2026 NMD4C Basic Research Summer School

The annual NMD4C summer school provides lecture-based and hands-on training workshops to neuromuscular trainees in cutting-edge wet lab techniques, while providing an environment for trainees to present their research and network in-person with colleagues and senior investigators from across Canada.

Thank you to our sponsors:

We will host our third basic science research summer school for neuromuscular research trainees from June 8 – 10, 2026 at the University on Ottawa, led by Dr. Mireille Khacho.

Supporting trainees and early career scientists is a key focus of the network, and we are aiming to make this event as accessible as possible for trainees to attend from across Canada. Thus, there will be no registration fee, and support will be available for accommodation and travel for non-local participants.

Summer School Program and Themes

Program

The Summer School will be a 2.5-day event delivered by experienced CNMD basic scientists, Dr. Mireille Khacho, Dr. Vahab Soleimani, Dr. Keir Menzies, Dr. Michael DeLisio, Dr. Junio Dort, and Dr. Yan Burelle; members of our Basic Science Training Committee (BSTC) Dr. Jean-Philippe Leduc-Gaudet (UQTR), Dr. Emma Sutton, Dr. Rebecca Yaworski (Kothary Lab); Dr. Sally Spendiff (Lochmüller Lab), Dr. Alex Green (Algonquin College), and Jonathan Mesiano-Crookston (Patient Partner).

The 2026 NMD4C Basic Research Summer School offers demos, tutorials, lecture-based and hands-on training workshops to neuromuscular trainees in cutting-edge wet lab techniques. In tandem with this vital training, trainees have an opportunity to present their research and network in-person with colleagues, senior investigators and patient-partners from across Canada. The program will cover an interactive computer session on Bioinformatics and Genetic Reference Populations, Muscle Organoids, Histopathological Basis of Muscle in NMD: From Normal Structure to Pathological Changes on Day 1; 3D Muscle Cultures, Human Muscle Biopsy, ex vivo Muscle Function, Resipher Analysis, and Immuno/histological labelling on Day 2; and Single-Cell Transcriptomics, Muscle Stem Cell Biology, and Image Analysis using FIJI, MiraVision, and NMJ-morph on Day 3.

View the tentative summer school program

Application Information

Application Process & Guidelines

The full application guidelines are available here.

Applicants will need to include the following in their application:

Contact information: Applicants must include their name, email, institution, role, their supervisor(s) contact information, and neuromuscular disease(s) researched.
Research and Training Goals: Applicants must provide a short paragraph describing why they would like to attend the summer school, how they anticipate this to benefit their training and career goals and how the training may be impactful for their home lab and research colleagues.
Flash Talks: Attendees will be invited to give a short (<3-min.) flash talk on their NMD research as a form of introduction at the beginning of the summer school. Applicants must indicate their interest in giving a flash talk.
Accommodation and Travel Bursaries: For non-local applicants, applicants will need to indicate whether they would like university accommodation during the summer school, and if they would like to be considered for a travel bursary.
Supervisor Approval: Applicants will require their supervisor's approval to attend the summer school. Supervisors must sign the approval form to be uploaded during the application.

Eligibility Criteria

Placements at the summer school are subject to a competitive application process. Successful applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria:

Be a member of the NMD4C.
Current full-time graduate student, postdoctoral research fellow, or other junior research staff* conducting neuromuscular disease-focused research at a Canadian institution**

*Participation of junior research staff will be based on placement availability; graduate students and postdoctoral fellows will be given preference.

**Placements may be restricted to one trainee per lab based on the number of applications received.

Selection Criteria

Applicants will be chosen based on training and career goals, commitment to NMD research, and equity, diversity, inclusion, and indigeneity.
Priority will be given to graduate students and postdoctoral fellows.
The number of participants attending per lab may be limited*

*non-local attendees will be prioritized for the hands-on workshops.

Please complete your application form in English as the summer school will be delivered in the same language.

Apply Here

Accommodation, Meals & Travel Support

Accommodation: We will provide accommodation for non-local attendees for three nights (June 7, 8, and 9th).
Meals: We will provide meals on June 8, 9, and the morning of the 10th.

Travel Support: We will provide financial support (sufficient to cover all/most of your travel to and from summer school) for all non-local attendees. summer school) will be available for all non-local attendees.