UNews - epigenetics

��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ honours Dr. Igor Kovalchuk with Speaker Research Award

trevor.kenney — Fri, 16 Oct 2015 16:38:52 +0000

Recognized as a pioneering researcher at the forefront of plant genome stability and the burgeoning field of epigenetics, Dr. Igor Kovalchuk has been named the 2015 winner of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge’s Speaker Research Award.

Since coming to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge’s Department of Biological Sciences in 2001, Kovalchuk has gained the reputation as a world leader in epigenetics, which studies how individual genes are expressed by environmental factors. Specifically, he is investigating how plants evolve rapidly to handle various stressors such as temperature extremes, viruses, bacteria and toxic or nutritionally deficient soil. His goal is to understand how plants are capable of acclimating, adapting and passing those acquired traits on to their progeny.

Dr. Igor Kovalchuk is recognized as a pioneering researcher at the forefront of plant genome stability and the burgeoning field of epigenetics.

His work has developed various molecular techniques that can be used to create stronger and hardier plants that are able to resist a constantly changing environment to satisfy the demands of the agricultural biotechnology industry. He has also developed novel plant biomonitors that are used by more than 40 labs in more than 20 countries.

Kovalchuk’s expertise has also been recognized commercially, leading to a strategic alliance that may shape the future of the pharmaceutical production of codeine in Canada. His patented technologies, including cutting-edge methods for bioengineering poppy plants, make it possible to produce transgenic plants with high levels of codeine. The development of a poppy industry using high thebaine plants produced in Canada is vital to a country that is among the world’s top importers of raw poppy material per capita.

A driving force behind the establishment of the Alberta Epigenetics Network, the first epigenetic network in Canada, Kovalchuk’s lab has created valuable collaborative opportunities with research institutions, government agencies and multinational companies alike. In 2013, ASTech honoured Kovalchuk with the Innovation in Agricultural Science Award, in part for his epigenetic research.

Always eager to involve students in his research activities, Kovalchuk has inspired the next generation of scientists and trained more than 100 undergraduate and graduate students and post-doctoral fellows at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge. He has co-authored multiple papers with graduate students and provided young researchers with incredible opportunities to be involved in high-level projects.

Kovalchuk will be presented with the Speaker Research Award at the Fall 2015 Convocation ceremony, Saturday, October 17, 2015 at 10 a.m. in the 1st Choice Savings Centre for Sport and Wellness.

Kovalchuk planting the seed for epigenetic advances in agriculture

trevor.kenney — Tue, 24 Mar 2015 22:26:08 +0000

If there is one thing that plants do well, it’s take changes in stride.

“Plants have an amazing capacity to respond immediately to stress and to propagate this response so future generations can be better prepared too,” says ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge researcher Dr. Igor Kovalchuk.

Dr. Igor Kovalchuk received the 2013 Innovation in Agricultural Science Award from ASTech, the Alberta Science and Technology Leadership Foundation.

A professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, Kovalchuk is a leading researcher in epigenetics, which studies how individual genes are expressed or “switched on” by environmental factors. Specifically, Kovalchuk is investigating how plants evolve rapidly to handle various stressors, everything from temperature extremes, viruses and bacteria to toxic or nutritionally deficient soil.

With funding from Alberta Innovates Health Solutions, the Canada Foundation for Innovation and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Kovalchuk is exploring ways to tinker with plants’ genes. His goal: to produce hardier crops that are increasingly resistant to stress and even able to detect pollution. This capability, in turn, will help to improve the efficiency, profitability and overall success of farms.

Thanks to Kovalchuk, in fact, the Canadian Prairies could one day be dotted with fields of medicinal poppies. He is currently working with a Canadian biotech company that plans to develop a market for the high thebaine poppy industry in Canada. A significant cash crop opportunity, high thebaine poppies are used to create valuable medicines, but unlike their traditional counterparts, cannot easily be converted into heroin.

A significant cash crop opportunity, high thebaine poppies are used to create valuable medicines.

Meanwhile, Kovalchuk’s own company, Plantbiosis, is developing new varieties of plants that can sense and signal the presence of pollution. Such information could, for example, warn farmers if their well water is contaminated.

Clearly, the potential impact of Kovalchuk’s work is far-reaching. He is quick to point out, however, that his research has benefitted considerably from the time and talents of many U of L students.

“Without students, there simply wouldn’t be a plant biotechnology lab,” he says.

Over the years, Kovalchuk has trained more than 100 undergraduate and graduate students, and post-doctoral fellows to assist with various aspects of his epigenetic studies. One of those emerging researchers is Aki Matsuoka (BSc ’10).

Now a PhD student in biological sciences, Matsuoka discovered her passion for research while completing an independent project as an undergraduate student in Kovalchuk’s lab.

“I learned to love biology research,” says Matsuoka. “It was great to have that opportunity available to students who were willing to learn and to work hard.”

