Team:Dalhousie Halifax NS/Who
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Meet the Students
Leah Johnston, President
Leah Johnston is a 4th year Microbiology & Immunology student at Dalhousie. She loves the applications of science involved in her program, which is why she's currently kickin’ it with the iGEM team! When Leah isn't in the lab cloning various genes, you can find her crocheting, playing frisbee, or painting. Leah is hard working and dedicated, and in the future hopes to work her way into medical school!
Alexander Porter, Vice President
Alex Porter is a 4th year Microbiology and Immunology student at Dalhousie. He likes playing video games, listening to rap music, and playing soccer. Alex enjoy many aspects of science, especially microbiology, immunology, and chemistry, but he also enjoys taking history classes. In Alex's spare time he'll most likely be dropping a beat, or napping.
Lucas Jarche, Scribe, Webmaster
Lucas Jarche is from a small town called Sackville, New Brunswick. Here he developed a passion for science, medicine, and technology. Lucas is in charge of three of the genes from the anthocyanin pathway, as well as handling the website and note-taking. In his spare time, Lucas likes to climb rocks, go hiking, read, and waste too much time on the computer.
Khaled Aly, Chair of Fundraising
Khaled Aly is a 4th year Microbiology and Immunology student at Dalhousie University who enjoys research and learning new things. Khaled is 19 years old and from Halifax Nova Scotia. Some of his hobbies include biking, weight lifting, and playing table tennis. He also enjoys playing soccer.
Emma Price, Treasurer
Emma Price is a fourth year Microbiology and Immunology student at Dalhousie University. She is very interested in the field of genetics, from humans to microbes and hopes to continue working in genetics after she graduates. Outside of the lab, Emma plays Field Hockey for the Dalhousie Women's Team, is a teaching assistant for first year biology and volunteers as an English tutor at the Halifax Public Library.
Emma Finlayson-Trick, Ethics Officer
Emma is a third year student studying Microbiology and Middle Eastern history. She is interested in vaccine design, inflammatory response pathways and parasitic infection and is working towards pursuing a career in medical research. When not studying, Emma participates on the Dalhousie Medical Response Team as a Mental Health Responder, dances with the RCMP Highland Dance Troop, volunteers at Autism Nova Scotia and works with zebrafish in the Croll Lab in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics at Dalhousie University.
Paul Bissonnette, Chemist
Paul Bissonnette is a 3rd year Chemistry and Physics Major at Dalhousie. An interest in interdisciplinary work has drawn Paul away from his usual research on battery cells and into cells of a more biological nature! In his spare time, Paul enjoys rock climbing, cycling and backcountry camping.
Eric Pace, Chemical Analyst
Eric is a fourth year animal science student at Dalhousie’s Faculty of Agriculture in Truro, NS. During his studies he has developed a particular interest in genetics and its practical applications in increasing quality of life across the globe. When not studying or working he spends his time horseback riding, reading, or trying to catch up on his laundry.
Meet the Supervisors
John Rohde, Head Supervisor, PI
John Rohde began his training as a bacteriologist as an undergraduate at University of Idaho where he studied gene regulation in Yersinia enterocolitica. Later he earned a PhD at University of British Columbia and then studied at Duke Medical Center, Institut Pasteur, and University of Toronto. Now at Dalhousie University he is an Associate Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology. John became interested in synthetic biology while discussing the topic with his students in his Advanced Microbial Genetics course. In addition to genetics, John enjoys cooking and eating well, camping, and playing with his family-sometimes he tries to do these all at the same time.
Julie Ryu, Supervisor
With her extensive knowledge of gene expression, recombinant DNA construction and genetic engineering, Julie Ryu is integral in her role as Lab Manager of the Rohde Lab since its launch in 2009. As a trained molecular biologist, Julie has experience working in clinical, academic, and government laboratory settings and represents an invaluable resource in her research community. When it comes to her skills set, Julie is a jack-of-all-trades acting as mentor to trainees and students, coordinator of diverse projects, and active researcher in the field of infectious disease and bacterial pathogenesis. In her leisure time Julie can be found hanging out with cats, dominating on the tennis court, or exploring the natural wonders of Nova Scotia.
Vasantha Rupasinghe, Collaborator
Dr. Vasantha Rupasinghe is an Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair in Fruit Bioactives & BioProducts at the Faculty of Agriculture of Dalhousie University. He is also cross appointed with the Departments of Pathology and Pharmacology of the Faculty of Medicine as well as the Faculty of Engineering at Dalhousie. He earned his M.Sc. from Iowa State University, USA and PhD from University of Guelph, Canada. He is the author or co-author of 100+ refereed journal articles, 17 book chapters and 150+ abstracts of conference presentations. His research is focused on investigating the phytochemicals such as anthocyanins for their health promoting biological activities.
Melanie Coombs, Collaborator
Melanie Coombs is a Research Associate and part-time instructor at Dalhousie University. Part of her research examines the mechanisms whereby phytochemicals kill cancer cells. Melanie obtained her PhD in Microbiology and Immunology from Dalhousie University. She has done post-doctoral fellowships at Harvard Medical School and Dalhousie University in infectious diseases and cancer, respectively. She is excited to be a part of the iGEM team!
Other collaborators
Special thanks to Dr. Sophia Stone and Daryl McNeilly of the Dalhousie Biology Department for their contributions of Arabidopsis thaliana tissue samples, cDNA, and overall helpful knowledge that pertained to this project.