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Caitlin Miron has found something huge: A week ago she was honoured for discovering a chemical compound with the ability to prevent cancer growth, but it could also have significant applications in halting the spread of HIV, too. In an exclusive interview with Yahoo Canada News, the Ontario PhD student revealed why her discovery could be more far-reaching — for everything from HIV to Zika — than originally reported.

“There is also a quadruplex forming sequence in an area of HIV that’s responsible for infection of a human host,” Caitlin Miron, the PhD student at Queen’s University, Department of Chemistry who identified the compound said to Yahoo Canada News.

Miron’s research starts with the study of DNA. Most people have likely seen the double helix model of DNA but in our cells, to access the information in that double helix, the DNA has to become temporarily single-stranded.

Miron uses a necklace as an analogy for how single-stranded DNA functions. The strand of DNA is the chain of the necklace and then beads, or cellular machinery that reads and processes DNA to make proteins, are able to move freely along that chain.

“They can keep doing that until they come to a knot,” Miron said. “Usually the cell has a way to unravel that knot but if somebody’s gone there first and used superglue on that knot,…it is basically a permanent object and it’s a barrier so the beads can’t get passed it.”

The knot is an unusual fold of DNA, a guanine quadruplex or G4, and the newly discovered compound is that superglue that stabilizes the unusual architecture and blocks access to specific sections that come after it.

According to Miron, in the last ten years, research and advances in bioinformatics has show that a number of these knots can form directly in front of oncogenes, sections of DNA that if processed make proteins that contribute to cancer development and metastasis, which is the term used to describe cancer that spreads to a different part of the body from where it began.

“If we can block that process from happening, then maybe we’re going to be able to prevent certain aspects of cancer development or metastasis,” Miron said.

Through Miron’s research, it has also been discovered that this compound’s affects could move beyond cancer treatment.

“These knots are also known to form in a lot of different viruses, the Zika virus has one, so there are applications outside of cancer treatment,” Miron said.

In terms of the possible use in cancer treatment in particular, Miron says that there are different knots in different quadruplexes, some of which can be associated with most cancers and some that are more specific.

“At least one of [the knots] that leads to cancer cell immortality, that ability to continue dividing over and over again, is associate with about 85 per cent of cancers,” Miron said. “There is a little bit of potential specificity in there but it may also be something that could be broad spectrum, we don’t know at this point.”

Beginning her research

The Ottawa native started her journey with Dr. Anne Petitjean at her lab at Queen’s University. Morin began volunteering over the course of her undergraduate degree, initially in biochemistry but switching to chemistry after loving her time in the lab. She was initially drawn to the study of DNA in high school, which continued to motivate her research interests throughout her undergraduate degree and into her PhD.

A significant turning point in Miron’s research occurred when the PhD student received scholarships from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) and Mitacs Globalink as travel supplements to study her compounds from the Petitjean lab in Kingston, Ontario at the European Institute of Chemistry and Biology (IECB) in Bordeaux, France, under the supervision of Dr. Jean-Louis Mergny.

“Dr. Jean-Louis Mergny is probably one of the top researchers in the field of guanine quadruplex recognition,” Miron said. “They’ve pioneered this kind of high throughput screening platform that you can test a very large number of compounds to generate hits.”

When Miron arrived at the IECB, she did not have extensive experience with Mergny’s particular study of G4 and she had to learn a lot in the field, using the chemical compounds she brought over from Queen’s University.

“It wasn’t a field of research that we weren’t particularly based in so I had very little experience with the techniques that I was going to have to learn and the field itself,” Miron said. “It was mostly a matter of just getting there and diving in and asking questions and going from expert to expert with my compounds.”

Current status and future plans

At this point in the discovery, the provisional patent has been filed and publishing these findings would be the next step in the process. It could take a year before the formal patent is filed and additional research is required before it could be formally introduced to the medical industry.

“We are trying to think about how can we make these compounds more targeted to cancer cells, how can we improve their entrance through a cell membrane into a cell, all those things for biocompatibility, that will be important down the line for pharmaceuticals,” Miron said.

