The work of McGill University computer science professor Jérôme Waldispuhl is allowing video game players to advance science’s understanding of the genetic basis of such illnesses as Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes and cancer. The Web-based video game that Waldispuhl’s team has designed, called Phylo, allows players to contribute to scientific research by arranging sequences of coloured blocks that represent DNA. These DNA sequences provide researchers with insight into genetically based diseases. Waldispuhl started about a year ago and has had more than 500,000 visits to the website and has provided a huge pool of about 350,000 solutions to help improve the alignment for 521 genes

Read more : Video game players helping advance genetic research

Toyota Tsusho Corp. (TTC), the trading unit of Asia’s largest auto maker, has agreed to buy all of Montreal-based Matamec Explorations’s output from its Kipawa mine deposit in the Témiscamingue region of Quebec. The non-binding deal between TTC and Matamec is conditional on conclusive results from a feasibility study of the economics of the Kipawa project. TTC is paying $17.5 million for its position, which will give it a supply of metals needed for its hybrid and electric vehicles.

Read more : Toyota teams up with Quebec miner in rare-earth minerals deal

Montreal’s Enerkem, a developer of thermochemical technology that converts municipal solid waste into syngas, said U.S. Waste Management Inc. and EB Investments are investing $15 million for a minority equity stake in Enerkem Alberta Biofuels, now building an Edmonton biofuels plant. The total raised by Enerkem for the project this year is $103 million, including contributions from Alberta Innovates, the City of Edmonton and Alberta Energy. "This is a further validation of Enerkem’s strategy and strong position in the cellulosic ethanol sector." CEO Vincent Chornet said. "The plant will be among the first full-scale advanced biofuels facilities to be built in North America."

Read more : Enerkem biofuels plant attracts U.S. investors

Canadian researchers have invented a device that could make it easier, faster and cheaper to track the progression of HIV in patients living in the developing world. A team led by Rakesh Nayyar, University of Toronto student James Dou, and Stewart Aitchison, has created a portable device that uses a computer chip with software capable of analysing blood tests outside the lab. The team’s portable cell analyzer makes it possible for healthcare workers to monitor HIV patients in remote areas by testing their blood on the spot and receiving results within minutes, Nayyar explained.

Read more : Canadian researchers’ device may improve HIV tracking

March Networks, a Kanata-based developer of video surveillance technology, revealed it had agreed to be acquired by Infinova , a unit of Shenzhen Infinova of China, for $90 million. This was the culmination of nearly six months of searching by March Networks for a way out of an impasse. Even before March Networks’ board of directors decided last June to canvass a range of options — from mergers to private equity transactions — the company’s CEO Peter Strom had been discussing a business arrangement with Infinova, which generates the majority of its sales in China.

Read more : Kanata-based March Networks bought by Chinese company

Fujitsu Canada has launched the Fujitsu Innovation Center in Quebec City, a $20 million initiative that will create 50 jobs and could lead to the creation of other specialized jobs in the years to come. A $14 million over three years has been made by Fujitsu, headquartered in Tokyo. The Fujitsu Innovation Center is a collaborative space where business partners and customers will work with Fujitsu specialists to put ideas into practice and build business solutions. “The work there is different from that of an R&D center,” explained Mr. Giroux, senior vice-president and director of Fujitsu’s Quebec City office. “The work involves prototyping or demonstrations,” he says Fujitsu estimates that it will develop some 20 initiatives in cooperation with about ten partners in its innovation center by March 2014, innovation being one of the key elements of its development strategy.

Read more : $14M investment in new Quebec Fujitsu Innovation Center

Canada’s economic, fiscal and financial strengths are helping to increase business investment in the country, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said. Flaherty said that Canada’s strong economic fundamentals, sound fiscal management and well-supervised financial sector support increasing business investment. Flaherty cited international recognition of Canada’s financial sector leadership, noting that for four consecutive years the World Economic Forum has rated Canada’s banking system as the world’s soundest.

Read more : Canada a good place to invest, Flaherty tells U.S.

Rio Tinto Alcan is pushing ahead with construction of a US$3.3-billion smelter in Kitimat, B.C., even as stagnant prices have spurred a selloff of other aluminum assets. London-based Rio Tinto, which acquired Montreal-based aluminum giant Alcan for $38.1 billion in 2007, is expected to announce it has final approval to modernize the 57-year-old smelter to double its capacity. Approval will see Rio spend another $2.7 billion on Kitimat, after already setting aside $650 million towards the upgrade, raising the construction price tag more than 30% from $2.5 billion. The project, said to be one of the largest private-sector investments in the province in many years, will create hundreds of jobs and will be a economic boon for the depressed northwestern region after the collapse of the forest industry.

Read more : Rio Tinto to go ahead with Kitimat smelter expansion

Hamilton, Ont.-based Bermingham Foundation Solutions Ltd. has secured "a significant investment" from the world’s largest construction company, chairman and fourth-generation owner Patrick Bermingham has announced. Its new strategic partner, Soletanche Freyssinet, is part of the VINCI group, a Paris-based, publicly traded company that employs 180,000 people in about 100 countries. Bermingham is a foundation and marine specialty contractor, with a focus on the transportation, energy and mining markets.

Read more : Paris-based Soletanche Freyssinet invests in Hamilton manufacturer

A $70-million joint project between the private sector and the government of Quebec has been announced to develop more energy-efficient technology. The initiative, called Equation, will bring together six ICT companies working on similar projects having to do with cloud computing and smart meters. Each of the companies will undertake their own projects. However, the non-profit company, Prompt, which forges partnerships between the industry and university research, will coordinate much of the work. The participating companies are CGI, Ericsson, Fujitsu Canada, IBM, Miranda Technologies, and Teledyne DALSA. They will invest a total of $40 million into the project.

Read more : Public-private partners fund energy-efficient tech plan