provide species identification for members of the Burkholderia cepacia complex of bacteria. We also can provide strain typing information, as well as identifications for other species which grow on Burkholderia cepacia selective agar and for which the preliminary identification might be equivocal: such as B. gladioli, Ralstonia species, Pandoraea species and others. Most of our work is for cystic fibrosis clinics, however we are very happy to provide assistance to anyone else requiring identification of these bacteria.

Our lab is passionate about a variety of topics relating to human nutrition.

We employ various approaches to determine how DNA methylation and chromatin protein modifications are regulated, how they interact with the underlying genetic sequence to affect which genes are expressed in which cells, and how changes to these epigenetic marks can affect human development and lifelong health trajectories. Together, the research in our lab bridges the molecular mechanisms of epigenetic regulation and the social and environmental determinants of human health to develop a comprehensive understanding of early life.

We are systematically dissecting the molecular mechanisms of the neonatal and infant response to infection or vaccination. Based on that knowledge, we are identifying immune modulators that help protect newborns and infants.

The Lavoie Lab studies the development of the human immune system and its impacts on the health of babies. Dr. Pascal Lavoie is a neonatologist with dual training in medicine and research (MD/PhD).

Nutrition and metabolism research at BC Children's spans the full spectrum from explanation of biological action, to pre-clinical and clinical studies, to population health.

The OPSiP study (short for "Oral Probiotic Supplementation in Pregnancy to Reduce Group B Streptococcus Colonization") is a randomized controlled trial (RCT) that is recruiting 450 participants in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Pocket Doc for Pneumonia is a low-cost smartphone tool that uses a light-weight sensor and a data-driven app to assess a child’s vital signs and overall condition, deliver an accurate diagnosis and recommend inexpensive, life-saving treatments such as antibiotics, oxygen and fluids.

The Turvey Lab uses precision health to determine the cellular, molecular and genetic abnormalities responsible for immunological disease.

The Vaccine Evaluation Center (VEC) is an academic center of excellence involved in vaccine and immunization research.