With this great success in research and significant notoriety, Miron has been wrapping up the work she has done with the Petitjean lab and the IECB, and is also focusing on bringing the techniques that she learned in France to Queen’s University. The PhD student was honoured to be recognized for the 2017 Mitacs Award for Outstanding Innovation, calling the whole process and subsequent acknowledgment from Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science and Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, an “emotional” experience.

“It’s a nice validation of the importance of the research and our progress in moving it forward,” Miron said.

As she continues to advance in her career, Miron has her mind set on working in industry versus academia, and is also interested in expanding her scope of research as she plans to move into a post-doctoral program, possibly even leaving her compound discovery behind for others at the Petitjean lab to continue.

“I would like to see where it goes but at the same time, if the last four years have taught me anything it’s that I also really like learning new things, and exploring new fields and getting that kind of multidisciplinary research,” Miron said. “I would like to stay in health applications but I don’t think I would limit myself to just cancer research, I’m definitely interested in looking at other things as well.”

Edmonton has cancelled its outdoor activities on New Year’s Eve due to the extremely cold weather.

The city made the decision late Saturday evening to cancel the main stage performances, hayrides, ice carving, bonfires and bannock-making, joining several other major Canadian cities that pulled the plug on outdoor celebrations due to the cold.

Fireworks will still happen at the legislature at 9 p.m., but anyone watching them outside is urged to dress for “extreme temperatures,” the city said in a media release. The fireworks will also be livestreamed on the City of Edmonton’s Facebook page.

Indoor activities, including live music, comedians and games will still go ahead inside the Federal Building and pedway from 6 to 9 p.m. For those planning to attend, all ETS public transit is free from 5 p.m. to 3:30 a.m.

The forecast for Sunday morning is –40 C with the windchill, according to Environment Canada. At 9 p.m., it’s expected to be –36 C with the windchill.

Other cities that have cancelled New Year’s Eve outdoor celebrations include Calgary, Winnipeg, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec City and Charlottetown.

Show must go on

The outdoor events were cancelled partly because of safety concerns for staff and performers in the “extreme” temperatures, said City of Edmonton New Year’s Eve coordinator Tanya Franke.

“They’re out here long hours, long days in the cold setting things up,” she said. “As well, there’s equipment failure potential. With the cold temperatures, everything is impacted by that.”

Last year, the city did two fireworks shows for New Year’s Eve. Around 16,000 people showed up to watch the earlier show, and this huge interest is why the city decided to push the fireworks show earlier this year, Franke said.

The 12-minute show this year is choreographed to accompany music and there are some bigger fireworks that will fill the sky with light, said fireworks display supervisor Robbie MacKeen.

The fireworks themselves have no issue shooting in the cold, he said, but the challenge is in keeping the crew’s electronic equipment working in the frigid temperatures.

MacKeen says he doesn’t think the brutal weather will deter everyone from coming out to watch the fireworks.

“I do expect some people are still going to come out,” he said.

“It’s New Year’s Eve, and with the 9 p.m. show it’s nice to have people come out and and still have the ability to go home and enjoy midnight.”

TORONTO — Ontario’s new $14 per hour minimum wage does not take effect until Jan. 1, but Chris Stevens has already taken steps to ensure his restaurant can afford the added expense.

The co-owner of Kaboom Chicken in Toronto’s Leslieville neighbourhood has raised menu prices in anticipation of the wage hike. He and his business partner also plan to reduce their staff’s hours in the new year and take on more of the work themselves in order to save money.

New Year’s Day marks the first of two scheduled hikes, with the second to take place on Jan. 1, 2019, when the minimum wage will go up to $15. After that, it will be adjusted to keep pace with inflation.

The Ontario government says the change will bring greater purchasing power for working families and a stronger economy overall, but many small business owners across the province are wondering how they will maintain profits in the face of increasing payroll costs.

“It’s hard to see a way that you can lose that much of your revenue in a short period of time without having to revamp a lot of things — either letting staff go, doing a lot of the work yourself, raising prices,” Stevens said.

“We believe the minimum wage should go up and people should make a living wage, however I think (the hike) puts the onus on small businesses,” he added.

