Symposium on the Conenose

Earlier this month, Dr Gary Chiang chaired a symposium on the biology of blood-sucking conenoses, vectors of Chagas Disease at the 7th International Congress of Comparative Physiology and Biochemistry. The quadrennial event took place Aug 12-16 in Salvadore, Bahia, Brazil.

Speakers were:

• K.G. Davey, York University, Toronto, ON, Canada.


• I. Orchard, University of Toronto, Mississauga, ON, Canada.


• E.S. Garcia and Dr. P. Azambuja, Departamento de Bioquimica e Biologia; Molecular, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz-Fiocruz, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.


• Erwin Huebner, University of Manitoba, Canada. (pictured above)


• Claudio R. Lazzari, Institut de Recherche sur la Biologie de l'Insecte, Faculté des Sciences et Techniques, Université François Rabelais, France.

The conenose, or Kissing Bug, is the principal vector of the parasite that causes Chagas' disease, which affects millions in South America. Chagas' disease, which more frequently attacks children, involves fever and damage to the spleen and nervous system, as well as to the liver and the heart muscles. It is sometimes fatal.

Alumni News - Heidi Renkema

Heidi Renkema (Redeemer 2005), completed a joint MSc degree in land resource science and international development at the University of Guelph. Her thesis "Thallium Accumulation by Durum Wheat and Spring Canola: The Roles of Cation Competition, Uptake Kinetics, and Transpiration" was co-supervised by Dr. Berkelaar. She is currently in a one-year internship at ECHO (Educational Concerns for Hunger Organization) in North Fort Myers Florida. ECHO is a Christian ogranization with a mission to equip and support people doing agricultural development overseas.

Alumni News - Kyle Vander Linden

Kyle Vander Linden, who graduated from Redeemer in 2005 with a major in environmental studies as well as a major in history, is currently pursuing a master's degree in environmental planning at the University of Waterloo. As part of his studies, he had the opportunity to do research on a green roof at Waterloo City Hall, focusing on storm water quantity and quality. Last month, Kyle began working for Roof Greening Systems. In particular, he researches stormwater quantity, thermal insulation properties, soil quality, weight issues and optimizing plant growth in extreme conditions. Kyle notes that Roof Greening Systems is one of the first companies in Canada to pre-grow native vegetation mats to be placed on green roofs.