Research supported by the partnership is uncovering how environments, microbiomes and biological systems shape health across the human lifespan.
Through the Manulife CIFAR Health & Well-being Grants, researchers across CIFAR programs are investigating fundamental questions about the biological pathways that shape lifelong health. Their work is generating new insights into how early-life environments, microbial communities and physiological systems interact to influence development, disease and resilience.
Bold research driving discovery
By supporting high-risk, high-potential research topics, this partnership has enabled CIFAR Fellows to explore fundamental questions in human biology. The following outcomes of the most recent Manulife CIFAR Health & Well-being Grants highlight the impact of this support:
- Mapping the Generational Impact of Environments: CIFAR researchers Katherine Amato (Humans & the Microbiome) and Thom McDade (Child & Brain Development) demonstrated that early-life environmental exposures account for 77 per cent of the functional pathways that make an adult’s digestive system unique. This work provided a rare look at how our earliest surroundings “get under the skin” to dictate health decades later.
- Decoding Drivers of Child Malnutrition: CIFAR Fellows in the Humans & the Microbiome program, Eran Elinav and Philippe Sansonetti, identified specific microbiome drivers of gut barrier dysfunction, a key contributor to stunted growth among millions of children globally. Their team screened 14,000 small molecules to identify promising therapeutic candidates for
- Exploring the Lung-Brain Connection: Brian Dias and Staci Bilbo, CIFAR Fellows in the Child & Brain Development program, investigated how the lungs communicate with the brain through extracellular vesicles (EVs). This research explored how factors like “Long COVID” and childhood exposure to air pollution may be linked to increased depression incidence later in life.
- Hormonal Regulation via Gut Microbes: Led by Carolina Tropini, Naama Geva-Zatorsky and Martin Blaser in the Humans & the Microbiome program, researchers discovered that gut microbes can influence stress hormone levels across generations, even in the absence of disease. This resulted in the design of a new bacterial biosensor to detect these interactions in real time.
- Insights from Evolutionary Health Patterns: By studying the cyclical microbiome changes in wild orangutans, researchers in the Humans & the Microbiome program uncovered how seasonal dietary variety contributes to health and longevity. This work pushed our understanding toward a more dynamic model of how humans might maintain health through environmental trade-offs.
A foundation for future innovation
These findings continue to lay the groundwork for microbiota-based interventions to restore hormonal balance and improve metabolic health, while establishing new fields of inquiry into human behaviour and learning. By mobilizing the world’s most brilliant people across disciplines, CIFAR researchers continue to address fundamental questions in science to help solve some of humanity’s biggest health challenges.
Through the Longevity Institute, a global platform for research, thought leadership, innovation, advocacy and community investment, Manulife is committed to advancing evidence-based insights that help people live healthier, longer lives. Supporting CIFAR’s Health & Well-being research reflects this commitment by deepening understanding of the biological and environmental drivers of lifelong health.
