Supervisors

Dr. Carmen Charlton (cgiltner@ualberta.ca)

Research Focus: Vaccine preventable diseases and congenital infections
Disciplines: Infectious disease epidemiology and disease modelling, immunology, biochemistry, molecular biology
Current Research Themes:
  • Epidemiology of rubella, varicella, hepatitis B, HIV, and syphilis in prenatal women in Alberta and Canada.
  • Identification of protective immunity levels in prenatal populations
  • Identification and characterization of HPV genotypes in Alberta and Canadian populations
  • Efficacy of human papillomavirus vaccines in vaccinated cohorts

Dr. Linda Chui (lchui@ualberta.ca) - Currently not accepting new students, PDFs, and trainees

Research Focus: Enteric bacteria, pathogen reduction in food chain
Disciplines: Molecular biology, molecular epidemiology, biochemistry, Interdisciplinary (Chemical and Material Engineering and Medicine)
Current Research Themes:
  • Abundance of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) in cattle and association with clinical infections in the same geographical region
  • Virulence factors associated with STEC (O157 and non-O157)
  • Detection, identification, and surveillance of STEC
  • Development of viable PCR as a diagnostic tool
  • Development of antimicrobial surface for application in the agriculture/food industry and hospital setting

Dr. Andrei Drabovich (andrei.drabovich@ualberta.ca) - Currently recruiting graduate students and PDFs

Research Focus: Clinical Proteomics, Cancer, Biomarker Discovery, Molecular Diagnostics
Disciplines: Proteomics, Mass spectrometry, Bioanalytical chemistry, Biomarkers, Molecular Biology
Current Research Themes:
  • Quantitative proteomics and mass spectrometry
  • Method development
  • Targeted proteomic
  • Prostate cancer
  • Proteogenomics
  • Diagnostics
  • Pathobiology of male infertility
  • Function of testis-specific proteins
  • Protein-protein interactions
  • Protein biomarker discovery and translational research

Dr. Janet A. W. Elliott (janet.elliott@ualberta.ca) - Currently not accepting new students

Research Focus: Interdisciplinary (Engineering and Medicine) Cryobiology and Cryopreservation of Cells and Tissues
Disciplines: Cryobiology, thermodynamics
Current Research Themes:
  • Computer modelling of cell and tissue cryopreservation procedures
  • Interrupted cooling strategies to cryopreservation
  • Cryopreservation of cells in suspension
  • Cryopreservation of tissues including cartilage and corneas

Dr. Jelena Holovati (jelena.holovati@ualberta.ca) - Currently not accepting students

Research Focus: stem cell transplant, cord blood banking
Disciplines: transfusion and transplantation medicine
Current Research Themes:
  • Cell and tissue biomanufacturing
  • Laboratory quality systems

Dr. X. Chris Le (xc.le@ualberta.ca)

Research Focus: Bioanalytical chemistry and environmental toxicology of arsenic
Disciplines: Bioanalytical Technology, Environmental Chemistry, Analytical and Environmental Toxicology, Public Health
Current Research Themes:
  • DNA-protein binding assays
  • DNA damage
  • Novel aptamers
  • Bioanalytical technology
  • Molecular recognition
  • Laser-induced fluorescence
  • Nanomaterials
  • Environmental chemistry
  • Metal speciation
  • Drinking water and food quality
  • Human influence on environment
  • Arsenic health effects
  • Environmental carcinogenesis
  • Cancer treatment

Dr. Elaine Leslie (eleslie@ualberta.ca) - Currently accepting new graduate students and PDFs

Research Focus: Biotransformation and transmembrane transport of carcinogens
Disciplines: Toxicology, Cellular Transport , Physiology, Pharmacology, Molecular Biology
Current Research Themes:
  • Hepatobiliary transport of arsenic
  • The role of multidrug resistance proteins (ABCCs) in arsenic detoxification
  • Cellular localization of glutathione S-transferase P1 (GSTP1)

Dr. Xing-Fang Li (xingfang.li@ualberta.ca)

Research Focus: Analytical Development and Applications
Disciplines: Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry, Environmental Microbiology and Health, Water Research, In vitro Toxicology
Current Research Themes:
  • Analytical Technology
  • New chromatographic separations
  • Tandem mass spectrometry
  • Protein-drug interactions
  • Water Disinfection Byproducts
  • Ultra sensitivity determination
  • Formation and occurrence
  • New DBP toxicity
  • Pathogen Detection
  • Affinity capture techniques
  • Detection Techniques
  • Culturable and VBNC bacteria
  • Cell Electronic Sensing
  • New In vitro techniques
  • Nanoparticles and air particulates
  • Drug screening and biomonitoring

Dr. Gregory J. Tyrrell (gjt@ualberta.ca)

Research Focus: Streptococcal pathogenesis and epidemiology of Streptococci
Disciplines: Bacterial Pathogenesis, molecular biology, epidemiology, biochemistry
Current Research Themes:
  • Group B streptococcal (GBS) pathogenesis
  • How GBS invade cells, proteins involved.
  • Novel GBS virulence factors
  • Epidemiology of Streptococcus pneumoniae in Alberta and Canada.
  • Effects of pneumococcal vaccines.
  • Identification of new pneumococcal strains in Canada
  • Invasion of host cells by Group A streptococci
  • Identification and characterization of new Group A streptococci in Canada
  • Identification of novel streptococcal species in Canada.

Dr. Hongquan Zhang (hongquan@ualberta.ca)

Research Focus: Bioanalytical technology, Ultrasensitive detection, Homogeneous assays, DNA nanomachines.
Disciplines: Bioanalytical chemistry, DNA nanotechnology, Functional nucleic acids, Point-of-care testing, Molecular diagnosis, Early detection of disease
Current Research Themes:
  • Exploration of binding-induced DNA assembly to develop bioanalytical tools for ultrasensitive and point-of-care detection of biological targets.
  • Development of fluorescent nanosensors for real-time detection of specific biological targets under cellular environment.
  • Construction of target-triggered DNA nanomachines and nanodevices.
  • Development of novel affinity ligands by generation, modification, and manipulation of functional nucleic acids.