IRIC - Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer

Published on March 14, 2012

One new chair awarded, another renewed

On March 13, the Honourable Gary Goodyear, Minister of State (Science and Technology) announced newly awarded and renewed Canada Research Chairs. Two Principal Investigators from IRIC were granted a total of $ 2 million. Newly-recruited Michael Tyers was awarded a new Chair while Philippe Roux obtained a renewal.

Michael Tyers – Canada Research Chair in Systems and Synthetic Biology
Michael Tyers was granted the Canada Research Chair in Systems and Synthetic Biology.
The Tyers group uses cutting-edge techniques in biochemistry, genetics, chemical biology, microscopy, mass spectrometry and computational methods to decipher how cellular networks are organized and controlled. This information will be used to develop novel synthetic approaches to re-engineer natural networks and to build entirely artificial networks that can perform new biological functions.
The research will lead to insights into the organization, logic and function of biological regulatory networks, with applications in understanding and treating human disease.

Philippe Roux – Canada Research Chair in Signal Transduction and Proteomics
Philippe Roux has been granted the renewal of his Canada Research Chair in Signal Transduction and Proteomics which studies how oncogenes and deregulated tumour suppressors promote the growth, proliferation and survival of cancer cells.
The Roux lab uses mouse genetics, molecular and cellular biological techniques, as well as cutting-edge proteomics methods to study signalling cascades often deregulated in metabolic diseases and cancer, such as the Ras/MAPK and PI3K/mTOR pathways. A better understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in cancer cell growth and proliferation is crucial for the discovery of improved disease biomarkers and for the identification of novel therapeutic targets.

The two IRIC scientists are among a group of eight at the Université de Montréal who received funding from the Canada Research Chairs. A total of $8.5 million was granted to the Université de Montréal, the largest amounted awarded in Quebec in this announcement.