News and Announcements (2006):

Return to present "News and Announcements"

Dean Hindmarsh appointed to Ontario Pharmacy Council
Posted: December 4, 2006

K. Wayne Hindmarsh, dean of the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, has been appointed to the Ontario Pharmacy Council.

Announced in November by George Smitherman, Minister of Health and Long-Term Care, the council will provide expert advice to the Minister and ministry officials on pharmaceutical policy, review the delivery of pharmaceutical services in Ontario, advise on education and training programs, and build a strong working relationship between the government and the pharmacy profession.

For more information, please visit the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care website.

Faculty welcomes Stéphane Angers and Shana Kelley
Posted: November 21, 2006

Stéphane Angers Photo by Pascal Paquette	Shana Kelley Photo by Jodi Hilton

The Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy recently welcomed Stéphane Angers from the Université de Montréal and Shana Kelley from Boston College. Angers is conducting research into cell-cell signaling. His lab is concerned with two specific families of proteins important in the signaling process, and how diseases, such as cancer, can result when processes associated with these proteins malfunction. Kelley is developing new technologies for the detection and diagnosis of disease. Her lab is particularly interested in cancer diagnosis, and has advanced several approaches in detecting biomarkers for the disease.

UPS host barbeque for undergraduate students
Posted: September 25, 2006

Guri Giaever awarded Canada Research Chair
Posted: July 20, 2006

The Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy is well positioned to advance the field of functional genomics and chemical genetics with the appointment of Guri Giaever, the Canada Research Chair in Chemical Genetics. The assistant professor recently transferred her laboratory from Stanford University's Genome Technology Center to the University of Toronto's Terrence Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research (CCBR).

Originally trained as an electrical engineer, Giaever went on to pursue a biophysics degree at Harvard and postdoctoral work on RNA viruses in Boulder, Colorado, before joining Stanford in 1997.

Today, Giaever is excited about continuing the cutting-edge work she began in the United States. “The U of T lab is the most concentrated spot for this kind of research,” she says. “This is definitely the best place in the world for the work I am doing.”

Functional genomics is having a dramatic impact on medicine because it identifies the genes and mutations involved in disease. It pinpoints the biochemical role of a newly discovered gene within cells to understand how this role might be related to disease pathways. Giaever's lab will use yeast as a model to identify targets of drugs when they are unknown, using an assay she developed at Stanford.

With a grant from the National Human Genome Research Institute, shared with Stanford, Giaever's goals are to identify as many compounds against essential genes as possible and to identify potentially new chemotherapeutic targets - looking for any compound that slows down the growth of a cell, which is essentially how many cancer drugs work. After just 12 months, this risky project has already identified several new cellular drug targets and potential proto-drugs.

In the long term, Giaever will transfer her expertise beyond yeast, and with the support of U of T biologists and computer scientists, develop high-throughput compound screens in higher organisms. “Chemogenomics is a new field with very few practitioners, many of whom are at the U of T. We hope and intend to develop a screening centre where scientists of diverse backgrounds can assemble, share their knowledge, build their own assays and use our industrial-scale compound libraries,” says Giaever.

Giaever is looking forward to the collaborative effort such ambitious work entails. “Our success will be a result of the scientific synergy at the U of T, the collaborative atmosphere here is fantastic,” she says. “It's an honor to be part of the Faculty of Pharmacy and the CCBR, the knowledge and expertise here is an incredible scientific resource.”

Graduate students get a GRIP on presenting research
Posted: May 29, 2006

While their research interests may vary – from insulin delivery to herbal product regulation and the education of pharmacists – graduate students in the department of pharmaceutical sciences have at least one thing in common.

Graduate Research in Progress, or GRIP, is an annual event that provides students with the opportunity to hone their presentation skills while showcasing their research findings to fellow students, faculty and industry professionals. Participation in the event is a program requirement for MSc and PhD programs.

Sponsored and hosted by Merck Frosst Canada, the 17th annual GRIP symposium was held at the Medical and Related Sciences building, or MaRS, on May 18, 2006.

This year’s event featured a wide breadth of research from the department’s main disciplines: pharmacokinetics, pharmaceutics, drug metabolism, toxicology, physical biochemistry and social pharmacy. Thirty-two students presented their research findings as either posters or oral presentations.

“Our graduate students meet the highest standards and represent the future of research in pharmaceutical sciences,” said department chair Professor Reina Bendayan. The department now boasts almost 150 graduate students, up from 50 in 1998. The high-calibre of the students, said Bendayan, is further evidenced by the $700,000 they have attracted in graduate student scholarships this year.

For most students, the idea of getting up behind a podium and presenting research findings can be a daunting prospect. But there are benefits to the process, says student Emmanuel Ho. “You learn from your colleagues while you practice your presentation skills. It also helps you get used to answering questions.” Ho, who is completing the fifth and final year of his PhD, presented his findings on the effectiveness of paclitaxel in treating ovarian tumours.

During her opening remarks, Dr. Susan Grant, manager of business development at Merck Frosst Canada, said to the students, “Your work is very analogous to what we do. Science is a critical part of innovation in health care.”

Several students were recognized for both their research progress and presentation skills. PhD student John Leombruno won best oral presentation for “Effect of infliximab on consumption of corticosteroids over the first 12 month period in gastroenterology patients: analysis of a prescription claim database” and “Consumption of physician services prior to and after infliximab therapy as prescribed by gastroenterologists: an analysis of prescription claims database.”

“Composition–property relationships of chitosan-egg phosphatidylcholine films for use in drug delivery,” by PhD student Justin Grant, and “Sucrose reduces pain during intramuscular vitamin k injection in newborns,” by MSc student Ryan Smith, tied for best poster presentation.

• Click here for archives of "News and Announcements" (2008)
• Click here for archives of "News and Announcements" (2007)
• Click here for archives of "News and Announcements" (2006)
• Click here for archives of "News and Announcements" (2002-2005)

Watch the official opening of the Leslie L. Dan Pharmacy Building