UNews - Cancer

U of L announces Dr. Athanasios Zovoilis as its newest Canada Research Chair

caroline.zentner — Tue, 16 May 2017 16:17:16 +0000

The federal government has named Dr. Athanasios Zovoilis, a professor in the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, a Tier II Canada Research Chair in RNA Bioinformatics and Genomics.

The Honourable Kirsty Duncan, Canada’s minister of science, recently announced $125.9 million in funding for 142 chairholders. Along with the Canada Research Chairs, Duncan introduced a new Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan to address the lack of diversity among Canada Research Chairs.

“Our government is committed to promoting equity and diversity within the sciences. We need to work harder to ensure that talented researchers have the opportunity to advance. The announcement of the action plan is an important step towards a more inclusive, open and diverse research environment in Canada,” says Duncan.

In addition to $500,000 in funding through the Canada Research Chair program, Zovoilis will receive more than $53,000 from the Canada Foundation for Innovation’s John R. Evans Leaders Fund for laboratory tools and equipment.

Dr. Athan Zovoilis is the U of L's latest Canada Research Chair.

Zovoilis, a bioinformatician and genomicist, came to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge from Boston’s Harvard ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ to establish and pursue a research program aimed at developing personalized treatments for diseases like cancer and dementia. Zovoilis joined the U of L's Alberta RNA Research and Training Institute (ARRTI), a research centre devoted to RNA research. During the last 10 years, the U of L has made a significant investment in the fast-developing field of RNA research by establishing ARRTI and attracting world-class scientists that develop cutting-edge research in understanding how RNA applications can support human health and biotechnology innovation.

“It was not a very difficult decision, I have to say,” says Zovoilis. “Having lived in Canada before, I know there’s support for science, for families and for integrating people to the society. It makes the perfect combination.”

Originally from Greece, Zovoilis began medical studies in his homeland and completed them in Germany. After witnessing the impact of diseases like Alzheimer’s and cancer on members of his community, he knew he wanted a career where he could help people.

“I didn’t like this feeling of helplessness. That was one of the things that motivated me to go to medical school,” he says.

While in medical school, molecular biology captured his interest. The Human Genome Project was underway at the time and the research possibilities it presented were captivating.

“A new era was starting and I decided to specialize in it,” says Zovoilis. “I was convinced that if we want to fight Alzheimer’s and cancer we have to understand what’s happening at the molecular level in our cells. If we understand the basic mechanisms that underlie these diseases then we will be able to fight them more efficiently.”

He pursued a doctorate in molecular genetics and began working with breast cancer patients, looking for mutations in genes known to cause cancer. Studying only two out of tens of thousands of genes, coupled with the limitations of DNA sequencers, meant progress was slow. However, technological advances soon led to much faster DNA sequencing and produced larger amounts of data. Zovoilis determined to get training in bioinformatics, a new discipline that provides the computer programs that can read and analyze the data produced by modern sequencers. He went to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Manchester in England to take further training and then joined the bioinformatics group at the Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre in Vancouver, an organization at the forefront of personalized medicine in Canada. There he joined other scientists who were interested in analyzing noncoding sections of the genome, or what was once known as junk DNA.

Because it was at the forefront of analyzing noncoding sections of a genome, Zovoilis then went to Harvard as a research fellow. His research there, recently published in the journal Cell, the top journal in molecular biosciences, revealed a connection between these noncoding sections of the genome and cancer. Now at the U of L, Zovoilis will continue this work with the eventual goal of bringing testing to everyday clinical practice.

“In this lab, we specialize in reading the book of life and we use this information to provide personalized medicine opportunities for patients in the near future,” says Zovoilis.

Such an approach is not as widely available in Canada as it is in the United States or through the Genome Science Centre in British Columbia but he hopes to launch a similar project in Alberta.

“We intend to find partners in this initiative,” says Zovoilis. “It has to be a pan-provincial initiative but southern Alberta can be part of this.”

Zovoilis adds that a personalized approach doesn’t perform miracles but many studies have shown that targeted therapies can help and genomics is the main tool to find them.

