To better understand how research and collaborations can address this growing crisis, we spoke with Dr. Dao Nguyen, Director of the 涩里番 AMR Centre, and Professor in the Division of Respiratory Medicine at 涩里番. From building an interdisciplinary research hub to raising awareness around antimicrobial resistance in the Parliament of Canada, Dr. Nguyen is helping shape a more coordinated and innovative response to AMR at 涩里番 and beyond.
You鈥檝e worked in antimicrobial resistance research for many years, and now you lead the 涩里番 AMR Centre. How did MI4鈥檚 support help turn this work into full-fledged Centre with national and international impact?
Since the beginning, MI4 was the first to recognize, at the university level, the need for an AMR Centre and the importance of this theme, even beyond our institution. Just as importantly, MI4鈥檚 vision and focus on interdisciplinary and collaborative research is exactly what the field of AMR needs. MI4 promoted AMR as a key priority through its seed funding programs and scientific activities. It also supported the AMR Centre鈥檚 development by working with the MUHC Foundation on fundraising efforts. This early support helped establish the foundations for a Centre with both national and international reach.
The AMR Centre brings together researchers across disciplines to tackle a global health threat. Why does that a collaborative approach matter 鈥� and how has MI4鈥檚 support helped make it possible?
AMR is both a national and global concern, and it is fundamentally very complex. Addressing it requires understanding the many factors driving the rise at local and global levels, measuring its impacts not only on human health, but also on healthcare and food production, and identifying and implementing effective interventions to curb it.
No single discipline or sector can tackle this challenge alone. Collaboration is essential. MI4 has played a key role in enabling this approach. In 2020-2024, it provided financial support to the Centre and to investigator-led projects that represented new collaborations. In addition, AMR is one of MI4鈥檚 key research themes. More recently, the MI4 annual symposium in 2025, focused on AMR, brought increased visibility and engagement across the broader research community.
As Director, what has surprised you most about the strength or potential of the AMR Centre since it was established?
When we first proposed the AMR Centre, about 30 people showed up to the initial town hall we organized. That鈥檚 when we knew the idea really resonated. Since then, it鈥檚 grown to over 60 faculty across six faculties and nearly 30 departments at 涩里番.
What鈥檚 been exciting is the range of work, everything from studying the evolution of resistance to the development of new diagnostics, improving treatments, and finding alternatives to antibiotics for use in human health and food production.
I鈥檝e also been really impressed by our members whose expertise and leadership are a driving force in the Centre. Our colleagues advise our provincial and national government agencies, including the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), as well as international organizations such as the World Health Organization (WHO). They also help expand our work province-wide through the AMR Quebec Network.
And finally, our trainees have been incredible. They鈥檝e stepped up as ambassadors and played a big role in organizing events and leading outreach with the scientific community and general public.
If you had to describe the evolution of the AMR Centre and its partnership with MI4 in one sentence, what would it be?
I often think of the AMR Centre as a seed that needed the right conditions to grow. MI4 was that first 鈥渨atering can鈥� that provided the early push, helping the Centre take root and develop into the thriving Centre it is today.
As Dr. Nguyen鈥檚 work demonstrates, tackling antimicrobial resistance depends on strong collaboration, sustained support, and bold scientific leadership across disciplines.
