Canada is represented in JPIAMR by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) through the Institute of Infection and Immunity (III) and the Initiative Management and Institute Support Branch (IMIS).
As the initiating country and a major funder for JPIAMR, CIHR III staff has a place on the Management Board as well as Call Steering Group and has provided input to the call text as well as the generation of an MOU and design of the application and peer review processes. CIHR has previous experience of collaboration on other JPI and ERA-NET programs.
CIHR has made substantial investments in discovery research focused on antibiotic resistance and III has supported several targeted initiatives in the areas of drug development, alternative therapies, combination approaches and infection control. Canada’s interest in JPIAMR stems from a desire to combine the resources, infrastructures, and expertise of many countries to provide a value-added, collaborative approach that will fast track the development of effective solutions to antimicrobial resistance.
Canada, through CIHR-III, has also lead the development a JPIAMR Virtual Research Institute (JPIAMR-VRI), which will provide a platform to increase coordination, improve visibility of the AMR researcher base and facilitate knowledge exchange and capacity development across the globe, covering the full One Health spectrum.
CIHR-III also represents Canada on the Transatlantic Taskforce on Antimicrobial Resistance (TATFAR), which was created in 2009 to address the urgent threat of antimicrobial resistance. Collaboration across government agencies from Canada, the European Union, Norway, the United Kingdom and the United States enhances synergy and communication, leading to strengthened domestic and global efforts.
CIHR-III is one of the Canadian representatives on the Global AMR Research and Development (R&D) Hub. This hub is aimed at maximizing the impact of existing and new initiatives in antimicrobial basic and clinical research as well as product development. The Global AMR R&D Hub connects funders from around the world to facilitate information exchange on funding streams, promote high-level alignment of funding, and mobilize additional resources for push and pull incentives.
CIHR is intending to participate in the 17th JPIAMR Transnational Call within the ERA-NET JPIAMR-ACTION entitled “Interventions Moving forward to Promote Action to counteract the spread and transmission of bacterial and fungal resistance and to improve treatments for fungal infections” pending internal approvals. The call is set to launch in January 2024.
CIHR invested $1,2M over two years to support 4 research projects evaluating domestic and international population-level interventions to reduce inappropriate antimicrobial use and prevent the spread of resistant pathogens in humans, animals and the environment.
National AMR research program and activities
National AMR Research Calls
- AMR Point of Care Diagnostics Phase II 2018 – supports the development, evaluation, or implementation of point-of-care diagnostic tools.
- Network for Global Governance Research on Infectious Diseases 2019
- Evaluation of population-level interventions to reduce inappropriate antimicrobial use and prevent the spread of resistant pathogens
International AMR Research Calls
- JPIAMR Transnational call 2023 – Development of innovative strategies, tools, technologies, and methods for diagnostics and surveillance of antimicrobial resistance
- JPIAMR Transnational call 2022 – Disrupting drug Resistance Using Innovative Design
Activities on AMR at national level
The development of the Pan-Canadian Action Plan on AMR is completed and was released in June 2023, through a task force involving public health agencies which was established in 2022. CIHR will be supporting the Research and Innovation pillar of the pan-Canadian Action Plan on AMR through the development of a National One Health AMR Research Strategy. CIHR will also support the leadership pillar, primarily though supporting low-and middle-income countries by advancing equitable access, stewardship and IPC initiatives as well as generating improved data/evidence on AMR/AMU and strengthening surveillance systems and data standards.
Through open and strategic funding over the last five years (2017-2022), CIHR has invested over $133M CAD in AMR research to address different aspects of this global health issue, including the discovery and design of new antimicrobials, target identification and alternative therapeutics diagnostics, surveillance, and stewardship to strengthen AMR research.
National action plans
- Pan-Canadian Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance (2023)
- Tackling Antimicrobial Resistance and Antimicrobial Use: A Pan-Canadian Framework for Action (2017)
- Federal Action Plan on AMR and Use in Canada (2015)
- Antimicrobial Resistance and Use in Canada: A Federal Framework for Action (2014)
Management Board representatives
- Charu Kaushic, CIHR Institute of Infection and Immunity
- Deborah Khursigara, Canadian Institutes of Health Research