“I wanted to come back to Canada,” he says. “Canadians are very open minded and there has been, in recent years, significant investment in research. It is not advertised a lot but, especially here in Alberta, universities have improved substantially their capabilities. They have expanded their programs. I see a huge potential, especially at the U of L. That’s one of the main reasons why I decided to come here.”

Prairie view opens new research frontier for Golsteyn

trevor.kenney — Fri, 14 Oct 2016 22:19:37 +0000

Although his work is focused on one of our generation’s biggest diseases, Dr. Roy Golsteyn (BSc ’84) is honed in on the smallest of details to help bring it to its knees.

Golsteyn’s biological sciences lab has had its sights set on cancer for years and with a uniquely southern Alberta approach, is breaking new ground in finding chemicals that may lead to new cancer treatment drugs.

Dr. Roy Golsteyn is confident that the chemical properties of plants growing in the coulees of southern Alberta will lead to new cancer treatments.

“Cancer is a big disease and the way I was trained, was to really find out precisely what is wrong when a disease takes over, simply because if you know what’s wrong, you can find a way to fix it,” says Golsteyn. “I’ve always loved biology and trying to understand how human cells divide. In our work, we’re testing new chemicals to see if they have anti-cancer properties and then trying to understand how cancer cells respond to them.”

On Thursday, Oct. 20, 2016, Golsteyn will present as part of the PUBlic Professor Series, detailing how his lab is utilizing the unique plant species of southern Alberta in its quest to find chemicals with anti-cancer properties. Flower Power: A Scientific Search for New Medicines in Prairie Plants begins at 7 p.m. at Lethbridge City Hall, the second of this year’s PUBlic Professor events.

“It is an astonishing fact that, even in the 21st century, we are only beginning to realize that plants from the Alberta prairies contain chemicals of medical importance,” says Golsteyn.

Born and raised in Lethbridge, he admits he never gave the coulee slopes much thought in terms of them yielding cancer-fighting chemicals. After completing his Bachelor of Science at the U of L, Golsteyn went overseas, completing his PhD studies and taking a job in the French pharmaceutical industry. He married a fellow scientist, Dr. Sophie Kernéis-Golsteyn, and they eventually made their way back to Lethbridge, he setting up shop at the U of L and his wife at Lethbridge College.

Having worked in France and gained an appreciation for the way in which they look at plants and their potential healing properties, Golsteyn began to eye the plants outside his office window in a new light. He also fell into conversation one day with a First Nations guide at Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump, on a random trip to show off the area to foreign students working in his lab.

“We started talking about how First Nations people have used these plants for years and it just seemed to click, we thought this could be interesting,” says Golsteyn, who continues to work with the First Nations community.

He’s had some early successes, namely with the Buffalo Bean, which showed very early in the testing phase that its natural compounds exhibited anti-cancer activity. His lab has now begun a new round of tests on the Brown Eyed Susan, and created a plant library for the area’s native plant species. The pharmaceutical world is taking notice.

“We’ve learned that scientifically this area is very interesting,” he says. “You can look anywhere on the planet but what makes southern Alberta most interesting is that there really is a competition in the coulees. There are very few plants out there and there once were a lot of animals to eat them, so those native plant species have developed a toxicity level that’s allowed them to survive and that’s not common. They were pushed to make chemicals so they would not be eaten and that’s the stuff that’s making this project work.”

It’s a personal quest for Golsteyn, who says he’s of the age where he knows many people who are ill and struggling with cancer. He also understands the frustration that exists in the public sphere as years of research have been devoted to finding cures for the various forms of the disease.

“We are making progress, we really are,” he says passionately. “I’m familiar with the frustration though. I think at times we oversell the research in our labs but at the same time, there’s a huge pressure to oversell it. You have to get out there and say your research is awesome so that you can keep working on it and I think people are getting frustrated with that.”

Golsteyn says great strides have been made in eradicating the disease, specifically in forms of leukemia, but that much more work needs to be done.

“The successes that are out there, they’re from people doing very careful, good science. That’s what we’re doing too,” he says. “We’re not saying just take this miracle plant and it’ll work. We’re saying there are chemicals in this plant that are very interesting, they’re new, we’re running them through some very interesting tests and seeing what happens. But I’m very optimistic.”

