Research Core Leadership

Dr. Richard Lehner
Vice-Dean, Research (Basic)

Dr. Richard Lehner obtained his undergraduate education in chemistry and biochemistry at the University of Chemical Technology in Prague and then at the University of Toronto, where he also completed his PhD in biochemistry in 1993. He pursued postdoctoral training in biochemistry in France, and returned to Canada to complete a postdoctoral fellowship in biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of Alberta (U of A).

The U of A welcomed Richard as a faculty member in 1998. He is currently a professor in the Department of Pediatrics, as well as an adjunct professor in the Department of Cell Biology and director of a research group on Molecular and Cell Biology of Lipids. Richard has served on multiple departmental and faculty committees, chaired national peer-review grant committees and is a member of several international advisory committees and boards of scientific journals related to lipid and lipoprotein research.

Richard's research focuses on the regulation of fat storage and metabolism, and identifying novel therapeutic targets for lowering hepatic and blood lipid levels. He has received numerous national and international recognition including the Pfizer Cardiovascular Research Award, the Harvard Medical School Anna Lee Memorial Lectureship and the Canadian Lipoprotein Conference Simon Pierre Noel Lectureship.

Colleen Sunderland
Manager, Core Research Facilities

Colleen obtained her BSc in Immunology and Infection and MSc in Virology at the University of Alberta. Her graduate research focused on host-viral interactions during flavivirus infections. In 2016, she joined the Office of Research as a Research Analyst supporting research analytics reporting and internal program management. In December 2022, Colleen was appointed as the Manager of Core Research Facilities where she oversees the financial, human resources, and strategic administration of the seven FoMD core research facilities.

The FoMD core research facilities provide access to state-of-the-art equipment and technical expertise in support of research primarily in the faculty, but also across and outside the University of Alberta. The centralization of facilities allows for not only an efficient mechanism to operate and maintain the associated infrastructure but also for a wider range of researchers (and their research programs) access to this infrastructure. The core facilities include the Cell Imaging Centre, the Flow Cytometry Facility, the Advanced Cell Exploration Core, the Lipidomics Core, and the Transgenic Core. The faculty also supports an Autoclave Repair Core and a Workshop that provide repair, maintenance and fabrication services.