Previous Announcements
Taye Louie awarded CIHR Canada Graduate Scholarship
April 2, 2025
Congratulations to Taye Louie, MSc Student supervised by Dr. Doug Mahoney, on being awarded the CIHR Canada Graduate Master's Scholarship.
Introducing Dr. Joanna Pyczek, Staff Scientist and Biocorrelative Studies Lead
April 1, 2025
We are excited to welcome Dr. Joanna Pyczek in her new role within the Riddell Centre as a Staff Scientist and Biocorrelative Studies Lead. Within this new role, she will coordinate the intake and processing of biocorrelative samples for the upcoming GCAR1 phase 1 trial.
Introducing Aarthi Pugazenthi, Research Technician
April 1, 2025
Welcome Aarthi Pugazenthi, who is joining the Riddell Centre as a Research Technician, focused on establishing patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models, studying tumor characteristics, and performing histological processing, including H&E and IHC staining.
Dr. Sorana Morrissy receives Arthur Child Catalyst Grant
March 31, 2025
Congratulations to Dr. Sorana Morrissy on receiving an inaugural Arthur Child Catalyst Grant for her research in advancing new immunotherapy for glioblastoma using mRNA and lipid nanoparticle technology to overcome treatment resistance in aggressive brain cancers.
Dr. Jongbok Lee receives Arthur Child Catalyst Grant
March 31, 2025
Congratulations to Dr. Jongbok Lee on receiving an inaugural Arthur Child Catalyst Grant for his research in enhancing adoptive cellular therapy for acute myeloid leukemia by integrating exercise science with immunotherapy for more effective and safer treatments.
Dr. Theodore Verhey named Lead of the Data Science Enabler
March 24, 2025
Welcome Dr. Theodore Verhey to his new position as Lead of the Data Science Enabler at the Riddell Centre, and in the Integrated Sarcoma Research Program (iSARP). In his new role, Dr. Verhey will lead computational activities, oversee staff, and provide educational initiatives for trainees.
Congratulations to the 2025 Riddell Centre Summer Studentship Recipients
March 21, 2025
We are pleased to share the recipients of the inaugural Riddell Centre Summer Studentship for Cancer Immunotherapy Competition. Congratulations to Dylan Remington, supervised by Dr. Pierre Billon. and Andrea Monsalve, supervised by Dr. Candice Poon, who will be working in our labs this summer.
Dr. Enoch Tin awarded ACHRI Postdoctoral Fellowship
March 12, 2025
Congratulations to Dr. Enoch Tin, Postdoctoral Fellow supervised by Dr. Jongbok Lee and co-supervised by Dr. Sorana Morrissy, who has received the Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute Postdoctoral Fellowship.
Dr. Fatemeh Mashayekhi awarded RDSC Postdoctoral Fellowship
March 12, 2025
Congratulations to Dr. Fatemeh Mashayekhi, Postdoctoral Fellow supervised by Dr. Pierre Billon, who has been awarded the Robson Postdoctoral Fellowship in DNA Science.
Dr. Sorana Morrissy named Brain Tumour Program director
March 11, 2025
Congratulations to Dr. Sorana Morrissy on her recent appointment as the Director of the Calgary Brain Tumour Program. In her new role, Dr. Morrissy aims to strengthen collaboration, advance data-driven research, and drive innovation in diagnostics and treatment.
Dr. Kyle Potts and Dr. Jongbok Lee awarded ScaleReady G-Rex Grant
March 10, 2025
Congratulations to Dr. Kyle Potts and Dr. Jongbok Lee, who have been awarded the ScaleReady G-Rex Grant, receiving an in-kind contribution of $300,000 USD to support the large-scale manufacturing of double-negative T cells in a closed-system platform.
Trainees named BioCanRx Learning Institute Participants
March 10, 2025
Congratulations to Jessica López Espinosa and Heejae Lee, MSc trainees supervised by Dr. Jongbok Lee, who have been selected as two of the eight Learning Institute Recipients by BioCanRx, providing them the opportunity to engage with patient partners and attend the upcoming 2025 Summit4CI.
Shannon Snelling awarded 2024 Charbonneau Institute Director's Award
March 10, 2025
Congratulations to Shannon Snelling, PhD Candidate supervised by Dr. Jennifer Chan, who has received the 2024 Charbonneau Institute Director's Award for her excellence in trainee leadership, volunteerism, and mentorship.
Shanshan Wang named Women's Resource Centre award recipient
March 7, 2025
Congratulations to Shanshan Wang, PhD Candidate supervised by Dr. Jongbok Lee, on receiving the WRC Distinguished Graduate Student Award.