Matsuoka went on to complete a summer placement in Kovalchuk’s lab, and remained there during her master’s studies before she eventually transferred to the PhD program. Today, Matsuoka’s research is supervised jointly by Kovalchuk and Dr. Alicja Ziemienowicz, a research biologist at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

“Both my supervisors have been training me to think critically, which has led me to expand my horizons and become a better researcher,” says Matsuoka. “I appreciate their support so much.”

Kovalchuk received the 2013 Innovation in Agricultural Science Award from ASTech, the Alberta Science and Technology Leadership Foundation. The honour recognizes an individual, team or company that has demonstrated exceptional innovation or has developed a technology of significance to Alberta's agriculture industries. Nominations for the 2015 ASTech awards open Apr. 1. For more information, or to nominate, visit the ASTech website.

Academic couple works toward Alberta’s first epigenetics institute

trevor.kenney — Tue, 19 Oct 2010 04:51:44 +0000

Scientists Drs. Igor and Olga Kovalchuk came to Lethbridge knowing next-to-nothing about the city. Now, eight years later, they've happily set down roots and are pushing the U of L's epigenetics research program into the limelight.

When the reactor at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant caught fire in 1986, a plume of radioactive particles descended over Ukraine. While only two people initially died from the explosion, many thousands have since become ill from the resulting radiation.

"When it happened, it was a major disaster for the whole country. It was the biggest disaster, impacting millions of people. Everyone in the medical industry got very interested in how they could help," says Dr. Olga Kovalchuk, who grew up in Ukraine and did her undergraduate degree at Ivano-Frankivsk National Medical ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ (IFNMU), just 600 km from the site of the nuclear blast.

Drs. Olga and Igor Kovalchuk are leaders in the field of epigenetics research.

Not surprisingly, the radiation-cancer connection was a big focus at IFNMU. Several of her professors were collaborating on a tool that could detect radiation levels quickly and efficiently, to prevent people from unknowingly exposing themselves to harm. "The problem with radioactive contamination is that you don't feel it – it's not hot, not cold, you don't see it and it doesn't hurt," says Olga.

While radiation wreaks havoc on DNA, creating harmful mutations that can lead to cancer, genetics itself fails to fully explain how cancer manifests. But another phenomenon, which also works on multiple levels in the cell, is helping fill in the gaps.

Epigenetics is the study of how genes are expressed or "turned on" by environmental factors. "People say that if genetics is the alphabet of life, epigenetics is the grammar," explains Olga, whose research focuses on the epigenetics of cancer.

Since 2001, Olga has pursued her research at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, just across the hall from her husband Igor, whom she met at IFNMU. While both work within the realm of epigenetics, Igor focuses on DNA repair in plants. For him, plants offer an excellent platform for study because, unlike animals, they can adapt to changes in their environment within a single generation. "They're a better organism to study the flexibility of epigenetic changes, especially for understanding the role epigenetics plays in evolution and adaptation," he explains.

While epigenetics isn't a household word, the field isn't brand new, either. When Watson and Crick published their findings about DNA in 1953, proving a genetic component of heredity at long last, most clambered onto the genetics bandwagon. But a tiny minority realized that genetics didn't explain all the mysteries of life.

However, it wasn't until the early '70s that the majority of scientists began to seriously consider that the responses of plants to stress couldn't be explained entirely with DNA. Slowly, ideas like gene silencing came to the fore, and in the last 10 years, epigenetics has emerged as a strong discipline.

Recognizing the importance of epigenetics to many fields, the Kovalchuks have helped lead a charge for an epigenetics research institute at the U of L. In June 2009, the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ received $3.2 million from the Canadian Foundation for Innovation (CFI) to build the equipment core for the Southern Alberta Group for Epigenetics Studies (SAGES). This fall, this funding was matched by the province, providing U of L neuroscientist Dr. Robert Sutherland and collaborating researchers with more than $2.8 million for research related to epigenetics. The combined funding provides a solid foundation for the future creation of the Alberta Institute for Epigenetics, which will harness the prowess of U of L researchers, including the Kovalchuks, who both hold U of L Board of Governors Research Chairs. Olga also holds a Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR) Chair in Gender, Sex and Health.

The pair says the institute will be the first of its kind in Alberta and, to their knowledge, the only one in Canada. At the moment, there are few labs that even have the basic technology needed to conduct this kind of research. In fact, both Igor and Olga often send samples to American and European labs for analysis.
"We thought some kind of unifying scheme would get the tools that are needed, bring the people together who share an understanding and interest, allowing us to be really efficient, share tools and knowledge, and start growing together," says Olga.

The institute will focus on six overlapping research areas: epi-cancer, epi-neuroscience, epi-plant, epi-cell, epi-toxicology and epi-technology. These areas have been chosen according to existing expertise at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and the likelihood of current international collaborators relocating to Lethbridge, explains Igor.
While epigenetics sounds abstract, the outcomes have direct relevance to our everyday lives, according to Olga.

