Since time immemorial, caribou have been of fundamental cultural importance to Aboriginal people, and many communities depend on caribou for their livelihood. However, in the last two decades, the caribou population in boreal forests has decreased by 30%, facing industrial activities and climate change threats. Caribou management has become a critical issue for First Nations who have traditionally shared the land with these animals.
In response to requests from several First Nations, the First Nations of Québec and Labrador Sustainable Development Institute (FNQLSDI) has sought assistance from a research team led by Professors Alexandre Poulain and Vance Trudeau from the University of Ottawa.
Their mission: to develop novel, portable biosensor tools for assessing caribou health. This will be achieved by monitoring levels of corticosteroids and sex steroids in collected field samples. With their partners, the uOttawa research team will integrate traditional Indigenous knowledge during all project phases to ensure a successful application.
Steroid hormones play a crucial role in animal health, serving as biomarkers for stress and reproductive status. These hormones can be detected in wild animals' fecal, urine, or hair samples, offering non-invasive monitoring methods. However, their lipophilic (fat-soluble) nature poses challenges to their extraction and detection. Currently, First Nations in Québec and Labrador lack access to any field-based analytical methods. This is why the uOttawa team, in collaboration with the FNQLSDI and Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), is developing both a steroid hormone extraction method and a portable biosensor system. A biosensor is a genetic construct that produces a detectable signal, typically light, when it interacts with a substance of interest.
Drs Chunyu Lu and Benjamin Stenzler, two postdoctoral fellows in the research teams of Profs. Poulain and Trudeau, have received Mitacs Accelerate funding in partnership with the FNQLSDI to drive this project forward. Dr. Lu is designing a hormone extraction strategy adapted for in-field operations, aiming for cost-effectiveness, accessibility, and suitability in extreme environments. Collaborating with Parc Omega, the team collects samples from their well-monitored caribou population.
Dr. Stenzler, on the other hand, is constructing yeast-based biosensors and optimizing them for field use. Capitalizing on the team’s expertise in microbiology (study of the biology of microscopic organisms) and endocrinology (study of hormone secretion), Dr. Stenzler and colleagues are refining biosensors tailored to assess caribou health. They will then conduct field validations to select those best suited to the needs of their Indigenous partners.
Monitoring caribou health is not an easy task, requiring multifaceted collaboration. In addition to the crucial contributions of the FNQLSDI and numerous First Nations in Québec and Labrador, Dr. Phillipe Thomas (Wildlife Biologist at ECCC) contributes by linking indirect measures of health through fecal hormone metabolite analyses to population status and trajectories. Ultimately, the findings of this project will inform the National Boreal Caribou Knowledge Consortium (NBCKC), guiding decisions to establish criteria for caribou health assessment.
As the research progresses, Professors Poulain and Trudeau remain committed to upholding ethical standards and fostering respectful partnerships with the Indigenous communities involved. Echoing the principles of the FNQLSDI, they ensure that the Aboriginal and treaty rights of the First Nations involved in the research are respected and that their voices are heard. This dedication underscores their profound respect for Indigenous knowledge and sovereignty, setting a standard for responsible research practices in environmental conservation.
Through this collaborative effort, Indigenous-led monitoring holds promise for safeguarding the future of caribou populations and honouring Indigenous stewardship of the land.
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