Dr. Saif Sikdar featured in Alberta Cancer Foundation's Report to the Community 2024
March 3, 2025
Congratulations to Dr. Saif Sikdar on being featured within the Alberta Cancer Foundations Report to the Community 2024. Saif recently won funding through ACF's breakthrough fund to support his new company, Oncobiotix.
Recent publication in Blood Cancer Discovery
February 10, 2025
Lee, J., Tin, E., Rutella, S. et al. SOCS1 protects acute myeloid leukemia against allogeneic T cell-mediated cytotoxicity. Blood Cancer Discovery (2025).
Dr. Kathy McCoy receives CIHR Fall 2024 Project Grant
February 10, 2025
Congratulations to Dr. Kathy McCoy on her successful CIHR Fall 2024 Project Grant for her research in "Determining the role of the microbiome and microbial metabolites in enhancing the efficacy of CD19 directed CAR-T cell therapy of B cell malignancies".
Dr. Mansour Poorebrahim awarded Riddell Postdoctoral Fellowship for Cancer Immunotherapy
February 5, 2025
Congratulations to Dr. Mansour Poorebrahim, supervised by Dr. Nizar Bahlis, who has received a Riddell Centre Postdoctoral Scholarship for whose research focuses on enhancing CAR T-cell therapy in challenging environments.
Dr. Jonathan Low awarded Riddell Postdoctoral Fellowship for Cancer Immunotherapy
February 5, 2025
Congratulations to Dr. Jonathan Low, supervised by Dr. Nicole Culos-Reed and co-supervised by Dr. Jongbok Lee, who has received a Riddell Centre Postdoctoral Scholarship for his research in exploring the intersection of exercise and cancer treatment outcomes.
Learn more about the Riddell Centre's Research Projects
Learn more about the cutting-edge methods and research projects being led by Riddell Centre investigators that are advancing cancer treatment by developing innovative cell and immune therapies.
Recent publication in J Exp Clin Cancer Res
January 28, 2025
Lee, J., Kang, H., Chen, B. et al. Allogeneic DNT cell therapy synergizes with T cells to promote anti-leukemic activities while suppressing GvHD. Journal of Experimental & Clinical Cancer Research (2025).
Dr. Johnathan Canton awarded funding from Riddell Centre
January 14, 2025
The Riddell Centre is delighted to announce that Dr. Johnathan Canton has been awarded funding for his project, Chimeric Antigen Receptors That Signal for Cross-Presentation (CAR-XP): An Immunotherapeutic Strategy for Generating Robust Anti-Cancer T Cell Responses.
Dr. Kevin Hay awarded funding from Riddell Centre
January 14, 2025
The Riddell Centre is delighted to announce that Dr. Kevin Hay has been awarded funding for his project, Investigating T Cell Factors That Impact Manufacturing of Patient-Derived Autologous CAR T Cells (IMPACT), to advance innovative research within the Centre.
Dr. Vishal Navani named recipient of Marathon of Hope Cancer Centres Network Initiative
December 17, 2024
Congratulations to Dr. Vishal Navani and his research team on their successful application to the MOHCCN's Patient Voices in Research Initiative, for their project titled "PROPEL: Patient Reported Outcomes of People Experiencing Lung Cancer".
Genomic technology improves disease treatment in Calgary
December 15, 2024
Dr. Pierre Billon's innovations in genomic editing are transforming cancer treatments and medical diagnostics. Listen to Dr. Billon share details on two tools to improve the detection and treatment of cancer and other diseases, with Radio-Canada.
Doug Mahoney receives expanded funding from BioCanRx
December 2, 2024
Congratulations to Dr. Doug Mahoney who has received funding from BioCanRx for his existing research project, A Phase I Study of GCAR1, a Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T-cell Therapy for Patients with Selected Relapsed / Refractory GPNMB-Expressing Solid Tumors.
Dr. Kevin Hay receives expanded funding from BioCanRx
December 2, 2024
Congratulations to Dr. Kevin Hay who has received funding from BioCanRx for his existing research project, CTA submission for TITAN-01 (Thymic Treg Immune Therapy AgaiNst GVHD).
Introducing Rebecca Malott, Quality Control Lead
November 25, 2024
Welcome Rebecca Malott, who is joining the Riddell Centre as the Quality Control Lead in the Biomanufacturing Program. In her new role, Rebecca will oversee QC activities for cell therapy products, including assay development and validation, and routine testing of clinical products.
University of Calgary researcher studying cancer ‘designer viruses’ thanks to $9.5M gift
November 21, 2024
A University of Calgary research team studying ‘designer viruses’ to fight cancer brought their treatment to clinical trials thanks to a $9.5 million gift from the Canadian Cancer Society four years ago.
