BHSc Summer 2015 Research Scholarship Recipients
Student
Name
Leon Chalil
Supervisor
Name &
Department
Deborah
Sloboda,
Biochemistry &
Biomedical
Sciences
Anson
Cheung
Sandeep Raha,
Pediatrics
Mimi Deng
Yingu Li,
Biochemistry &
Biomedical
Sciences
Ryan (Yuanyi)
Dong
Jeffrey Weitz,
Medicine
Adam Eqbal
Jonathan
Bramson,
Pathology &
Molecular
Medicine
Salwa Farooqi
Jeffrey
Dickhout,
Medicine
Tony
(Shicheng) Jin
John Lavis,
Clinical
Epidemiology &
Biostatistics
Gynter Kotrri
Christoph
Fusch,
Pediatrics
Research Title and Description
Maternal nutrient excess impacts gut inflammation through ER stress
mediated pathways: The project entails preparation of collected tissue by
extracting RNA, protein, and DNA from them. Samples will be evaluated for targets
of interest by techniques including (but not limited to) qPCR, Western Blotting,
and genomic sequencing.
The role of angiogenesis in placental function: Anson will be using molecular and
cell culture based techniques to understand how stress-dependent signals
regulate the development of blood vessels in the placenta.
Development of biosensor technology for bacterial pathogen detection:
Student will be assisting a graduate student with summer research project. The
goal of the project is to develop biosensors for the detection of various pathogenic
bacteria. Activities will include performing basic biochemical techniques, DNA
purification, handling of radioactive materials, and working with bacteria.
Identification of the Histidine-Rich Glycoprotein {HRG} Binding Domains: The
goal of this project is to identify the complementary binding sites on HRG. This will
entail synthesis and isolation of HRG fragments and comparison of their
interaction with poly phosphates and factor Xlla with that of intact HRG
Modulation T cell metabolism to improve post infusion survival of CAR-T cells
within the tumor microenvironment.
The effect of Type II diabetes on the severity and incidence of acute kidney
injury:
Acute kidney injury (AKI) plays a critical role in causing kidney damage. Research
has shown that patients with type II diabetes can exhibit a decline in renal
function progressively leading to chronic
_kidney disease, however, very few studies exist in understanding the risk of AKI
amongst type II diabetics. As such, this research is taking place to understand the
effects types II diabetes has on AKI.
Exploring Evidence Use in Health Systems and Policymaking: Stakeholder
Dialogues & Citizen Panels: This project aims to understand evidence basedcollective problem solving by policymakers, stakeholders, researchers or citizens in
the context of health systems and policy. This will be done by aiding in the writing
of evidence briefs and citizen briefs to support the Forum's stakeholder dialogues
and citizen panels programs.
Measuring Body Composition in Preterm Infants: It is well established that breast
milk provides the best basis for nutrition of preterm babies as it contains many
beneficial substances like antibodies and growth factors. However, the amount of
macronutrients (fat, protein, and lactose) is often not sufficient and therefore,
needs to be fortified. Current standard fortification does not take into account the
individual variation for the composition of breast milk. Target fortification, a novel
concept, deals with this variation through the measurement of macronutrient
content in individual breast milk samples. This project will aim to compare the
growth outcomes of neonates fed with individually fortified breast milk against
those fed with traditional methods
Microorganisms represent a large reservoir of naturally occurring small molecules,
many of which have medically beneficial bioactivities as anti-microbial,
immunosuppressant, or anti-cancer agents. Bioinformatic analysis of bacterial
genomes has revealed that only a small fraction of predicted natural products
have been discovered to date, and that Nature remains a largely untapped
resource for novel small molecules. My research aims to isolate bacterial species
from a variety of sources, including soil ecosystems and the intestinal
environments of insects, to uncover microbes that produce natural products with
novel, and potentially beneficial bioactivities.
Left-sided Pancreatectomy: A single-institution comparison of Laparoscopic and
Open approacher in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarchoma patients.
Jonsson
(Sihan) Liu
Nathan
Magarvey,
Biochemistry &
Biomedical
Sciences
Peter Malik
Leyo Ruo,
General Surgery
Adam Merlo
Gurmit Singh,
Pathology &
Molecular
Medicine
The Effects of Antidepressant Drugs on Glutamate Signaling from Cancer Cells:
Will evaluate cellular effects of common antidepressant medications on cancer
cells to support our ongoing in vivo studies in cancer-induced depression.
