Right Turn: Come one, come all to Signals’ 2018 blog carnival

by Stacey Johnson | Aug 1, 2018

  Two years ago in August, Signals hosted a blog carnival and it was such a success we’ve been doing it ever since. If you are scratching your head at the term “blog carnival” and wondering if this website has been hacked, I recommend you read the section below....

The Betrayal: turning cancer against itself

by Sara M. Nolte | Jul 30, 2018

I honestly believe that we’re living in the most exciting time for cancer therapeutics. The past few years (dare I say decades, even?) have pushed the boundaries of cancer treatment from radiation and chemotherapy to the use of cancer-targeted antibodies, oncolytic...

Going in for the kill: NK cells enter the immunotherapy arena

by Guest | Jul 23, 2018

Erika Siren lives in Vancouver, British Columbia where she is currently a Ph.D Candidate in the University of British Columbia’s Department of Chemistry. Under the supervision of Dr. Jayachandran Kizhakkedathu, Erika develops biomaterials that can be used to...

The long road to commercialization

by Guest | Jul 16, 2018

Carmen Wong completed her PhD studies on creating viruses for cancer research. Since then, she has been working with inventors from universities, accelerators, and startup companies to commercialize their innovations. Carmen was a commercialization analyst with CCRM...

Single-cell RNA sequencing: An emerging superpower in stem cell research

by Guest | Jul 9, 2018

Lyla El-Fayomi is an MSc student in the Molecular Genetics department at the University of Toronto. Under the supervision of Dr. Derek van der Kooy at the Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research, she is currently studying neural stem cells using...

Are blood stem cells hiding inside the bone to avoid sun damage?

by Jovana Drinjakovic | Jul 3, 2018

Blood stem cells may have evolved to inhabit bone tissue to avoid DNA damage from UV rays, a Harvard study suggests. Also known as haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), these cells are tasked with making blood — a medley of about a dozen cell types that move oxygen around...

The Facts around FACT – Part 2

by Sowmya Viswanathan | Jun 26, 2018

Debe Griffin, MSc, ASQ CPGP, has over 20 years of experience in the cell therapy field, both in bench positions and in leadership. Her primary interests are process improvement, quality assurance and regulatory affairs. She is a consultant with FACT Consulting...

The Facts around FACT – Part 1

by Sowmya Viswanathan | Jun 19, 2018

Debe Griffin, MSc, ASQ CPGP, has over 20 years of experience in the cell therapy field, both in bench positions and in leadership. Her primary interests are process improvement, quality assurance and regulatory affairs. She is a consultant with FACT Consulting...

Gene therapy makes inroads to help patients — and clear its name

by Jovana Drinjakovic | Jun 15, 2018

Plagued by failures of early human studies from the 1990s, including the death of a patient, gene therapy is making a comeback with promising results. And it has a tiny virus to thank. After the first 2012 European gene therapy approval for a liver disease, and last...

Right Turn: A perfect blend of coffee and science

by Stacey Johnson | Jun 8, 2018

When I worked for the Alzheimer Society of Canada, I paid attention to studies about coffee and brain health. That was also the time in my life when I started drinking coffee. This had less to do with concern about mild cognitive impairment or dementia, and more to do...