Considering science as a career? Look through the window

A high school student’s regular rotation of classes might include geography, math, history and drama, among other subjects. On May 21, 2019, a group of students from Crawford Adventist Academy and St. Augustine Catholic High School flipped the script on that timetable by tossing into the mix a visit to Sunnybrook Research Institute (SRI).

As an outreach extension of their participation in the 2018 Ontario/Gairdner Foundation International Symposium on focused ultrasound, 45 students from the schools, along with four teachers, toured a handful of labs at SRI. In addition to learning about the work done in the labs, the students heard from researchers, PhD students and SRI staff members about what a career in science can afford.

Dr. David Andrews, director of Biological Sciences at SRI, kicked off the tour by welcoming the students. He spoke about the different types of research done at SRI, from discovery to translational, and introduced the day’s agenda.

One of the stopovers was the lab of Dr. Meaghan O’Reilly, a scientist in Physical Sciences at SRI. She and Stecia-Marie Fletcher, a PhD student in her lab, spoke about the difficulty treating cancer that has spread to the spinal cord. The obstacle here is the blood-spinal cord barrier, which prevents harmful substances in the blood from entering the spinal cord, but also denies access to potential therapies. In a water tank, there was a portion of a human spine that the students could examine to demonstrate the technical challenges of treating diseases of the spinal cord and spine—like the bony structure of these parts—with focused ultrasound. This is a noninvasive technology that uses sound waves to achieve a desired therapeutic effect. Scientists at SRI pioneered the technology, and the institute is the only place in Canada to be designated a Centre of Excellence.

Down the hall from O’Reilly and Fletcher was Jarkko Ylanko, a research technician in Andrews’ lab. He discussed some of the devices housed at SRI, including the Opera Phenix, which is used to show protein-protein interactions in live cells. The microscope relies on fluorescence imaging to reveal how and where proteins engage with each other. This allows users to understand better how cells function, which could impact the development of future therapies. Andrews built the unique device in partnership with industry.

Daniel Reid, a Grade 11 student from Crawford, reflected on Ylanko’s talk. “It was very informative and taught us a lot about how cells interact with each other,” he said. “I can see myself doing this.”

The device development lab, part of the Centre for Research in Image-Guided Therapeutics, was another area on the tour. Here, Michael Pozzobon, manager of the advanced machine shop, and Aaron Boyes, a research technician, showed students equipment that enables SRI scientists to design and fabricate new medical technologies. Pozzobon led them through the machine shop, where pieces are manufactured to make medical devices. Boyes profiled the "Disco" high-precision dicing saw, which slices fine-scale layers for miniature ultrasound probes. These are used for imaging purposes, to determine if they are valuable in detecting, diagnosing and treating diseases.

Following this leg of the tour, Geneva Fuina, a Grade 10 student from St. Augustine, was enthused. “I liked seeing all the different medical inventions. I never thought this stuff existed. It’s cool to know how things are advancing and how people even think about all this technology,” the aspiring pediatrician said. “It’s an incredible opportunity to have this experience and be immersed in this environment.”

Kristina Mikloska and Marc Santos guided the students around Dr. Kullervo Hynynen’s lab. Hynynen, director of Physical Sciences at SRI, is a pioneer of focused ultrasound. One area of the body it’s been shown to have great promise in is the brain. Here, it is used to breach the blood-brain barrier. Similar to the blood-spinal cord barrier, the blood-brain barrier shields the brain from danger; however, it also prohibits the entry of potential brain disease therapies. Mikloska and Santos, manager of the lab and a PhD student supervised by Hynynen, respectively, spoke about the focused ultrasound research program and the space’s equipment.

Another stop on the tour was the lab of Dr. Marc Jeschke, a senior scientist in Biological Sciences at SRI and the director of the Ross Tilley Burn Centre at Sunnybrook. Abdikarim Abdullahi, a PhD student in Jeschke’s lab, showed the students slides of healed versus non-healed skin after burns, and highlighted the role of preclinical research in studying the effects of burns. Recently, he spoke about why he chose to do his graduate studies at SRI. Dr. Chris Auger, a postdoctoral fellow, then spoke about the importance of the liver in detoxifying the body after a burn.

Before the students were treated to a pizza lunch, Anthony Tso, a Grade 11 student from St. Augustine, chatted about the day. He said a hospital is about more than the patients being treated within it, and catching a glimpse of the research at SRI was a pleasure. “We don’t get to see [scientists] actually progressing their research behind the scenes every day,” he said. He added that his favourite site was the machine shop.

“The students were engaged, they asked questions, and I could see their sightlines looking at whatever the PhD students and scientists were pointing out,” Erica Brunato, a teacher at St. Augustine, said after the tour. “Different students were interested in different labs, which is why it’s so great that we were able to visit so many. By the end of it, everyone was able to walk away with something.”

The last component of the visit was a panel discussion featuring Abdullahi, Fletcher and Santos. The trio spoke about what led them to their respective PhDs; the challenges associated with completing a doctorate, such as time management; the benefits of working on the industry side; the importance of translational research; and their plans for the future. Students were also given a chance to ask the trainees questions.

Wrapping up, Andrews bid the guests farewell. With tummies full of pizza and brains brimming with science, the students headed back to school to resume their routines.