Lucshman
Raveendran
Henry
Szechtman,
Psychiatry &
Behavioural
Neuroscience
Serotonergic modulation of locomotor sensitization to quinpirole and quinpiroleinduced compulsive
Checking: The major purpose of the present project is to identify the
neurochemical mechanism that malfunctions and results in OCD.
Nensi Melissa
Ruzgar
Kristin Hope,
Biochemistry &
Biomedical
Sciences
Nicola Sahar
Stelios
Georgiades,
Psychiatry &
Behavioural
Neuroscience
Global MicroRNA Screen for Nuclear Targets of Msi2: Musashi Homolog 2 (Msi2)
is an RNA-binding protein, with an essential role in murine hematopoietic stem cell
(HSC) function through the translational repression of specific mRNAs. In light of
recent findings that Msi2 can also prevent the maturation of a primary-microRNA
(pri-miRNA) to a mature miRNA in the nucleus of certain cell types, this project
aims to identify the stem cell-specific nuclear targets of Msi2 by measuring global
changes in the mature miRNA pool upon Msi2 deletion in mouse HSCs. The project
has two specific goals: the first is to determine if Msi2 is localized to the nucleus of
mouse HSCs, a prerequisite for regulating pri- miRNA biogenesis and an indication
that its nuclear role is essential for HSC behaviour; the second is to profile global
changes in miRNA expression upon deletion of Msi2 in our recently developed
Msi2 conditional knockout mice. Before and after Msi2 deletion, small and large
RNA fractions will be isolated from conditional knock out mice HSCs. The fractions
will then undergo small RNA-sequencing and confirmatory reverse transcription
PCR to detect any changes in larger pri-miRNA and smaller mature miRNA
transcripts. This work ultimately aims to uncover a novel regulatory mechanism of
HSC behaviour, whereby Msi2 functions to suppress or enhance the biogenesis of
miRNAs important to HSC-fate decisions.
The effect of wait-times on the developmental outcomes of children with ASD in
Ontario's AlP-A Retrospective Risk Factor Study: This is a retrospective study
aimed at investigating the effect of abnormally long wait times on the
developmental outcomes of children with autism in Ontario's publicly funded
treatment program.
Kai Wu
Peter Gross,
Medicine
The inhibitory mechanism of atorvastatin on platelets of eNOS-deficient mice:
The Gross lab has previously pinpointed the antiplatelet mechanism of
Joshua Xu
Jonathan
Schertzer,
Biochemistry &
Biomedical
Sciences
Helen
(Huaying)
Zhao
Laurie Doering,
Pathology &
Molecular
Medicine
Eric (Yu Hang)
Zheng
Bruce
Wainman,
Pathology &
Molecular
Medicine
Huize Zhong
Geoff
Werstuck,
Medicine
Helen Zhu
Cecile Fradin,
Biochemistry,
Physics &
Astronomy
atorvastatin, a commonly taken anti-cholesterol medication, to the PAR4 receptor
pathway in the platelets of
eNOS-deficient mice. The goal of the current research project is to uncover which
part of the PAR4 signaling pathway is affected by atorvastatin treatment in eNOSdeficient mice models.
Prenylation and insulin signaling in adipose tissue: Investigate the role of protein
prenylation in insulin signaling through the application of geranylgeranyl
transferase inhibitors and statins.
Astrocyte Signaling in Autism: The purpose of this project is to compare the
expression of well-characterized astrocyte specific factors from normal mice and
Fragile X knockout mice. Completion of this research will help to elucidate the
molecular characteristics of astrocytes with an autistic phenotype and provide
ways to explore new directions towards treating conditions with autistic features.
The student will learn the essential animal handling procedures and methods
required for micro-dissection of the mouse brain. Tissue culture methods will be
used to isolate, maintain and grow primary astrocytes from mice. The student will
analyze and compare thrombospondin-1 {TSP-1) and Hevin expression in normal
and Fragile X astrocytes by using western blotting, immunocytochemistry and
image analysis techniques. Cell cultures will also be labeled with fluorescent dyes
and structural proteins.
Relative Effectiveness of Different Learning Modalitives in Anatomy Education:
Investigation the effectiveness of different formats of anatomy learning and
causes of superiority of one over another.
Characterization of a mouse model hyperglycemia-induced atherosclerosis;
Effects on the liver: This project will involve the
Measurement and analysis of lipid (hepatic and circulating) and protein (hepatic)
levels from hyperglycemic, glucosamine-supplemented and control ApoF1- mice.
Influence of lipid tail composition and Bax-mediated pore formation