U.S. National Academy of Sciences

Brenda Andrews elected to the U.S. National Academy of Sciences

lanthierj — Thu, 14 May 2020 19:08:36 +0000

Brenda Andrews elected to the U.S. National Academy of Sciences

Research & Innovation

lanthierj Thu, 05/14/2020 - 15:08

Faculty

St. George

U.S. National Academy of Sciences

Donnelly Centre for Cellular & Biomolecular Research

Women in STEM

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(photo by Jovana Drinjakovic)

University Professor Brenda Andrews has been elected to the U.S. National Academy of Sciences – one of the highest honours awarded to a scientist worldwide.

Andrews is the Charles H. Best Chair of Medical Research in �鶹��Ƶ’s Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research and a professor in the department of molecular genetics in the Faculty of Medicine. She was recognized for her “outstanding contributions to functional genomics,” a field that seeks to reveal how genes and other cellular components operate on a systems level.

With her long-term collaborator Charles Boone, also a professor of molecular genetics in the Donnelly Centre, Andrews pioneered automated large-scale genetic studies in yeast cells. This led to the first global view for any cell type of how its genes and their protein products cooperate to sustain cellular function.

Her lab was also among the first to develop AI-powered computer vision tools for the automated analysis of cell microscopy images, accelerating advances in the field of cell biology.

Under Andrews' leadership, the Donnelly Centre has become internationally recognized as a leading biomedical research hub. The former chair of �鶹��Ƶ’s Banting & Best Department of Medical Research and Department of Medical Genetics, she also served as the inaugural director of the genetic networks program at the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR). An international member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Academy of Microbiology, she is also a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and a Companion of the Order of Canada.

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Spencer Barrett elected to U.S. National Academy of Sciences

lanthierj — Thu, 14 May 2020 18:58:27 +0000

Spencer Barrett elected to U.S. National Academy of Sciences

Research & Innovation

lanthierj Thu, 05/14/2020 - 14:58

Faculty

St. George

U.S. National Academy of Sciences

Faculty of Arts & Science

Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology

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(photo by Diana Tyszko)

Spencer Barrett of the department of ecology and evolutionary biology in the Faculty of Arts & Science has been elected to the U.S. National Academy of Sciences – one of the highest honours awarded to a scientist worldwide.

University Professor Emeritus Barrett is a fellow of the Royal Societies of Canada and London and a foreign honorary member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

His research addresses diverse questions, with a focus on understanding evolutionary transitions in plant reproductive systems, floral biology and contemporary evolution in invasive plants.

Barrett won the Flavelle Medal from the Royal Society of Canada and the Sewall Wright Award from the American Society of Naturalists. He has been president of the Canadian Society for Ecology and Evolution and is the Editor-in-Chief of the Proceedings of the Royal Society of London Series B.

He has published more than 300 articles, trained over 40 graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, and has past and present collaborations with researchers around the world including in Brazil, China, Portugal and South Africa.

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Lewis Kay elected member of U.S. National Academy of Sciences

lanthierj — Thu, 14 May 2020 17:15:10 +0000

Lewis Kay elected member of U.S. National Academy of Sciences

Research & Innovation

lanthierj Thu, 05/14/2020 - 13:15

Faculty

St. George

U.S. National Academy of Sciences

Faculty of Medicine

Faculty of Arts & Science

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Lewis Kay has been elected an international member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences – one of the highest honours awarded to a scientist worldwide.

A University Professor in the departments of molecular genetics and biochemistry in the Faculty of Medicine, and in the department of chemistry in the Faculty of Arts & Science, Kay is also a senior scientist at The Hospital for Sick Children. He is renowned for his research in the field of nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR), a technology that enables scientists to capture images of proteins at work inside cells.

Kay and his lab have made key contributions to the development of NMR, helping scientists around the world gain insights into the structure and function of protein molecules in diabetes, cancer, heart disease and other conditions. Kay and his colleagues have applied the technology to better understand neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease.

Kay's many awards include the Khorana Prize from the Royal Society of Chemistry, the Gairdner Foundation International Award, and the Herzberg Medal from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. He is an officer of the Order of Canada.

Medicine

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