Golsteyn speaks with conviction, tinged with hope, that the good science he was trained to perform will yield the results he, and everyone affected by this disease, desire.

Kovalchuk research points to a future of personalized medical treatments

trevor.kenney — Thu, 22 Oct 2015 17:03:02 +0000

You needn’t look too hard to find the motivation for Dr. Olga Kovalchuk’s research focus.

Growing up in Ukraine, Kovalchuk lived just 600 kilometres from Chernobyl, the site of the worst nuclear accident in history. A high school student at the time, with an eye on the medical field, she was greatly influenced by the events at Chernobyl and the response of the medical community and industry as they sought to help with the radioactive fallout and subsequent disease.

The PUBlic Professor Series featured Dr. Olga Kovalchuk presenting - Epigenetics of Health and Disease – From Personalized Science to Personalized Medicine.

It eventually led Kovalchuk into the study of genetics and most recently epigenetics, a burgeoning field that is rapidly gaining attention as it helps scientists understand how diseases of all kinds occur. One of her research interests is on the epigenetics of cancer cells.

On Thursday night, Kovalchuk presented, Epigenetics of Health and Disease – From Personalized Science to Personalized Medicine, to a packed room at Lethbridge City Hall. The presentation was the second of this year’s PUBlic Professor Series, a set of thought-provoking pub-style talks that bring a range of experts and researchers from across the arts and sciences to the community for spirited conversation.

Still considered a re-emerging science, 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 Kovalchuk, a Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Chair of Gender, Work and Health.

In her presentation, Kovalchuk describes how DNA sequences do not determine everything in the body. While the DNA content of each cell in a given higher organism is identical, meaning our liver and brain cells contain the same DNA, they are very different in their shapes and functions.

“This is due to the existence of different patterns in reading and translation of genes for the type of cells in question – referred to as gene expression,” she says.

Epigenetic changes extend beyond cell division to reproduction and although epigenetic changes are inheritable, they are also reversible and play key roles in our responses to the environment, disease predisposition and even to medical treatment.

“There is still a lot to be learned about the role of epigenetic changes in living cells and organisms and their interactions with the environment,” Kovalchuk explained to the audience, noting the role of epigenetic changes in health and disease, and specifically cancer and aging. “Our epigenetic makeup is heavily influenced by environment and lifestyle. Epigenetic changes are pliable and reversible, and therefore I call epigenetics the science of hope. Through positive changes in our lifestyle, we can positively affect the function of our genes."

She went on to describe how medical treatments in the future must recognize the uniqueness of every patient, right down to the cellular level.

“Just as no two people are similar, no two cancers are alike, and there is a lot of variation even within the same tumor,” she said. “Ideal therapeutic regiments targeting every cancer cell in the body must be tailored individually for each patient. We are now working hard with our academic, clinical and industrial partners to establish a public-private alliance with the goal of development and implementation of novel personalized science and medicine strategies."

There is no denying the passion that Kovalchuk has for her studies, which has seen her delve into a variety of areas related to radiation exposure and cancer. In 2013, she began a five-year study into whether men and women were affected differently by radiation exposure in nuclear work environments.

Previously, she was also funded by CIHR to study how radiation induces secondary tumors in cancer patients and what can be done to protect the children of radiation-exposed parents from contracting cancer.

It’s a lifelong pursuit that does not see her slowing down any time soon.

The next talk in the PUBlic Professor series is Thursday, November 19, 2015 when Dr. Craig Coburn presents Understanding the Complexities of Imaging the Earth: The Challenge of Image Calibration.

The entire lineup of PUBlic Professor series presentations can be found at: ulethbridge.ca/artsci/publicprofessor.

There's no place like the U of L for Anna Kovalchuk

trevor.kenney — Mon, 19 Oct 2015 16:54:15 +0000

For Anna Kovalchuk (BSc ’14, MSc ’15), the door has been open for her to study virtually anywhere she’d like, and yet it’s never been a question as to where she really wants to be – the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge.

“A lot of people asked why I was doing everything in Lethbridge, why not go elsewhere, and I thought, why would I?” she says. “I have a great basis here; I have a great working relationship with my supervisor and other students in the lab. It’s a great university.”