Introducing Selena Gill, Senior Administrative Assistant
November 19, 2024
Welcome Selena Gill, who is joining the Riddell Centre as the new Senior Administrative Assistant. Selena will provide administrative support to Dr. Douglas Mahoney, and several clinician scientists within the Centre.
Family donates $30M to campaign at the Arthur Child
November 18, 2024
A fundraising campaign for the recently opened Arthur J.E. Child Comprehensive Cancer Centre in Calgary has officially been wrapped up, thanks in large part to a “monumental” donation from philanthropists Stan and Marge Owerko, who donated $30 million to the OWN.CANCER campaign.
Cancer care forever changed in southern Alberta after OWN.CANCER fundraising campaign exceeds $250 million goal
November 15, 2024
More than 17,000 donors helped support world-leading research, innovation and care at the new Arthur J.E. Child Comprehensive Cancer Centre in Calgary.
Recent publication in Nature Communications
November 15, 2024
Mahoney, D. J., Zemp, F. J., Canton, J., et al. VSV∆M51 drives CD8+ T cell-mediated tumour regression through infection of both cancer and non-cancer cells. Nature Communications (2024).
$9.5M gift from CCS fueling groundbreaking cancer research
November 14, 2024
A $9.5-million gift from the Canadian Cancer Society is fuelling groundbreaking research for rare and hard-to-treat cancers at UCalgary. Shonalie Biafore, whose daughter passed away, is inspired by the Arnie Charbonneau Cancer Institute’s work to help other people living with cancer.
How special cells act as 'sentinels' of the immune system
November 14, 2024
Groundbreaking research by University of Calgary Faculty of Veterinary Medicine team opens door to new immunotherapies and enhanced vaccines
Dr. Franz Zemp to lead Synthetic Immunology Research Enabler
November 6, 2024
Welcome Dr. Franz Zemp, who has accepted his new position as a Staff Scientist and Manager at the Riddell Centre. In this role, Dr. Zemp will be leading the Synthetic Immunology Research Enabler and overseeing educational initiatives within our Centre.
Chimdindu Ohaegbu joins as Biomanufacturing Technician
November 4, 2024
Welcome Chimdindu Ohaegbu, who is joining the Riddell Centre's Biomanufacturing Program as a Biomanufacturing Technician. Chimdindu will be helping drive the development, optimization, and scale-up of our cell and virus therapy products.
Recent publication in Science Immunology
November 1, 2024
Canton, J., Gonzales, G. A., Huang, S. et al. The pore-forming apolipoprotein APOL7C drives phagosomal rupture and antigen cross-presentation by dendritic cells. Science Immunology (2024).
Dr. Pierre Billon named to Avenue's Top 40 Under 40 2024
October 30, 2024
As part of Avenue Magazine's Top 40 Under 40 Class of 2024, Dr. Pierre Billon is among this year's list of young Calgarians who excel in their fields, contribute to our community and inspire us all.
Dr. Varsha Thoppey Manoharan joins Bioinformatics Enabler
October 28, 2024
Welcome Dr. Varsha Thoppey Manoharan, who has joined the Riddell Centre's bioinformatics enabler as a Staff Scientist. She brings exceptional computational skills to the analysis of bulk, single cell, and spatial datasets that allow deep exploration of tumor evolution and heterogeneity.
LEAP Magazine on the best and brightest in cancer research
October 21, 2024
Dr. Kevin Hay was highlighted in the LEAP Fall 2024 issue, delving into how his research focuses on using immunotherapy to target cancer cells.
Recent publication in Blood
September 25, 2024
Lee, H., Bahlis, N. J., Neri, P. et al. Impact of soluble BCMA and non-T-cell factors on refractoriness to BCMA-targeting T-cell engagers in multiple myeloma. Blood (2024).
Varsha Thoppey Manoharan defends her PhD thesis
September 17, 2024
Congratulations to Varsha Thoppey Manoharan, supervised by Dr. Sorana Morrissy, who has defended her PhD thesis, "Deconvolution of spatial transcriptomic heterogeneity in the glioblastoma ecosystem".
Riddell Centre at Believe in the Gold Run 2024
September 14, 2024
Thank you to everyone who participated in volunteering, running or supporting the Riddell Centre and childhood cancer research at the Believe in the Gold run in September!
Dr. Angela Huang receives 2024 CCS Research Training Award
September 13, 2024
Congratulations to Dr. Angela Huang, Postdoctoral Fellow supervised by Dr. Nicolas Jacquelot, on receiving a 2024 Canadian Cancer Society Research Training Award! Dr. Huang has received funding for her research in Understanding how immune cells protect against the development of breast cancer.
