Dr. Grant Brown
Development of yeast chassis for synthetic biology applications.
Professor, University of Toronto
Email Address: grant.brown@utoronto.ca
Bio: Development of yeast chassis for synthetic biology applications.
Dr. Alex N. Nguyen Ba
We take advantage of latest synthetic biology approaches to increase the scale or resolution at which we can interrogate the systems biology of the cell.
Assistant Professor of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto
Email address: alex.nguyenba@utoronto.ca
Bio: We take advantage of latest synthetic biology approaches to increase the scale or resolution at which we can interrogate the systems biology of the cell, or to observe the evolutionary process of cell populations under adaptation.
Website: https://annb-lab.github.io/
Twitter: @alex_nguyen_ba
Dr. Christopher Brett
Using humanized S. cerevisiae (baker's yeast) as a platform to develop new medicines.
Associate Professor, Concordia University
Email Address: christopher.brett@concordia.ca
Bio: Using humanized S. cerevisiae (baker's yeast) as a platform to develop new medicines.
Website: https://christoperbrett.wixsite.com/brettlab
Twitter: @drbrettphd
Dr. Codruta Ignea
Our group is interested in sustainable production of chemicals by reprogramming simple organisms, such as yeast, into "smart chassis" to yield customizable products.
Assistant Professor, McGill University
Bio: Our group is interested in sustainable production of chemicals by reprogramming simple organisms, such as yeast, into "smart chassis" to yield customizable products. We apply a multi-disciplinary approach that involve biocatalysis, metabolic engineering, protein engineering and synthetic biology to access and expand Nature’s chemical space for discovery of new molecules with improved biological activities.
Website: https://www.mcgill.ca/bioengineering/codruta-ignea-0
Twitter: @codrutaignea
Dr. Daniel Charlebois
My research program combines physics and synthetic biology to make fundamental advances in our understanding of living systems and to apply this knowledge to the growing problem of antimicrobial resistance.
Professor, University of Alberta
Email address: dcharleb@ualberta.ca
Bio: My research program combines physics and synthetic biology to make fundamental advances in our understanding of living systems and to apply this knowledge to the growing problem of antimicrobial resistance. We develop quantitative mathematical/computational/machine learning models and perform experiments on genetically engineered yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) and pathogenic yeasts (Candida spp.). I am also a faculty advisor for the 2022 UAlberta iGEM team - this years project is to genetically engineering bacteria to detect and destroy human pathogenic fungi!
Website: https://sites.ualberta.ca/~dcharleb/
Twitter: @cLab_UAlberta
Dr. Laura Keffer-Wilkes
I am the primary investigator for the Lethbridge high school iGEM team and the manager of SynBridge, the U of L's synthetic biology maker space.
Instructor & lab manager, University of Lethbridge
Email Address: kefferwilkesl@uleth.ca
Bio: I am the primary investigator for the Lethbridge high school iGEM team and the manager of SynBridge, the U of L's synthetic biology maker space.
Website: https://www.uleth.ca/core-facilities/synthetic-biology
Twitter: @LethHS_iGEM @SynBridge @InnovationRNA
Dr. Thu Thuy Dang
Dang Group integrates biochemistry, chemistry, bioinformatics, and molecular genetics to elucidate and engineer the biosynthesis of valuable small molecules from medicinal plants.
Assistant Professor, University of British Columbia, Department of Chemistry
Email Address: thuy.dang@ubc.ca
Bio: Dang Group integrates biochemistry, chemistry, bioinformatics, and molecular genetics to elucidate and engineer the biosynthesis of valuable small molecules from medicinal plants. Our ultimate aim is to learn and to translate natural metabolism into innovative biotechnologies to meet the ever-increasing demands of high-value chemicals. Our current projects involve: discovering new biosynthetic enzymes and pathways, generating alkaloid structural and functional diversities, and re-constituting natural products metabolism in synthetic biology chassis.
Website: https://sites.google.com/view/plantbiocore/home?authuser=0
Dr. Aashiq Kachroo
We are a systems genetics and synthetic biology group interested in repurposing model organisms by humanizing yeast. Our laboratory aims to engineer human biological processes in simplified cells to study disease and evolution.
Assistant Professor, Concordia University
Email Address: aashiq.kachroo@concordia.ca
Bio: We are a systems genetics and synthetic biology group interested in repurposing model organisms by humanizing yeast. Our laboratory aims to engineer human biological processes in simplified cells to study disease and evolution.
Website: www.kachroolab.org
Twitter: @Kachroo_Lab
Dr. Mads Kaern
I believe that Synthetic Biology will continue to play a significant role in medical innovation, including engineered virus and engineered immune cells that can cure cancer.