Anna Kovalchuk (right) plans to complete her PhD studies under the tutelage of Drs. Bryan Kolb (left) and Robbin Gibb.

It is also, literally, a second home to her. The daughter of biological sciences researchers Drs. Igor and Olga Kovalchuk, Anna was a fixture in U of L labs long before she was eligible to attend the school as a student. And while she didn’t follow in her parents’ footsteps entirely, turning to neuroscience early in her undergraduate studies, Kovalchuk has stayed true to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and plans to continue her PhD studies on campus.

“I was able to get into Dr. Bryan Kolb’s lab for an independent study when I was an undergraduate student and just continued every semester,” she says. “I think I kind of roped him into taking me on as a master’s student, and now I’m doing my PhD co-supervised by him and Dr. Robbin Gibb.”

Her studies continue to build on the work she’s done in trying to find the mechanisms underlying the side effects of chemotherapy and radiation treatments in patients suffering from cancer, and the methods to mitigate them.

“For my master’s, we were looking at the effects of chemotherapy and radiation on the murine brain; now we want to see what the effects of chemotherapy and radiation are when a tumour is present,” she explains. “For example, we want to see what sort of effects there would be on children who are getting chemotherapy treatment, and how this might impact them later on in their lives. Maybe if we can see what kind of mechanisms are going on in the brain we can understand what we can do to mitigate the side effects. In the end, that’s our goal, to see how our work in the lab can help people.”

Combatting the effects of cancer has always resonated with Kovalchuk. For years she has been among the country’s leading fundraisers for the annual Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation CIBC Run for the Cure Post Secondary Challenge. Her professional goal is to become a radiation oncologist, but only after she completes her PhD in neuroscience.

“I want to get into medical school, it’s a big goal of mine, but I want to have a PhD before that because I would like to continue with research if I become a doctor,” she says. “I’d like to mesh the patient aspect with the clinical research aspect and enjoy both worlds.”

Kovalchuk credits Kolb for helping her discover her passion for neuroscience and a thirst for discovery.

“He helped me build up my love for neuroscience until I just realized that it was the right thing for me all along,” says Kovalchuk. “He’s guided me through all of this, and really helped me through all these years. I wouldn’t change anything about my education. He’s been a great mentor, and I’m really thankful to have had the opportunity to work in his lab.”

Cancer-fighting properties of the buffalo bean being investigated by U of L research team

caroline.zentner — Tue, 02 Jun 2015 16:39:23 +0000

Biology professor and cancer researcher Dr. Roy Golsteyn may have found the building blocks to a new cancer-fighting drug — and it was growing in the prairie landscape outside his ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge lab all along.

Golsteyn says the need for new cancer drugs is constant and, as a scientist who’s worked in the pharmaceutical industry, he knows some of the best drugs come from plants.

Alessandra Bosco, a master's student, harvests a buffalo bean plant from the coulee slopes at the U of L.

Dr. Sophie Kernéis-Golsteyn, fellow researcher and married to Roy, was the principal investigator in a study that examined extracts of the buffalo bean (Thermopsis rhombifolia) for anti-cancer effects.

“In the lab, the buffalo bean showed anti-cancer activity right away,” says Golsteyn. “Because it was such a great candidate, we were able to identify how we think the buffalo bean will be able to stop cancer cells. We predict it will limit cell growth by inhibiting an enzyme that’s needed for some types of cancer cells to grow.”

Pharmaceutical companies have identified which types of cancers depend on the enzyme and they’ve developed synthetic compounds to inhibit it. However, the synthetic compounds aren’t performing the way researchers hoped they would.

“Now, here’s a natural plant compound that appears to do what an oncologist would like it to do. So, were we lucky? Absolutely, but you have to look first to be lucky and that’s why Alberta plants are so interesting — no one has really ever looked,” he says.

Golsteyn’s lab is currently working with Pierre Fabre Laboratories, a French pharmaceutical company with expertise in natural products chemistry, to do further analysis to identify the chemical compound that gives the buffalo bean its cancer-fighting properties.