Lorenzo Lindo receives 2024 CCS Research Training Award
September 13, 2024
Congratulations to Lorenzo Lindo, PhD Student supervised by Dr. Kevin Hay, on receiving a 2024 Canadian Cancer Society Research Training Award! Lorenzo has received funding for his research in Improving cellular therapies for people with multiple myeloma.
Dr. Kathy McCoy joins Canadian Academy of Health Sciences
September 11, 2024
Congratulations to Dr. Kathy McCoy on her induction into the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences, for her demonstrated leadership and distinctive contributions to advancing health sciences. Dr. McCoy joins a distinguished group of Canada's leading health and biomedical scientists and scholars.
Dr. Jongbok Lee receives 2024 Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada Operating Grant
September 11, 2024
Recognized for his research project, Mix-and-match, off-the-shelf CAR-DNT therapy for B-cell malignancies, Dr. Lee's team is exploring the potential of CAR-DNT as an innovative CAR-based treatment strategy that is accessible and more effective for leukemia patients.
Jethro Langley receives Phillips Emerging Scholar Award
September 11, 2024
Congratulations to Jethro Langley, PhD student supervised by Dr. Pierre Billon, who has been awarded the Phillips Emerging Cancer Scholar Award!
Jessica López Espinosa receives funding from CONAHCYT
September 11, 2024
Congratulations to Jessica López Espinosa, MSc trainee supervised by Dr. Jongbok Lee, who has been awarded the 2024 Postgraduate Scholarship for Masters and Doctorates in Sciences and Humanities Abroad from the Consejo Nacional de Humanidades, Ciencias y TecnologÍas (CONAHCYT) in Mexico.
New publication in Journal of Investigative Dermatology
August 9, 2024
Thoppey Manoharan, V., Morrissy, S., Nikolic, N. et al. Spatial and Single-cell Transcriptomics Reveal Oncofetal Reprogramming of Fibroblasts is Associated with Malignant Degeneration of Burn Scar. Journal of Investigative Dermatology (2024).
Leanne Palichuk receives Alberta Graduate Excellence Scholarship
August 6, 2024
Congratulations to Leanne Palichuk, MSc Student supervised by Dr. Jongbok Lee, who has received the Alberta Graduate Excellence Scholarship (AGES) which recognizes outstanding academic achievement in graduate studies.
Jessica López Espinosa named Rejeanne Taylor Research Prize recipient
August 6, 2024
Congratulations to Jessica López Espinosa, MSc Student supervised by Dr. Jongbok Lee, on receiving the Rejeanne Taylor Research Prize in Precision Cancer Research!
Dr. Hyojin Song recognized as one of top 10 early-cancer data scientists to receive prestigious 2024 Health Informatics & Data Science Award
July 30, 2024
Congratulations to Dr. Hyojin Song, a postdoctoral associate under the supervision of Dr. Sorana Morrissy, on being awarded the 2024 Health Informatics & Data Science Award, as funded by the Marathon of Hope Cancer Centres Network (MOHCCN). These funds support research aimed at developing and applying complex data with the goal of improving diagnostics and therapies for patients with multiple cancer types to support groundbreaking research in precision oncology.
Molecular regulator for lymphoid cells discovered in mice
July 4, 2024
"We found that when we deleted the transcription factor in these innate cells, the mice developed a lot more tumours," says Dr. Angela Huang, a postdoctoral researcher in the Jacquelot Lab. "This proves that the molecular regulator is important for the cells that are responsible for fighting off tumours in these mice."
New publication in Nature Review Clinical Oncology
July 3, 2024
Neri, P., Leblay, N., Lee, H. et al. Just scratching the surface: novel treatment approaches multiple myeloma targeting cell membrane proteins. Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology (2024).
Dr. Pierre Billon among 17 CSM faculty members awarded NSERC Discovery Grants, worth a total of $4.07M
July 3, 2024
In addition to being awarded a 2024 NSERC Discovery Grant for his work defining the interplay between DNA repair and CRISPR-based genome editing technologies, Dr. Pierre Billon also received a Discovery Launch ECR Supplement.
Congratulations to Esha Kaul on a successful thesis defense!
June 18, 2024
Esha Kaul, supervised by Dr. Craig Jenne (Primary Supervisor) and Dr. Doug Mahoney (Co-Supervisor), defended her MSc thesis, "Investigating the role of pericyte infection in Vesicular Stomatitis Virus stimulated immune activation". Congratulations Esha!
Collaboration in Immunotherapy Research
March 21, 2025
Researchers from the Lee & Bose labs recently met with Dr. Kim’s lab at Seoul National University to explore integrating multi-omics data with functional assays to uncover key biological mechanisms of double-negative T cells across various disease indications.