Professor, University of Ottawa
Bio: I believe that Synthetic Biology will continue to play a significant role in medical innovation, including engineered virus and engineered immune cells that can cure cancer. I have been part of the Synthetic Biology community since the early 00' and started working in the field with Dr. James Collins on sources of "noisy" signals in gene expression and the engineering of programable cell behaviour by creating "plug-ins" for interfacing synthetic gene networks and natural signalling pathways. To facilitate medical advances, I am member of the Cancer Therapeutics Program at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute and the Regional Genetics Program at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario.
My NSERC-funded Synthetic Biology program uses an integrated genetic network engineering approach to study gene regulatory processes and develop artificial gene control systems. This program is driven by my long-term passion to understand how genomes encode "programs" that control and coordinate cellular behaviour and organismal development and fail during disease. This involves both foundational and applied research, including DNA assembly methods, artificial transcription factors, biological network design, systems modelling and simulation.
I initiated the uOttawa iGEM undergraduate training program soon after I arrived in Ottawa and have been the organizer and the supervisor of the uOttawa iGEM team. Many iGEM team members have continued as graduate students in my program subsequently moved to world-leading institutions including MIT, Cambridge, Harvard and NYU.
Website: UOttawa website
Dr. Elena Kuzmin
We investigate how phenotypes and disease states emerge from the interplay of genetic determinants in yeast and human cells.
Assistant Professor, Centre for Applied Synthetic Biology, Department of Biology, Concordia University
Bio: We are a dynamic research group at the Centre for Applied Synthetic Biology, Concordia University. We investigate how phenotypes and disease states emerge from the interplay of genetic determinants in yeast and human cells. Using a combination of systematic genetic screening (trigenic interaction screens, high-content screens, overexpression screens and CRISPR screens), genome sequencing (bulk and single cell DNA and RNA sequencing), genome engineering and synthetic biology approaches, we aim to enhance our understanding of the genotype-to-phenotype relationship and genome evolution. We pursue several research themes focusing on mapping complex genetic interaction networks, from genetic network rewiring between distantly related yeast species, conditional functional redundancy and divergence of duplicated genes and complex genetic interaction network of large copy number variants in cancer.
Website: https://kuzmin-lab.github.io/
Twitter: @Elenak35
Dr. Sateesh Kagale
We are utilizing Synthetic Biology tools for improving the productivity of agricultural crops. Specifically, we apply precise gene editing tools to improve tolerance to pests, diseases and abiotic stress of economically important agricultural crops, such as wheat, canola and pulse.
Team Leader, National Research Council Canada
Bio: We are utilizing Synthetic Biology tools for improving the productivity of agricultural crops. Specifically, we apply precise gene editing tools to improve tolerance to pests, diseases and abiotic stress of economically important agricultural crops, such as wheat, canola and pulse.
Website: www.nrc.ca
Twitter: @sateeshkagale
Dr. Bogumil Karas
Research in the Karas lab is focused on developing innovative genetic tools to enable the engineering of microbes to produce medicines, DNA storage technologies, food and next-generation fuels.
Assistant Professor, Biochemistry, University of Western Ontario / CEO Designer Microbes
Email Address: bkaras@uwo.ca
Bio: Research in the Karas lab is focused on developing innovative genetic tools to enable the engineering of microbes to produce medicines, DNA storage technologies, food and next-generation fuels. We are using a multi-host system to perform in vivo gene deletions, additions and replacements. This approach was designed to take advantage of existing genetic tools developed for model organisms, including Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Currently, we are developing novel tools for eukaryotic algae: Phaeodactylum tricornutum, Thalassiosira pseudonana and soil bacterium Sinorhizobium meliloti.
Website: https://www.schulich.uwo.ca/biochem/people/bios/Karas.html
Twitter: @BogumilKaras
BioZone
BioZone aims to use Bioengineering to create a sustainable world by making industrial processes more sustainable, remediating humanity's environmental impact, and improving health outcome.
BioZone, Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering, University of Toronto
Bio: BioZone is a Centre for Applied Bioscience and Bioengineering Research at the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering.
BioZone aims to use Bioengineering to create a sustainable world by making industrial processes more sustainable, remediating humanity's environmental impact, and improving health outcome.
For example, to help make industrial processes more environmentally friendly and reduce carbon emissions, we help companies replace petroleum feedstocks with renewable sources, including waste material from agriculture and forestry sectors, by engineering microbes and enzymes that can convert sugars or complex organics (lignin) into value-added chemicals and materials.
BioZone's synbio relevant skills include metagenomics, enzymology, functional genomics, enzyme engineering, metabolic and whole cell modeling, systems biology, computational biology, bioprocess design, techno-economic assessment, and lifecycle analysis.
