UNews - Zak Stinson

U of L iGEM teams tackling relevant issues, awarded gold and silver at Giant Jamboree

trevor.kenney — Tue, 06 Nov 2018 21:13:23 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge’s iGEM students have proven once again they are among the best and brightest scientists in the synthetic biology field.

The U of L's collegiate iGEM representatives who presented in Boston.

From over 300 teams, representing countries from all over the world, the U of L’s collegiate team secured a gold medal and the high school entry a silver at the 2018 International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competition in Boston, MA.

The collegiate team’s project VINCEnT focused on developing tools for other synthetic biology researchers. Targeting specific tissues, cell types, or cellular organelles is important for the correct treatment of many diseases. The U of L team created software that would help others overcome these problems. The team members also demonstrated how they can successfully encapsulate cargo within P22 “nanocompartments” that can target Zebra and Quagga mussels with species-specific toxins. One of the largest problems facing Alberta waterways, Zebra and Quagga mussels are considered aquatic invasive species and a threat to the Alberta economy, specifically agriculture, tourism and recreation as they destroy natural lake ecosystems and fisheries. Work on this application will continue in the future.

The U of L's high school team impressed with a silver medal standing.

The U of L team of Sydnee Calhoun, Kristi Turton, Catrione Lee and Luke Saville presented at the jamboree and were supported by team members Keith Aiken, Maya Degrood, Simmone D’Souza, Travis Haight, DJ Kim, Jessica Semmelrock, Reanna Takeyasu and David Tobin. Aubrey Demchuk, Graeme Glaister, Zak Stinson and secondary investigator Dr. Trushar Patel served as advisors.

The Lethbridge high school team is comprised of students from Winston Churchill High School, Lethbridge Collegiate Institute, Chinook High School and Catholic Central High School. Members Mark Lea, Michelle Wu and Andy Sun travelled to Boston to represent the team. Their project, Cu Later, described a method for the capture and removal of metals from tailings ponds and effluent water using an engineered bacteriophage system and received a silver medal and nomination for best model.

Dewuni De Silva, Aidan Sander, Nicolas Parra, Aroma Pageni, Rebecca Avileli, Tyler Black, Logan Black, Alice Zhang, Karen He, Mina Akbary-Zheng, Emily Huynh and Nimaya De Silva supported their teammates’ efforts from Lethbridge. Recruitment for the 2019 Lethbridge high school iGEM team will begin in January.

Representatives from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge were also involved in core activities for the iGEM Giant Jamboree. Dr. Hans-Joachim Wieden, also a primary investigator for the U of L collegiate team, was one of the competition judges, and Chris Isaac, U of L biochemistry graduate student, participated in the iGEM Safety Committee.

The projects and accomplishments of the university and high school teams are available on their wiki websites. Also, follow the high school team’s progress on social media: @LethHS_iGEM and @lethbridgehsiGEM. The U of L team can be followed here: @LethbridgeiGEM.

U of L students turn research ideas into a company that's generating buzz

caroline.zentner — Wed, 22 Jul 2015 21:02:46 +0000

A group of ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge graduate students is patenting a process that harnesses the power of the body’s own cells to repair scar tissue in the brain – thereby opening up a new world of possibilities for treating stroke and traumatic brain injury.

Aubrey Demchuk and Scott Wong use a transmission electron microscope to obtain an image of a cell nucleus

The students, who just recently formed Nomadogen Biotechnologies Inc., have created a combination genetic and cellular therapy dubbed Nomadocytes, which utilizes patient-derived cells to non-invasively deliver therapeutic molecules to brain cells affected by injury or disease.

The group recently won two of three categories at the Chinook Entrepreneur Challenge presented by Community Futures Lethbridge Region, earning the top award in the Technology and Innovation Business Stream and Student Business Stream.