“Together, we hope to know precisely what the chemical is and then a decision can be made whether this is valuable medicine or not. Even if it doesn’t work as we hope, then we’ll learn something and if it does work, we’ll see how far it goes. It would be quite nice if our little area in Alberta can give rise to a much-needed cancer drug,” says Golsteyn.

At the request of Pierre Fabre Laboratories, Golsteyn and his team recently harvested 10 kilograms of buffalo bean plants growing on ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ property under the watchful eye of Dr. John Bain, a biology professor and director of the U of L’s herbarium, to ensure the harvest was done in a sustainable fashion. After the plants have been dried and processed, they’ll be shipped to France for further analysis.

After the French lab purifies compounds from the buffalo bean, Golsteyn’s lab conducts further tests. Depending on the results, both research partners decide whether the compound can be further developed as an anti-cancer drug.

“I want to thank people who donate to charities like the Alberta Cancer Foundation and the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge because those funds have helped us undertake this important research,” says Golsteyn. “It has also given us opportunities to train the next generation of cancer scientists here in Lethbridge.”

The U of L’s unique location may yield other cancer-fighting plants as well. Golsteyn’s team is also looking at another flower that is a member of the sunflower family. Animals won’t eat this flower and First Nations recognized it as traditional medicine. Previous research has shown the plant is toxic to cancer cells and Golsteyn and his team of researchers want to know why. The plant has gone through a battery of tests in the lab and the results show promise. A natural product chemist at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of British Columbia is conducting detailed analysis of the plant compounds.

“We’re very excited about it,” says Golsteyn, adding a publication on the results should be forthcoming sometime this year.

He also invites community members, including ranchers, to contact him if they know of other interesting plants.

Canada Foundation for Innovation investment to support creation of cutting-edge cellular imaging research centre

trevor.kenney — Fri, 29 May 2015 17:24:48 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge will embark on the creation of a new interdisciplinary research facility that promises to be Canada’s leading cellular imaging research centre thanks to a $2 million investment from the Government of Canada’s Canada Foundation for Innovation.

The Cell Signaling Interdisciplinary Research Centre (CSIRC) is a facility that will bring together researchers from neuroscience, biochemistry and biological sciences.

Today, the Honourable Ed Holder, Minister of State (Science and Technology), announced more than $333 million for new research infrastructure that Canadian researchers will use to advance Canadian knowledge in areas ranging from mood disorders and robotics to food security and the search for new planets.

At the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, the $2,098,277 investment towards Dynamic Brain Mapping: Cell signaling to systems function, will create the Cell Signaling Interdisciplinary Research Centre (CSIRC), a facility that will bring together researchers from neuroscience, biochemistry and biological sciences.

“We plan to create Canada’s leading cellular imaging research centre to make fundamental discoveries on how dynamic regulation of brain and other systems activity determines risk for important diseases,” says lead investigator Dr. Robert Sutherland, Board of Governors Research Chair in Neuroscience. “These discoveries will provide new, key targets for developing prevention and therapy strategies.”

Sutherland, who will work closely with fellow neuroscientists Drs. Aaron Gruber, Andrew Iwaniuk, Bryan Kolb, Robert McDonald, Bruce McNaughton, Gerlinde Metz and Majid Mohajerani as well as Drs. Olga Kovalchuk (biological sciences) and HJ Wieden (biochemistry), explains how the new facility will extend the scope of researchers who are currently studying basic processes regulating brain health, degenerative disorders, infective agents and cancer.

“Gene expression and epigenetics play a key role in answering how cells learn, how they process, store and distribute information acquired during development,” he says. “CSIRC will enable us to make new discoveries in gene expression, epigenetics and therapeutics in cancer, dementia, developmental brain disorders, stroke and infections.”

Dr. Lesley Brown, the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ’s Interim Vice-President (Research), says the CFI investment recognizes the research expertise present at the U of L.

“Our researchers are respected as leaders in their field and the work they do is of great relevance to important areas of public concern such as health care,” says Brown. “This investment from the federal government is an endorsement of the world-class research being conducted here on campus.”