Dan Rishworth’s Toronto bicycle shop, Enduro Sport, employs seven permanent, full-time staff members and hires several young people as seasonal workers each summer when business picks up. The minimum wage increase could result in the store hiring fewer summer workers from now on, Rishworth said.

“I think at this point we’re not going to hire six summer people any longer, we’re going to hire only three or four,” he said.

The increase in payroll will also result in upper-level staff receiving fewer or smaller raises, Rishworth added.

“And I’m anticipating that (more senior) staff who are already getting $15 an hour are going to expect to get $17 or $18 or more because minimum wage is approaching $15,” he said.

The Financial Accountability Office of Ontario — an independent watchdog agency that reports to the provincial legislature — has estimated that the minimum wage hikes could result in a loss of 50,000 jobs as employers struggle to keep up with staffing costs.

“Some businesses will attempt to reduce expenses by substituting minimum wage employees for higher paid, more productive workers or by increasing automation,” the agency said in a report released in September. “This would lead to some job losses for minimum-wage workers.

But the higher minimum wage would also increase consumer spending, “stimulate economic activity and lead to job creation (that could) offset some of the loss in employment,” it said.

Ontario Minister of Labour Kevin Flynn said last week that he doesn’t believe the “doom and gloom” predictions about rising minimum wage hurting businesses or leading to unemployment.

“We’ve raised minimum wage 70 per cent since 2003 and we’ve seen increased employment right through that period,” Flynn said at a news conference.

“I think we’ve proven we can work with small business. We are lowering the tax rate, we’re lowering the burden on small business so we’re asking them to play a part here,” he added, referencing the Liberal government’s elimination of the capital tax for businesses, and reduced income tax rates for small businesses.

“This money is going to go right back into Main Street, it’s going to go right back into the mom and pop businesses that … are concerned,” the minister added. “(But) it’s going to take an adjustment…It’s going to take a change.”

In June, over 50 economists at universities across Canada co-wrote an open letter supporting Ontario’s $15 minimum wage plan, in part, they said, because higher wages make for a stronger economy.

“As those with lower incomes spend more of what they earn than do those with higher incomes, raising the minimum wage could play a role in economic revival,” the economists wrote.

“For years, we have heard that raising the minimum wage will kill jobs, raise prices and cause businesses to flee Ontario. This is fear-mongering that is out of line with the latest economic research.”

But some small-business owners are skeptical they’ll see a financial benefit.

Stevens said there is no guarantee the higher minimum wage will lead to more money being spent, particularly at restaurants and bars.

“What are you giving them more money for? Is it so that they can go to restaurants and spend money and have a nightlife, or to put food on the table and pay the rent?” he said.

With recent studies updated in Spring 2017 showing that Canada?s real estate and construction sectors account for more than 20% of the country?s GDP, many have begun to model what the effects of a prolonged recession in housing would mean for the overall Canadian economy.

Putting aside the fact that real estate agents now account for the largest professional designation in Canada (more than accountants, lawyers, doctors ? you get the idea), and that construction workers account for an increasingly important percentage of Canada?s overall workforce, the job-related effects of a housing crash, while crucial, are perhaps not the most important factor Canadian investors should consider, but one of many. The increased leverage Canadian households are now experiencing, largely tied to rising housing prices, could impact consumption (the largest driver of economic growth in Canada and in most developed nations) in a declining housing sector environment, speeding up a deflationary environment significantly.

The ripple effects a housing crash could potentially have on the Canadian economy are perhaps exaggerated by the extent to which the Canadian economy is tethered to its housing sector. Beside concerns about unemployment and consumption, government spending could be hit very hard as well in a declining housing price environment; keep in mind that the province of B.C. now takes in more tax revenue from the housing sector via property-related taxes and revenues than the Alberta government does from oil royalties.

Assessing what a significant housing correction would mean for Canada?s economy and, by default, the balance sheets of Canada?s largest banks, a number of high-profile short sellers have recently announced short positions on Canada?s Big Five banking oligopoly, citing ?black swan? risks which are real, but which may not be properly priced in to the stock prices of these international banks.