What the facility does
Human nutrition clinical studies
Areas of expertise
The Clinical Investigation Unit is a one-of-a-kind infrastructure in Canada used for clinical and epidemiological studies in nutrition and health. The unit has state-of-the-art medical, scientific and computer equipment for all steps of a human nutrition clinical study. The unit also has a sampling room, two anthropometry rooms, a metabolic kitchen, a dining room and eight interview or assessment rooms. The unit is one of the largest infrastructures of its kind in the country, meaning it can carry out several research projects at one time.
Research services
- Clinical study design (multicentered, double blind, randomized, parallel, or other),
- Preparation of test plans,
- Recruitment of participants,
- Clinical and biological monitoring,
- Site coordination for multicentered studies,
- Statistical support,
- Preparation of final reports and scientific articles,
- Regulatory affairs (ethical approval or submission to Health Canada)
Sectors of application
- Agriculture, animal science and food
- Healthcare and social services
- Life sciences, pharmaceuticals and medical equipment
Specialized labs and equipment
| Specialized lab | Equipment | Function |
|---|---|---|
| Clinical Investigation Unit | Dual Energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA) ,bone densitometer; GE Lunar Prodigy Advance | Measures bone mineral density (BMD) and body composition (body fatness and lean body mass) |
| Indirect calorimeter (MOXUS Modular Metabolic System), AEI Technologies | Measures energy spent when resting or during activity | |
| EndoPat 2000, Itamar Medical Ltd. and Rapid Cuff Inflator, Hokanson | Measures endothelium function | |
| Nutritional analysis software (NDSR, R24W) | Analysis of dietary intake (24-hour web recalls, food records), creation and nutritional analysis (recipes, menus, experimental diets) | |
| Web-based functional application nutrition platform (FANI) | Web platform used to collect nutritional study data from research tools and self-completed questionnaires. | |
Computer equipment: 20 computers | Available for digitally managing the questionnaires administered during clinical research projects | |
| Eight interview or/ assessment rooms | Eight Mac computers (one per room) | Includes a medical consultation room with an examining table and a family consultation room |
| Sampling room | Six laptops and six iPads | For volunteers to complete the questionnaires during blood sampling |
| Room with a total area of 167 m2 | Includes two anthropometry rooms, one short-stay room and a bone densitometry room | |
| Eight sampling chairs | ||
| Eight OMRON digital blood pressure monitors | ||
| Impedance scale (Tanita) | ||
| Defibrillator (Zoll Medical AED Plus) | ||
| Metabolic kitchen | Kitchen with an area of 109 m2 | Used to prepare food consumed by research volunteers during controlled or semi-controlled nutrition intervention studies |
| Dining room | Room separate from the metabolic kitchen with an area of 68 m2 and seats for 24 people | Used for controlled or semi-controlled nutrition intervention studies. Food is consumed by research volunteers on site to control dietary intake and compliance. |