Nearly all of the infrastructure will enable the usersof the CSIRC group to conduct brain-imaging projects with viral vectors and genetically modified rodents. It will allow the group to move forward their activities, such as health-related research, training and partnering with non-academic collaborators, to that of a world leader.

“Today’s announcement will strengthen Canada’s reputation in science and technology by supporting research infrastructure that will attract world-class talent, train a new generation of students and make discoveries that benefit Canadians in remarkable ways,” says Holder.

Kavanagh explores global phenomenon of atomic tourism

trevor.kenney — Tue, 31 Mar 2015 16:23:22 +0000

It has been 70 years since the world was introduced to the devastating power of an atomic bomb, and as the anniversary of the first detonation approaches, a ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge professor is embarking on a unique project that examines the growing global phenomenon of atomic tourism – one that attracts millions of visitors each year to significant sites of atomic history.

Faculty of Fine Arts professor and artist Mary Kavanagh is in the early stages of a multi-year project that examines atomic tourism as enacted at Trinity, New Mexico, where the first nuclear device was successfully tested on July 16, 1945 near the end of the Second World War. Three weeks later, the United States dropped successive atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan.

Kavanagh has twice been to Trinity, laying the groundwork for her research project. Situated deep in the desert on the White Sands Missile Range in Southern New Mexico, the site is opened to the public only one day per year (the first Saturday in April) and attracts 3,000 to 4,000 visitors annually. Last year, Kavanagh conducted 45 on-site interviews during the annual Open House and assembled a series of compelling video portraits of the people who visited. Kavanagh will return to continue filming at the Trinity Open House on Apr. 4, 2015.

Visitors flock to the White Sands Missile Range in Southern New Mexico for the annual Trinity Open House, the first Saturday of each April.

“Rather than focusing on the historic significance of Trinity, which is well understood, my interest resides in documenting the living history of the site and responding to its continuing cultural and social relevance,” says Kavanagh, whose project is funded by the Canada Council for the Arts and the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge’s Office of Research & Innovation Services. “The interviews I have so far conducted reveal a highly charged, emotional and psychological connection to this place and to the broader nuclear story that continues to resonate for many people. The steady lineup of visitors willing to share their insights in front of the camera was stunning.”

From war veterans to history buffs, peace activists and cancer survivors, Kavanagh has encountered a full range of motivations for visiting. She even met a young couple who exchanged wedding vows at ground zero.

“I am struck by the way people described the site, calling it holy or haunted, a prison, a celebration, sobering and festive. Perhaps it is all these things at once,” says Kavanagh. “We are still nowhere near collectively coming to terms with our relationship to nuclear technology, and though 70 years have passed since the bombs were dropped on Japan, the memory still haunts us, the Cold War quietly simmers, nuclear industry continues to wreak havoc, and a tension remains, carried in the bodies of all of us.”

The project, which will unfold over the next five years and culminate in 2020, the 75th anniversary of the bomb, will ultimately result in a feature-length documentary film.

Atomic Tourist: Trinity follows Kavanagh’s 2012 research and exhibition project entitled Atomic Suite – a cinematic video projection and photographic installation that addresses her time spent with the U.S. military in Wendover, UT. Kavanagh also recently presented a video project, Track of Interest: Exercise Vigilant Eagle 13, at the 2015 Alberta Biennial of Contemporary Art. It was developed from her participation in the Canadian Forces Artists Program.

Since 2007, Kavanagh has been advancing a body of work that examines sites connected to the development of weapons of mass destruction, from the first atomic bomb, to cold war nuclear and chemical weapons testing programs, to the disposal of nuclear weapons stockpiling.

“I have then been interpreting and inscribing the impact of this legacy on the human/animal subject – vulnerable bodies situated within socioeconomic systems that render capital before ecology or ethics.”

Making Strides in Environmental and Medical Science

david.kirby — Thu, 27 Nov 2014 18:36:52 +0000

The horizon for sustainable energy and cancer treatment may soon become a little bit brighter, thanks to pioneering new research being performed by Dr. Nehalkumar Thakor.

Dr. Nehalkumar Thakor is the new Campus Alberta Innovates Program Chair of Synthetic Biology and RNA-based Systems at the U of L.