“This research is very exciting,” says Zak Stinson, a Regina, Sask. native who came to the U of L in 2011 to complete a Bachelor of Science degree with a major in Neuroscience. He is now working on his Master of Science with a major in Neuroscience degree under the guidance of Dr. Bruce McNaughton and is based out of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of California-Irvine. “Neurodegenerative disorders are devastating to patients, families and the economy. There is massive unmet need for new, better treatments for things like stroke, Parkinson's disease, and Alzheimer's disease, and this need is only going to increase as the population ages.”

The beauty of Nomadogen’s technology is its relative simplicity and non-invasive nature.

“Nomadocytes are a naturally occurring type of brain cell that we can derive from bone marrow cells, modify for our own purposes, and re-administer without any invasive neurosurgical procedures,” explains Aubrey Demchuk, a Lethbridge native who recently completed a Master of Science degree with a major in Neuroscience at the U of L. “We are simply adapting a small communication vesicle produced by these cells so that they are attracted specifically to areas of the brain that are damaged, basically anything with scar tissue from either stroke or traumatic brain injury, and using them to deliver a therapeutic message.”

Zak Stinson

The cells naturally migrate to these damaged areas in the brain before releasing a vesicle that contains a specifically designed DNA molecule. This molecule is taken up by the scar tissue and, when the DNA is expressed, converts the scar tissue back into functional neurons.

The group’s pre-clinical trials in cell culture models have been extremely encouraging and, by fall 2015, testing will move into rodent models.

“If the cells behave in a living brain as we predict they will, the therapeutic potential for Nomadocytes is massive,” says Stinson.

Because the technology they have created is an easily adaptable platform, a litany of other neurodegenerative disorders could potentially be treatable and the therapy could even conceivably be used to target peripheral injuries, such as tissue damage in a limb.

Demchuk, Stinson and partners, Scott Wong and Evan Caton, met as part of the U of L’s award-winning iGEM program and quickly found a synergy in their thinking.

Evan Caton

“The four of us have different but complementary backgrounds in genetics, neuroscience, and biochemistry and together we generated a number of ideas that fit together very nicely,” says Demchuk. “At the end of the iGEM season, we had collectively invested a lot of time and thought into this project and wanted to pursue it further, if only because the research seemed promising. The company was kind of an accident that came out of it.”

She admits that, as scientists, they never thought about the business side of their technology but were encouraged by faculty members within the Canadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience (CCBN) to incorporate and then patent their technology. With guidance from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ-Industry Liaison Office and assistance from technology advisor Bill Halley and the Regional Innovation Network Southern Alberta (RINSA), among others, Nomadogen is generating significant industry buzz.

“It is very exciting because we are already much more successful than we had ever hoped,” says Demchuk. “We came in with very low expectations and so far we have had a lot of people interested and invested in our idea.”

U of L iGEM team earns gold in Boston competition

caroline.zentner — Fri, 14 Nov 2014 18:23:22 +0000

On the strength of a project that may one day lead to a new cell therapy to repair damaged neurons in the brain, the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge iGEM (international genetically engineered machine) team was awarded a gold medal at the iGEM Giant Jamboree 2014 in Boston from Oct. 30 to Nov. 3.

Known as the Lethbridge Brainiacs, the iGEM team chose an ambitious project that involved using the brain’s own immune cells to facilitate recovery following a brain injury such as stroke.

The U of L iGEM team, sporting thier signature bow ties and suspenders, participated in the 10th annual Giant Jamboree in Boston at the end of October. Pictured here, from left to right, are Dennis Bettenson, Scott Wong, Zak Stinson, Aubrey Demchuk, Evan Caton, Suneet Kharey, Rhys Hakstol and Graeme Glaister. Missing from the photo are Dustin Smith, Kelsey O'Brien, Billy Cowitz, Rachael Chan and Harland Brandon.

“I was dumbfounded and exhilarated,” says Evan Caton, a doctoral student in biomolecular sciences. “This is my first year at iGEM and there were some other really amazing teams there. It was pretty awesome just to be in Boston and be rewarded for the work that we’ve done over the past year.”

