Milica Radisic receives NSERC's John C. Polanyi Award

rahul.kalvapalle — Thu, 14 Nov 2024 17:52:42 +0000

Research & Innovation

rahul.kalvapalle Thu, 11/14/2024 - 12:52

Faculty

St. George

Department of Chemical Engineering & Applied Chemistry

Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering

Institute of Biomedical Engineering

John C. Polanyi Award

NSERC

landscape

Milica Radisic (photo by Sylvie Li / Shoot Studio)

Milica Radisic, a professor in the Institute of Biomedical Engineering and the department of chemical engineering and applied chemistry in the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering, has received the 2024 John C. Polanyi Award from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC).

The award is given to an individual or team whose research has led to a recent outstanding advance in any NSERC-supported field of the natural sciences or engineering. It is named in honour of John Charles Polanyi, University Professor Emeritus in the department of chemistry and recipient of the 1986 Nobel Prize.

Radisic was recognized for her groundbreaking advancements in organ-on-a-chip technology. Her research aims to revolutionize drug testing and tissue engineering by creating lifelike human tissues outside the body.

“This award will advance our goal of understanding the structure-function relationships that shape our native tissues, and continue developing ways to replicate them in the lab,” says Radisic, who holds a Canada Research Chair in Organ-on-a-Chip Engineering. “Polymer chemistry and microfabrication enable us to precisely tailor the mechanical properties and microstructure of our devices to get the cells to grow in a certain orientation or behave in certain ways. That’s what enables our devices to catalyze drug discovery and the study of complex diseases.”

“Through rich collaborations with experts in medicine, polymer science, cell biology and many other fields, Professor Radisic’s work is advancing new ways to diagnose and treat disease, improving the quality of life for people all over the world,” says Christopher Yip, dean of the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering.

“On behalf of the entire faculty, I warmly congratulate her on this well-deserved honour.”

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Karen Maxwell receives John C. Polanyi Award

lanthierj — Tue, 10 Nov 2020 17:34:33 +0000

Karen Maxwell receives John C. Polanyi Award

Research & Innovation

lanthierj Tue, 11/10/2020 - 12:34

Faculty

St. George

NSERC

John C. Polanyi Award

Temerty Faculty of Medicine

Women in STEM

landscape

(Photo by Sylvie Li/NSERC/CRSNG)

Professor Karen Maxwell of the Temerty Faculty of Medicine has received this year’s John C. Polanyi Award in recognition of her ground-breaking discovery and ongoing contributions to the field of biochemistry.

“The John C. Polanyi award is so well-deserved for Professor Maxwell,” said Professor Trevor Young, dean of the Temerty Faculty of Medicine. “She is an original thinker, an outstanding scientist and an excellent mentor and communicator in science.

“Her work is essential to understanding how we can protect people from viruses and bacteria and is foundational to many important fields of medical and scientific inquiry.”

The prize, one of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)’s annual Top Researchers Awards, was announced Nov. 10 by Governor General Julie Payette, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Navdeep Bains, and Professor Alejandro Adem, president of NSERC.

“These researchers exemplify Canada’s culture of curiosity and innovation, and are making the breakthroughs that have the power to improve the lives of all Canadians,” Bains said.

Maxwell leads a team that studies bacteriophages, viruses that infect bacteria. Maxwell and her team discovered that the bacteria Streptomyces – found in soil – produces molecules that stop viruses in their tracks and prevent fast replication. The breakthrough opens up a new method to screen for drugs that could be useful for the treatment of human cancers and viral infections.

“The University of Toronto congratulates Dr. Karen Maxwell on this impressive recognition of her leadership,” said University Professor Ted Sargent, ��˾��ֱ��’s vice-president, research and innovation, and strategic initiatives. “Her research into the immune systems of bacteria, studying how they protect themselves against infection, is having a significant impact and may result in highly effective treatments for devastating diseases.”

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