Thakor is the new Campus Alberta Innovates Program Chair of Synthetic Biology and RNA-based Systems at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge. Appointed to the seven-year position this past September, the microbiologist is undertaking an innovative research program that will explore two distinct aspects of gene expression regulation. The first will look at how to use metabolic engineering and gene expression to produce sustainable energy.

“Humankind is being challenged right now because we are running out of our fossil fuel supply and we need an alternative energy source,” says Thakor, who is also an assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. “My general objective is to study RNA-based system biology, particularly in the area of energy and environment.”

RNA, or ribonucleic acid, is a molecule involved in a variety of biological functions, including coding, decoding, regulating and expressing genes. Thakor’s goal is to try to use RNA to adjust the genetic expression that occurs in the cells of microorganisms. Achieving that would make it possible to then feed microorganisms plant waste that they would then convert into glucose, a core ingredient of biofuel.

This type of biofuel, Thakor says, is more sustainable than the most common alternatives currently available — biodiesel and bioethanol, both of which rely on using agriculture (canola for biodiesel and corn for ethanol) for their production.

“The problem is that lots of arable land is required to produce those biofuels, and this ultimately competes with food production,” he says. He adds that ultimately his research could improve the sustainability of other biotechnological processes, such as those involved in producing antibiotics and biodegradable plastics.

Thakor’s second research priority is to examine the role of gene expression regulation in protein translation during oncogenesis, or the formation of cancer. Specifically, he wants to understand why a regular a cell exposed to stress — such as being deprived of oxygen or nutrients — will die, but a cancer cell will survive.

Much of the existing research on this subject has shown that cancer cells increase the rate of protein synthesis — a vital cellular process that regulates growth and metabolism — which ultimately promotes the survival and progression of cancer. Thakor will investigate the cellular, biochemical, molecular and structural aspects of the regulation of protein translation to determine how these processes affect the development of cancer.

“By learning more about how protein translation occurs in cancer cells, it may provide us with insights into how we can create more effective cancer treatments,” he says.

In addition to his research, Thakor is also developing two new graduate-level elective courses: one on gene expression in health and disease, which he will start teaching in January, and another on immunology.

“I hope my research and teaching can provide students with a basis of understanding of different environmental- and health-related aspects of science and help them go on to become skilled scientists and good doctors,” he says.

Taking a Big-Picture Approach to Health Care

david.kirby — Thu, 27 Nov 2014 17:16:18 +0000

For Dr. Brenda Leung, getting sick as a child meant facing a somewhat daunting remedy: a foul-tasting, homemade herbal concoction prepared by her mother that was tough to swallow – but that ultimately did the trick.

Dr. Brenda Leung is the U of L's Faculty of Health Sciences Emmy Droog Chair in Complementary and Alternative Health Care.

“My mom would always brew these hideous teas, you know, noxious liquids, that I had to consume, but they always made me better,” Leung recalls.

That early introduction to traditional Chinese medicine not only helped treat Leung’s ailments, it ignited a lifelong interest in alternative health care and propelled her to study the field at university, train to become a naturopathic doctor (ND), and now, to be appointed the lead researcher and academic in this diverse and growing field at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge.

Leung is the U of L’s new Faculty of Health Sciences Emmy Droog Chair in Complementary and Alternative Health Care. The $2 million endowed professorship is a first for the Faculty and is made possible through a $1 million gift from Alberta businessman Dr. Tom Droog (LLD í06), whose wife Emmy became an advocate for alternative health treatments during her three-year battle with cancer before succumbing to the disease in 2010.

“One of the main objectives of this five-year professorship is to create educational opportunities for health sciences students to integrate complementary and alternative medicine, or CAM, strategies and modalities into their practice,” says Dr. Chris Hosgood, dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences.

To that end, Leung is developing the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ’s first courses on the subject that will be introduced in January 2015: Introduction to Complementary and Alternative Health Care, which will provide an overview of CAM therapies the public are using; and Evidence-Based Integrative Therapies, which will focus on the methodological rigour and scientific merit of therapies that have been more widely studied.

