Glycomics Institute of Alberta (GIA): glycoscience research across health, agriculture, and technology
The Glycomics Institute of Alberta (GIA), a University of Alberta institute launched in 2022, fosters glycoscience discovery and its applications in health, agriculture, and technology.
Overview
GIA is a provincial platform, launched as a University of Alberta institute in 2022, that fosters glycoscience discovery through education, collaboration, and communication. It builds on the University of Alberta's long-standing strength in carbohydrate research, tracing back to Dr. Raymond Lemieux and continuing through the Alberta Ingenuity Centre for Carbohydrate Science, the Alberta Glycomics Centre, and the national GlycoNet network.
Research focus areas
- Investigating abnormal glycans to gain insight into major diseases, informing diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment
- Applications spanning cancer, vaccine technology, immune response, brain health, and gut colonization
- Extending glycan knowledge into agriculture and technology
Membership & engagement
GIA connects researchers at the University of Alberta and beyond, working alongside GlycoNet, and supports education and outreach initiatives. It welcomes contributions to advance glycoscience.
About University of Alberta
The University of Alberta is a large, comprehensive public research university in Edmonton with multiple campuses and a strong applied research culture. Industry engages through co-located labs and pilot-scale facilities, as well as established co-op and internship programs that place talent with partners year-round. Integration with Alberta’s province-wide hospital system supports clinical research and accelerates translation. Companies also benefit from proximity to regional industry clusters and collaboration hubs on and near campus for joint R&D and prototyping. Supported by NSERC, CIHR, SSHRC, and Canada Foundation for Innovation funding—plus provincial and industry support—the tech transfer office manages IP, licensing, and startup formation with streamlined sponsored-research agreements.
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