Website: www.biozone.utoronto.ca
Twitter: @BioZoneUT
Dr. Radhakrishnan Mahadevan
Our group primarily works on engineering metabolism in bacteria and yeast to produce chemicals and therapeutic molecules. Through the use of computational strategies on genome scale metabolic models of these organisms, we identify genetic intervention strategies to enhance target molecule production.
Professor, Associate Chair & Graduate Studies Coordinator, University of Toronto
Email Address: krishna.mahadevan@utoronto.ca
Bio: Our group primarily works on engineering metabolism in bacteria and yeast to produce chemicals and therapeutic molecules. Through the use of computational strategies on genome scale metabolic models of these organisms, we identify genetic intervention strategies to enhance target molecule production. Synthetic biological tools help us assemble and engineer pathways in microorganisms. We use synthetic gene regulatory circuits to dynamically control metabolism in host organisms. The ability to dynamically control metabolism based on environmental inputs finds application in a variety of different areas including therapeutics and industrial biotechnology.
Website: www.lmse.utoronto.ca
Twitter: @LMSE_UofT
Dr. Vincent Martin
We are synthetic biologists with a strong penchant for metabolic engineering and industrial strain improvement. We like yeast but will play with other unicellular bugs as well.
Professor, Concordia University and Co-Director, Centre for Applied Synthetic Biology
Email Address: vincent.martin@concordia.ca
Bio: We are synthetic biologists with a strong penchant for metabolic engineering and industrial strain improvement. We like yeast but will play with other unicellular bugs as well.
Dr. David McMillen
We work on (mainly) microbial synthetic biology, investigating ways to create novel solutions to real-world problems with engineered microbes.
Associate Professor, University of Toronto Mississauga
Email Address: david.mcmillen@utoronto.ca
Bio: We work on (mainly) microbial synthetic biology, investigating ways to create novel solutions to real-world problems with engineered microbes. We pursue several parallel tracks: (1) Combined theoretical and experimental approaches to biological feedback and synthetic implementations of networks that maintain fixed outputs in the face of external disturbances; (2) Expanding the synthetic biology "toolkit" to include novel modes of regulation (including a recruitable T7-based activation system that provides a system to generate programmable, orthogonal sets of transcriptional activators in bacteria); and (3) the motivation for the other two tracks: application to real-world problems including human health in the developed world (working with a multi-PI team on sensing and responding to inflammatory bowel diseases using engineered microbes) and in the developing world (implementing microbe-based antibody detection in blood samples, for low-cost blood screening or diagnosis).
Website: http://www.utm.utoronto.ca/mcmillen-lab/
Twitter: @DaveMcMillen
Dr. Jimin Guo
We develop new methods in the domains of Genomics and Synthetic Biology, using microfluidics and computational biology.
Research Officer, National Research Council Canada
Bio: We develop new methods in the domains of Genomics and Synthetic Biology, using microfluidics and computational biology.
Dr. Ahmad Saleh
Synthetic biology strategies for the biosynthesis of fine chemicals, especially lipid-based drugs and biofuels
Assistant Professor, Université Laval
Email Address: ahmad.saleh@bcm.ulaval.ca
Bio: Our research projects aim at developing synthetic biology strategies for the biosynthesis of fine chemicals, especially lipid-based drugs and biofuels, to render them accessible for human consumption. In addition, we work on the discovery/invention of new fine chemicals that satisfy emerging human needs in health, energy and bioremediation fields. Our research is conducted using synthetic biology (SB) approaches in microbial hosts as platforms, while aiming at a sustainable production of safe and ecological fine chemicals.
Website: http://abdel-mawgoud.com/
Dr. Rebecca Shapiro
My research group at the University of Guelph is developing new CRISPR-based platforms for functional genomic analysis in fungal pathogens.
Assistant Professor, University of Guelph
Email Address: shapiror@uoguelph.ca
Bio: My research group at the University of Guelph is developing new CRISPR-based platforms for functional genomic analysis in fungal pathogens.
Website: http://www.theshapirolab.com/
Twitter: @ShapiroRebecca
Dr. David Stuart
We investigate the potential application of synthetic biology for performing metabolic engineering of yeast, bacteria and cyanobacteria.
Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry, University of Alberta
Email Address: dtstuart@ualberta.ca
Bio: We investigate the potential application of synthetic biology for performing metabolic engineering of yeast, bacteria and cyanobacteria. Current applications include engineering oleaginous yeast and bacteria metabolic pathways for production of high value oleochemicals from cellulosic waste, engineering fermentation inhibitor tolerance into microbial cell factories, construction of microbial cell biosensors for the detection of human and agricultural pathogens, and engineering microbial cell for bioremediation applications.
Website: https://www.ualberta.ca/biochemistry/people/faculty/david-stuart