In terms of health issues, epigenetics is helping scientists understand how diseases of all kinds – not just cancer – occur. It also offers new ways of analyzing experimental therapies and may yield information on how people can prevent disease. Unlike genetic changes which are rather rare, epigenetic changes happen constantly. Knowing which external factors can trigger expressions of genes in DNA will help people make healthier decisions to lower risks of developing certain health issues.

Epigenetics also has direct relevance to southern Alberta and the agriculture industry. For instance, the field offers new ways to improve the quality and quantity of agricultural products without any genetic modifications. This could have a tremendous impact on Canadian agriculture.

As the scientific visionaries for the institute, the Kovalchuk duo is confident it will attract researchers from around the globe.

"Basically, it will allow people to see that there is a dedicated research centre here with a group that studies approaches to stress tolerance, evolution, genome stability, creating more and better food, making people healthier – you name it. It will basically work as a centre that attracts like-minded people to do research here," says Igor.

It is hoped that a physical building will eventually provide space for associates to collaborate directly, but for now, the institute will be established in the lab space the Kovalchuks currently use.

In time, Igor hopes to establish a tech-transfer wing for the institute that will focus on commercializing discoveries that emerge.

"It will help show people that we're not only satisfying our curiosity – we're actually doing research for the public."

The institute is a coup for the U of L and the city of Lethbridge, say the Kovalchuks. It is also a tremendous development in the evolution of the couple's careers. The institute will allow greater collaboration and technology, and inject a new sense of possibility.

"We are creating something that's really new. And when you're working in a new area, it's very exciting – you're exploring new avenues. That in itself is pretty motivating," says Olga.

For Igor, who compares research to gambling, the new institute offers new tools that level the playing field for epigenetics.

"Scientists are healthy gamblers. What drives most of us is this curiosity and hope for a rare reward. Designing an experiment in such a way that you can finally get an answer is the best reward you can get."

Kovalchuk in prestigious company

trevor.kenney — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 17:00:47 +0000

Dr. Olga Kovalchuk, an internationally-respected biological sciences and epigenetics researcher at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, can now add Recipient of Canada's Top 40 Under 40^TM to her already long list of accomplishments.

She recently returned from a three-day trip to Toronto and an action-packed series of award presentations, networking and professional development events as a member of a very unique group of people who come from all walks of life, but had much to share with each other.

"It was quite amazing," says Kovalchuk. "There were people there from all types of business, healthcare, research and other organizations who are all very interesting and have inspirational stories to tell. This is a pretty unique club to be a part of, and by the end of our time together we were all quite close. It has a really well connected alumni network, so I expect to stay in touch with them."

Dr. Olga Kovalchuk is a leader in the field of cancer research.

Dr. Olga Kovalchuk is recognized as one of Canada's most influential people.

Kovalchuk is characteristically modest about her own work, which landed her in the Top 40 group in the first place.

Her research focuses on the effects of long-term exposure to radiation, and how that exposure changes cellular and molecular structures in animals and people.

Since 1995, Kovalchuk, who is also a medical doctor, has been involved in the detailed analysis of the genetic consequences of the Chernobyl accident in Ukraine, and is currently researching the mechanisms by which radiation induces cancer.

She was one of seven Albertans and five women among the award recipients.

"This is an outstanding award for Olga, the members of her lab team, for her research collaborators here and throughout the world – and for our ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ," says U of L president Dr. Bill Cade.

"Olga has worked very hard to bring new research and new programs to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and has influenced countless young researchers. With her husband and research collaborator Dr. Igor Kovalchuk – both board of governors Research Chairs here at the U of L – they have brought new people with a wealth of international talent to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ community. It is an understatement to say that we are extremely proud of her achievement."

Kovalchuk says part of the activity included a day-long session called the Top 40 Institute, where the award recipients received some high-end advice from business and government leaders. During breaks in the session, the participants had to stand up and deliver a brief pitch about themselves, their work, and what inspired them.

"In addition to my research, I talked lot about my family – my parents, who were ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ – my husband Igor, with who I have collaborated for many years, and my daughter Anna, who has inspired me to be a good role model as a parent," says Kovalchuk.

She is now turning her attention to ongoing research projects, and furthering academic and public interest in the epigenetics research group that she and numerous U of L research partners are working on.

They recently hosted a symposium in Lethbridge to bring together even more researchers interested in epigenetics which she hopes will spawn even more projects – some which weren't even on her radar before the top 40 awards.

"I met a medical researcher who is interested in how radiation affects the heart and veins, and other parts of the circulatory system," she says. "We are very interested in talking about how we can apply our epigenetics work to his projects and how I can learn from him."

UNews - epigenetics

��Ѹ�����Դ���߿�Ƭ honours Dr. Igor Kovalchuk with Speaker Research Award

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