“Our graduates will see patients or clients already using some form of CAM, and who will come with questions about how they can incorporate CAM therapy into their current treatment. So I think it’s very important for graduates to have some base knowledge about what clients and patients may be using and how that may affect their care,” she says.

The position’s other priority is to establish an evidence-based research program that explores the issues and care practices associated with CAM. Leung’s plans in this area include supporting CAM practitioners to undertake research projects by mentoring and assisting with developing proposals, applying for grants and conducting studies. She also wants to establish the U of L as an international centre of study on CAM by developing partnerships with researchers in the field across Canada and worldwide. She continues to foster interdisciplinary collaborations with scientists from neuroscience, mental health, maternal and child health, and nutrition.

“I want to develop models and strategies, and determine how evidence from CAM research can be effectively implemented into health care,” Leung says. “We’re looking at the whole body, the mind/body connection, so in order for us to understand what’s going on, we need the experience and knowledge from different fields to get the big picture.”

When it comes to better understanding the approaches and benefits of holistic health care, Leung is more than up for the task. Her academic credentials include a PhD in epidemiology and an MSc in health research from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Calgary. She completed her ND at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine. Prior to joining the U of L this past July, she was the director of research at the Boucher Institute of Naturopathic Medicine, had taught at the Canadian Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and held various positions at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Calgary. She is currently a Research Fellow with the Australian Research Centre in Complementary and Integrative Medicine, ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Technology, Sydney. She has numerous research papers and presentations to her credit, and has received multiple research grants.

Leung’s passion for CAM is fuelled by her innate interest in holistic and personalized health care, and its proactive approach of improving overall health. She’s far from alone: a 2007 report by the Fraser Institute found that in 2006, 74 per cent of Canadians had reported using at least one alternative therapy at least once in their lives. Her goal is to raise the profile of CAM research and provide viable health-care options for the public.

“Health care should be about the person, not just the disease,” Leung says. “I think Canadians want more control over their health, and more input into how to address their care.”

U of L students unite to fight cancer

caroline.zentner — Wed, 08 Oct 2014 17:04:06 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Students’ Union (ULSU) and the U of L Bookstore have teamed up to fight cancer through a movement called F*CK CANCER inwykiwyk.

The F*CK CANCER inwykiwyk (an acronym for It’s Not What You Know, It’s Who You Know) movement was designed to give young adults whose lives have been impacted by cancer a way to raise money and attend a charity event that allows them to bond and gain strength from others.

“The U of L Bookstore is proud to partner with the Students’ Union on this important initiative,” says Annette Bright, Bookstore manager. “Cancer affects everyone and we are happy to help support our students as they raise money to help fight this disease.”

Those who want to attend the F*CK CANCER event on Oct. 16 at The Zoo must wear a F*CK CANCER T-shirt to gain entry. Those new to the event can buy a T-shirt, with lettering in a rainbow of colours in support of various types of cancers, at the U of L Bookstore for $25. Those who want to use their T-shirts from last year need only buy a $25 ticket, also available at the Bookstore, to this year’s event.

Riley Miller, ULSU vice-president student affairs, poses with F*CK CANCER T-shirts available at the U of L Bookstore.

The movement began in Montreal in 2010. Julie Greenbaum, one of the movement’s co-founders, wanted to honour her mother who had died after a battle with ovarian cancer. Since then, F*CK CANCER charity events have been held in Ottawa, Toronto, London, Ont. and Los Angeles.

Last September, Riley Miller, now the ULSU vice-president of student affairs, brought the event to Lethbridge and raised $8,000 for the Jack Ady Cancer Centre.

He hopes to raise even more money for cancer this year.

“Ideally, the goal is to go above and beyond that so I hope that people who participated last year had a good time and will come out again and we can raise $10,000,” says Miller.

The event has special significance for Miller since he’s a cancer survivor himself. In 2011, he underwent treatment for Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.

“It’s a different twist on how cancer fundraisers go and bringing awareness to a cause. It reaches out to our age group and instead of mourning, it’s celebrating,” says Miller. “The public is more than welcome to join in on the movement.”

The F*CK CANCER event starts at 9 p.m. Oct. 16 at The Zoo and features several guest DJs.

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