Tell us about your role at UHN.
I am a Postdoctoral Researcher at UHN under the mentorship of Dr. Peter Gross. During my doctoral studies, I developed innovative sensors that can measure the activity of two key enzymes in the blood: one that helps form clots (thrombin) and one that helps break them down (plasmin). My current research focuses on refining these biosensors to improve their stability and optimize how they can be used for research and by clinicians.
How long have you been at UHN and what led you to this role?
I joined UHN in April of 2024. Before this role, I completed my PhD in Medical Sciences at McMaster University, where I first began my research in developing novel biosensors. I wanted to continue this research because these sensors can be used in many situations to assess whether someone’s blood is clotting too much or not enough, such as monitoring hemophilia.
What are you passionate about in your role at UHN? What does health research mean to you?
I am passionate about having the chance to advance personalized, accessible health care. Having a sensor that measures thrombin—the blood clotting enzyme—from just a drop of blood could bring testing directly to the bedside instead of specialized labs and enable more personalized treatments.
How does your work help to advance UHN's vision of A Healthier World?
Patient-centred care is UHN’s guiding principle. This commitment is aligned with my research, which is dedicated to developing individualized, high-precision assays for blood clotting. My work supports UHN’s mission to deliver the highest standard of diagnostic evaluation and patient care. By making testing more precise and patient-specific, my research works towards improving patient outcomes by enabling better monitoring and safer and more precise treatments. This is especially important in conditions like cancer, severe infections (sepsis), serious injuries, liver failure, or during complicated surgeries.
What makes UHN an ideal place to advance health research?
UHN is home to numerous world-renowned experts, cutting-edge research facilities, and an extensive patient base. UHN’s collaborative environment provides an ideal setting for innovative ideas to evolve into safer, more effective research methodologies, diagnostic tools, and treatment protocols.
Our lab has ongoing collaborations with Dr. Keyvan Karkouti and Dr. Justyna Bartosko to help improve our sensors and integrate them into blood clotting management protocols for bypass surgery and liver transplantation.
Do you have any hobbies or interests outside of work?
During summer months, I enjoy growing fruits and vegetables that are not commonly present in grocery stores, including rare tomatoes such as Hawaiian Pineapple, hybrid plants such as broccolini or edible flowers such as cornflowers. I enjoy cooking meals with my plants and comparing their taste to their common counterparts. I am also interested in using my plants for health benefits, such as using honeysuckle flowers as immune boosters or using passionflowers to improve the quailty of sleep.
During the winter months, I have loved spending hours inside Chapters and libraries and sharing interesting books with my friends. Now I just turn on Audible and let it tell me the stories.
What do you see for the future of health research, and what gets you excited about it?
With the advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) and data-driven discovery, I believe the future of health research will feature faster and more accurate disease identification alongside more personalized and lower-risk treatment options. AI’s ability to precisely identify patterns within extensive datasets enables it to find optimal treatment strategies based on these patterns.
However, it is important to note that AI cannot create entirely novel technologies that are not already present in its training data. As a researcher with a passion for innovation, I am excited about the potential to integrate innovative ideas with AI’s analytical abilities to revolutionize health care in unprecedented ways.
How to Participate in You @TeamUHN
You @TeamUHN is a campaign to highlight the important scientific contributions that research lab staff, trainees and learners, administrative staff, core facilities staff, Research Solutions & Services staff, and volunteers make towards A Healthier World through discovery and innovation. If you’re interested in sharing your story, we invite you to complete this form here (Open to UHN staff, trainees and volunteers).