The federal government has renewed the Tier
1 Canada Research Chairs of two Sunnybrook Research Institute (SRI) scientists.
The research professorship, worth $1.4
million over seven years, is the most prestigious academic award given by the
Government of Canada. It honours outstanding researchers who are recognized by
their peers as world leaders in their fields.
Dr. Dan Dumont, a senior scientist in the
biological sciences platform at SRI, is the Canada Research Chair in Angiogenic
and Lymphangiogenic Signalling. Dumont, who is also a professor in medical
biophysics at the University of Toronto, is studying the growth mechanisms of
blood vessels and lymphatic vessels. Specifically, he is trying to identify the
factors that initiate and govern the growth of these vessels. His aim is to
develop methods that can inhibit or promote these growth processes for
therapies in cancer, diabetes and arthritis, among others. Dumont recently
invented a peptide-based growth factor that is showing promise in restoring
vascular health and accelerating the healing of chronic wounds, like those
experienced by people with diabetes. This discovery is based on his research detailing
the importance of the Tie-2 receptor in the formation of blood vessels.
Dr. Juan Carlos Zúñiga-Pflücker is the
interim director of the biological sciences platform at SRI and the Canada
Research Chair in Developmental Immunology. He discovered how to grow
disease-fighting T cells in vitro, using embryonic stem cells. This method is
now used by hundreds of labs around the world. A professor in immunology at U
of T, Zúñiga-Pflücker uses state-of-the-art technology to study the cellular
and molecular mechanisms governing the immune system. He is trying to
understand how, in response to key molecular signals, stem cells develop into T
cells, which are essential for immunity. Potential clinical applications of his
research include enabling the development of stem-cell-based therapies for
people whose immune systems have been damaged, for example, by the HIV virus or
cancer treatment.
Eight other SRI researchers hold Canada
Research Chairs.
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