“It was satisfying because we worked quite hard this summer and the gold medal is one of the higher standards of achievement at iGEM, so it’s nice to be recognized for that,” says Zak Stinson, a master’s student in neuroscience.

The team picked a neuroscience project that involves engineering immune cells to identify astrocytes (cells that play a role in the scarring process) and reprogram them to become normal neurons.

“When you have a stroke your neurons die and they don’t grow back. By this system, we would be able to replace those lost neurons and hopefully enhance functional recovery after a stroke and traumatic brain injury,” says Stinson. “We were able to take some pretty big steps towards getting this targeting and delivery system built. We weren’t able to test it fully because it was a really ambitious project for one summer, but we got quite a long ways towards showing that we could package these genes in these cells and send them over to astrocytes.”

The project involved inter-disciplinary collaboration. Individual members brought their respective expertise in biochemistry, biology, art and neuroscience to the team.

“The students are actually integrating expertise we have at the U of L into that design project. The students are the force that allows us to integrate existing strengths into a new application,” says Dr. Hans-Joachim Wieden, a team supervisor and Alberta Innovates Technology Futures Research Chair in Bioengineering in the chemistry and biochemistry department.

More than 220 teams from post-secondary institutions around the world participated in the 10th annual jamboree, with the U of L team being one of two from Alberta and one of 10 from Canada.

“Alberta has actually made up a large portion of the iGEM teams from Canada and they’ve done really well in the past because we have really good support from the provincial government,” says Stinson.

With the Jamboree now complete, team members are busy getting ready for the fourth annual Brick by Brick charity dinner and silent auction Saturday night at the Dr. Foster James Penny Building.

“This year the charity is 5th on 5th Youth Services,” says Caton. “They are facing funding challenges and are at risk of losing a number of programs which could affect thousands of young people.”

The iGEM team has hosted a charity event for the past three years as a way to give back to the community that has supported them throughout the year. As far as Stinson and Caton know, the U of L iGEM team is unique in hosting such an event.

"We got silent auction items from all over the community so the community has been really open to helping us,” says Caton.

All proceeds from the Brick by Brick event will go to 5th on 5th. Although tickets are sold out, anyone wanting to help the organization can donate online through the 5th on 5th Youth Services website.

U of L's iGEM Team claims two awards at World Jamboree

trevor.kenney — Fri, 08 Nov 2013 18:40:47 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge’s International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) team captured two prominent awards at the iGEM 2013 World Championship Jamboree, Nov. 1-4 in Cambridge, Mass.

Fresh off claiming the top prize in the North American Jamboree in Toronto last month, the U of L team once again showed it was at the top of the North American class and continues to be one of the world leaders in the study of synthetic biology.

The U of L's iGEM student team consisting of (l to r) Graeme Glaister, Zak Stinson, Suneet Kharey, Jenna Friedt, Dustin Smith and Harland Brandon.

“I am very proud of the results they achieved on the world level,” says team leader Dr. Hans-Joachim Wieden, Director of the Alberta RNA Research and Training Institute at the U of L and Innovates Centre of Research excellence Chair of Bioengineering. “The World Jamboree was dominated by the European teams, but we presented very well and the awards we received were well earned.”

The U of L grabbed the Best Poster prize in the Overgrad classification, and also collected the Security Commendation, an overall award that debuted this year.

“I’m especially excited about the security award. It was brand new this year and shows how we are a world leader in this aspect of the research,” says Wieden. “The application of security protocols to the science of synthetic biology is becoming more and more important as we continue to advance the field.”

The U of L team’s project included the development of a bioengineering part that compresses genetic information – essentially working like a zip drive. Every gene needs DNA, but there is only so much DNA that will fit in a cell. This novel part may allow future bioengineers more flexibility in their work. Additionally, the team developed software that quickly determines what DNA is compatible to compress together.

