Western has broken ground on its $44-million Pathogen Research Centre, a first-of-its-kind facility in Canada that will revolutionize infectious disease research and vaccine development.
Opening in 2027 at Western Research Parks, the centre will house two cutting-edge biocontainment level 3 labs: a Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) facility, where vaccines and therapies are produced safely to the highest standards, and a microbial transmission lab that simulates real-world environments to study how viruses spread.
Supported by $16 million from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and $3.9 million from the Ontario Research Fund, the centre is poised to boost London’s life sciences sector and strengthen Canada’s biomedical self-sufficiency.
“By investing in world-class research infrastructure like Western’s Pathogen Research Centre, we are strengthening Canada’s position as a global leader in biomedical innovation,” says Mélanie Joly, federal Minister of Industry. “This facility will help ensure Canadian research can move from discovery to impact—turning breakthrough ideas into life-saving solutions, creating good jobs and improving our readiness for future public health challenges.”
