Shared Research Platforms

UBC Okanagan Shared Research Platforms

Learn more

Conducting research and obtaining external funding often requires access to advanced infrastructure. UBC researchers can access shared research platforms, which are offered through partnerships between the VPRI and various departments and faculties.

Shared research platform managers and staff provide expertise and specialist guidance to assist researchers in utilizing facilities and equipment to best meet their research needs.

UBC Vancouver Shared Platforms

Shared research platforms are facilities funded jointly by VPRI with faculties and departments for the purpose of offering specialized research services to UBC and the external research community.

 

Research in Greenhouses and Field Plots

Plant Care Services offers coordinated access and services to two research greenhouses and field locations.

One greenhouse is located on the main campus at West Mall and Stores Road. The second greenhouse is on South Campus, near the Botanical Garden’s nursery at 3929 Wesbrook Mall.

Field services will be available at the Totem station on West Mall and near the South Campus greenhouse.

Contact Taylor Scriber for initial help to work in greenhouses or field locations.

 

Research with Animals

The Animal Care and Use Program ensures humane animal care and researcher compliance to the mandatory guidelines of the Canadian Council on Animal Care. This university-wide program covers ethics approval, animal care and housing, breeding, veterinary care, facilities management, training and specialized procedures.

Contact Suzanne Richardson for ethical reviews.

View the Animal Care website resource for planning your research.

 

Computing Services for Big Data 

Advanced Research Computing (ARC) offers free services to help researchers with computational needs that standard computing infrastructure cannot handle. Services include consultation for project planning, experimental design, data analysis, grant proposals, and access to high performance computing and data management infrastructure. 

Initial contact information: arc.support@ubc.ca

Location: 
West Mall Annex 202, 
1933 West Mall, Vancouver, BC Canada V6T 1Z2

 

Sequencing and Bioinformatics

The Sequencing and Bioinformatics Consortium offers reagents and supplies, consultations, training and access to sequencing services (project planning, experimental design, sample and library preparation, sequencing and genotyping) and support in analyzing and understanding results. Next-Gen or high-throughput sequencing is executed using Illumina technology for genome sequencing and transcriptome profiling while Sanger sequencing is offered for small projects requiring long reads and genotyping for determining unique features of an individual’s DNA sequences.

Initial contact: Sunita Sinha

Location: Pharmaceutical Sciences Building, 
3124 – 2405 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z3

 

FINDER: Containment Level 3 facility

The Facility for Infectious Disease and Epidemic Research (FINDER) at UBC Vancouver: a shared research platform for Containment Level 3 scientific experiments.

Contact: Bintou Ahidjo

 

Upright Open MRI

The Shared Platform in Upright Open MRI Research is a full-service facility for translational MRI research.

Our Upright Open MRI scanner is different from conventional MRI scanners as it allows the body to be imaged upright, in weight-bearing, and in a wide range of postures.

We welcome researchers new to or experienced with MRI. Our team of experts are here to support clinician-researchers and other researchers new to MRI to enable them to undertake research with this unique scanner. 

Initial contact:  Amy Phillips

 

Pacific Centre for Isotopic and Geochemical Research (PCIGR) 

The Pacific Centre for Isotopic and Geochemical Research (PCIGR) is a  shared research platform dedicated to excellence and innovation in geochemistry, providing analytical services to the research community.  

PCIGR provides end-to-end service for your research needs in the fields of geologyoceanographyenvironmental sciencesbiologyengineering, and archaeology and is always interested in supporting research in new directions.

Initial contact information:
Director: Dominique Weis
Facility Manager: Corey Wall

 

UBC Bioimaging Facility

The UBC Bioimaging Facility provides microscopy access, training and service to researchers across and beyond UBC.

  • Optical microscope infrastructure for light/fluorescence, confocal, multi-photon, and live-cell imaging.
  • Electron microscopy infrastructure and advanced sample preparation including cryo-preparation for electron microscopy, routine SEM and TEM, Cryo-SEM, Cryo-TEM, TEM tomography, Correlative Light and Electron Microscopy (CLEM), and CryoFIB-SEM.
  • Training and technical support for users from diverse research disciplines from life sciences to material sciences.

Initial contact information:
Research Manager: Miki Fujita

  • General inquiries about VPRI shared platforms: Janice Andrade, Manager, Operations, Shared Research Platforms
  • Other inquiries on shared research facilities at UBC: Zamyla Chan, Manager, Shared Research Platforms (Strategy).
  • For an inventory of CFI-funded infrastructure available for use by researchers from UBC sites, other institutions, non-profits and industry, see the IPO's Infrastructure Database

First Nations land acknowledegement

We acknowledge that UBC’s two main campuses are situated within the ancestral and unceded territory of the Musqueam people, and in the traditional, ancestral, unceded territory of the Syilx Okanagan Nation and their peoples.



UBC Crest The official logo of the University of British Columbia. Urgent Message An exclamation mark in a speech bubble. Caret An arrowhead indicating direction. Arrow An arrow indicating direction. Arrow in Circle An arrow indicating direction. Arrow in Circle An arrow indicating direction. Chats Two speech clouds. Facebook The logo for the Facebook social media service. Information The letter 'i' in a circle. Instagram The logo for the Instagram social media service. External Link An arrow entering a square. Linkedin The logo for the LinkedIn social media service. Location Pin A map location pin. Mail An envelope. Menu Three horizontal lines indicating a menu. Minus A minus sign. Telephone An antique telephone. Plus A plus symbol indicating more or the ability to add. Search A magnifying glass. Twitter The logo for the Twitter social media service. Youtube The logo for the YouTube video sharing service.