Team member Harland Brandon said the research they conducted around the social implications of their project was lauded at the North American Jamboree and set their project apart from others.

“Our team sought to ensure that our part could not be misused to hide dangerous genes,” says Brandon (BSc’13), a first-year master’s student and Winston Churchill High School graduate. “We hypothesized that our part could be used to hide dangerous sequences, such as Ricin or Ebola, from gene synthesis companies. We then took it a step further and actually consulted with gene synthesis companies, U of L Risk and Safety Services and even a representative from the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI). Not only do we see our project benefitting the field, but we found through our critical analysis that the potential for misuse is not possible.”

Just six Canadian universities qualified for the World Jamboree, with the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge and the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Calgary the only teams to capture awards.

“iGEM enables students to get their first taste of research,” says Wieden. “They understand the goal of the project, and learn how to think outside of the box, troubleshoot and apply their knowledge to create scientific discoveries. All of this unlocks students’ creativity.”

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge team consisted of Dustin Smith (BSc ’13), Graeme Glaister, Jenna Friedt (BSc ’11, MSc’13), Suneet Kharey, Harland Brandon (BSc ’12) and Zak Stinson.

To view full results from the iGEM 2013 World Championship Jamboree, see this website.

iGEM team celebrates North American Regional victory

trevor.kenney — Mon, 07 Oct 2013 21:10:49 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge has further cemented its reputation as a leader in the teaching and research of synthetic biology by capturing first place at the 2013 North American iGEM Regional Jamboree in Toronto, Ont. this past weekend.

The competition, held at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Toronto, featured teams from across Canada and the United States. The U of L team of Dustin Smith, Graeme Glaister, Jenna Friedt, Suneet Kharey, Harland Brandon and Zak Stinson will now move on to the international competition, which will be held at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston, Mass. Nov. 1-4.

“This certainly shows that bioengineering research and the aggressive approach we’ve taken to study this field is working at the U of L, and that the RNA Institute is playing a key role in both enabling research and training students,” says Dr. H.J. Wieden, director of the Alberta RNA (Ribonucleic acid) Research and Training Institute (ARRTI) at the U of L, the Innovates Centre of Research Excellence (iCORE) Chair of Bioengineering and faculty advisor for the U of L’s iGEM teams. “The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ is poised to continue to be at the forefront of this emerging field.”

The U of L team’s project includes developing a bioengineering part that compresses genetic information – essentially working like a zip drive. Every gene needs DNA, but there is only so much DNA that will fit in a cell. This novel part may allow future bioengineers more flexibility in their work.

Additionally, the U of L team developed software that quickly determines what DNA is compatible to compress together.

“Each year we are also tasked with exploring the social implications of our project. Our team sought to ensure that our part could not be misused to hide dangerous genes,” says team member Harland Brandon (BSc’13), a first-year master’s student and Winston Churchill High School graduate. “We hypothesized that our part could be used to hide dangerous sequences, such as Ricin or Ebola, from gene synthesis companies. We then took it a step further and actually consulted with gene synthesis companies, U of L Risk and Safety Services and even a representative from the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI). Not only do we see our project benefitting the field, but we found through our critical analysis that the potential for misuse is not possible.”

In addition to winning the overall Regional Overgrad award, the U of L also claimed the award for best Wiki (website explaining their project).

iGEM is the premier competition for young scientists interested in the emerging field of synthetic biology, which is quickly leading to new discoveries that will diversify key economic sectors such as pharmaceutical, agriculture, medical diagnostics, clean energy and resource extraction. It also facilitates scientific research and education by establishing and operating the Registry of Standard Biological Parts, a community collection of open source biological components.

The organization promotes the advancement of science and education by developing an international open community of students and practitioners in schools, laboratories, research institutes and industry.

Earlier this year, a team of Lethbridge high school students was awarded the coveted Green Brick grand prize at iGEM’s High School Jamboree.

UNews - Zak Stinson

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