Page 5 - EUREKA Winter 2017

Chris Roussakis

Carleton’s support for cross-disciplinary research is one of the factors that drew Kyle Biggar back to the university for his first faculty post.

Deciphering cancer’s secrets by the university’s approach to
cross-disciplinary research. “That’s
something I was definitely looking
When a cancerous tumour grows and aggressiveness, and resistance to for in a job,” he says. “Some of my
larger and develops a critical mass, chemotherapy.” highest-impact work has been the
its core is deprived of oxygen, yet This research could not only lead result of collaboration, which lets you
the cells adapt to these hypoxic to new therapeutics for breast cancer take on problems that you wouldn’t be
conditions. Identifying and targeting — which is the most common cancer able to tackle by yourself.”
the mechanisms these cells use to among women, impacting one in nine Biggar’s doctoral research,
survive could lead to new strategies Canadian women — but it also has supervised by veteran biology and
for drug development and treatment, applications for other forms of the chemistry professor Ken Storey,
a promising research front that has disease, including prostate cancer explored mechanisms that allow
earned Carleton professor Kyle Biggar and leukemia. Although any potential animals to adapt to and endure severe
a John Charles Polanyi Prize from the therapies are at least several years environmental stresses. He was part
Ontario government for outstanding away, the advances during Biggar’s of a team that investigated how wood
early-career research. postdoc are now a year into animal frogs survive the winter by freezing
“I want to do work that has a direct solid, and part of an international
bearing on human health,” says effort that was the first in the world
Biggar, who joined Carleton’s Institute “Collaboration lets you to sequence a turtle genome. “Kyle
of Biochemistry in September after take on problems that you is tremendously hard working and an
completing a pair of postdoctoral excellent multi-tasker,” says Storey.
fellowships at Western University, wouldn’t be able to tackle “There are a lot of good scientific ideas
where the research that led to this by yourself.” out there and, like a blue-collar job,
award was conducted. you have to be willing to work hard at
“I look at research from A to Z. yours every day.
Specifically, we’re looking at basic trials. Initial results are positive, and “Kyle also makes his team better.
cellular signalling and protein function, the next step will likely be a major He’s not just standing in front of the
documenting it and characterizing paper published in an international net, tipping in goals, to use a sports
it, and then using that information journal this summer. metaphor. Some students are really
to design peptide-based inhibitors Bigger, who earned his PhD good but work best by themselves.
that stop the processes that at Carleton, was drawn back to Kyle helps the people around him learn
contribute to tumour progression Ottawa for his first faculty position and improve too.”

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