A doctoral citation summarizes the nature of the independent research, provides a high-level overview of the study, states the significance of the work and says who will benefit from the findings in clear, non-specialized language, so that members of a lay audience will understand it.
| Year | Citation | Program |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Dr. Wehbe developed a method to form insoluble copper complexes inside lipid nanoparticles. This method allowed for the preclinical testing of copper-based therapeutics to treat blood, brain and ovarian cancers. His findings will aid in the design and development of future anti-cancer copper-based medicines. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmaceutical Sciences (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Kim studied the mechanisms of an emerging class of therapeutics used for the treatment of epilepsy. His research revealed critical molecular interactions between a drug named retigabine and potassium channel proteins in the brain. These novel findings will contribute to the development of more effective therapies in the future. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmacology (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Osei assessed cell communication within the airways of asthmatic and COPD patients. His work showed the importance of Interleukin-1 alpha in the mediation of inflammation and fibrosis. This work increases our knowledge in chronic inflammation and remodelling that occurs in asthma and COPD, and provides avenues for new therapeutic research. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmacology (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Bagheri studied genetic causes of human prenatal and postnatal developmental abnormalities. Using multiple approaches including bioinformatics, patient cell and transgenic zebrafish analysis, he identified three new genes for developmental disorders. His study represents a blueprint for future genetic studies of abnormal human development. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Chan studied how tumours from lymphoma patients evolved over time under treatment. He identified markers of treatment resistance that can be used towards the design of future diagnostic tests. His work exemplifies the application of genomics in precision medicine. | Doctor of Philosophy in Bioinformatics (PhD) |
| 2017 | Taking inspiration from poly-iron cofactors found in nature, Dr. Pick synthesized poly-iron coordination complexes and studied their reactivity. He discovered a system that cleaves a nitrogen nitrogen double bond. This work offers insight into what a potential iron-based catalyst for nitrogen functionalization might look like. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Rawe developed new methods to synthesize phosphorus-containing polymers. He discovered a new class of chemically active polymer that has changing fluorescence properties when exposed to oxygen or gold ions. His research provides evidence that phosphorus-containing polymers may be useful materials to detect specific analytes in low concentrations. | Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Kardan proposed a framework for adding personalized support to educational tools such as interactive computer simulations. It relies on user data and data mining to automatically provide hints to students when they need them. Experimental evaluations show that this framework can make the existing educational tools significantly more effective. | Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Erickson researched the effects of warming and human activity on forests in Alberta. He found that human activity changed forest fires in a way that may slow tree migrations while reducing understory light. His work was the first to combine dynamic vegetation modeling and machine learning, which may broadly benefit earth systems modeling. | Doctor of Philosophy in Forestry (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Ma investigated eco-physiology of effects of red/far-red light ratio on tomato and common weeds. Her research improves our understanding of how red/far-red ratio modifies plant growth, which affects plant-plant interactions. This understanding will help in management of agro-ecosystems to minimize crop losses due to weeds. | Doctor of Philosophy in Plant Science (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Globa's work has demonstrated that drugs of abuse, such as cocaine, impact how brain cells communicate with one another at specialized points of contact called 'synapses'. Her work specifically shows that synaptic connections must be malleable or 'plastic' to promote behaviours associated with addiction in mice. | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Ferguson studied principles of cognitive neuroscience to better understand how we use our bodies and minds to make sense of our surroundings during a theatre performance. He examined how artists create spatial compositions in which audience members use their physical memories and neural patterns to create meaning and new experiences. | Doctor of Philosophy in Theatre (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Arianpoo studied the contribution of energy projects to the sustainable development of their host communities. With a focus on geothermal power projects, she designed a sustainable development framework and maturity model. Her work will help industry to implement appropriate sustainable development strategies resulting in good neighbour projects. | Doctor of Philosophy in Mining Engineering (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Amini Niaki studied computational mechanics and structural analysis. He developed a multi-phase, integrated model to simulate the processing of composite materials. His work will provide engineers and researchers in the composite manufacturing industry with a fast, convenient, and accurate simulation tool. | Doctor of Philosophy in Civil Engineering (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Addison examined the avoidance of health information in people with health concerns. She showed that limiting methods, such as filtering and delegating, were particularly common in cases where people felt fear, disinterest, or distrust. Her work will contribute to our understanding of how we manage and experience health issues. | Doctor of Philosophy in Library, Archival and Information Studies (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Whillans examined the relationship between time, money, and subjective well-being. Using large scale surveys and experiments, she found that choosing time over money, both in daily and major life decisions, promotes greater happiness. | Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Stein examined the colonial roots of the ethical and political challenges that arise in contemporary higher education internationalization efforts, and traced how these colonial roots shape contrasting ideas of global justice in this work. | Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Studies (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Hajiaghayi studied bioinformatics, which combines computer science and statistics to interpret biological systems. She investigated RNA/DNA structure prediction, RNA/DNA folding pathways, and chemical reaction networks. Her work helps us to more efficiently compute and analyze complex functions using interacting molecules. | Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Sellers studied the vascular biology of Marfan syndrome with a focus on understanding how current therapies work and finding new potential drug targets. Her work helps to better understand Marfan syndrome and provide the basis upon which to design new treatments for patients in the future. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmacology (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Wires investigated software techniques for efficiently processing very large data sets. As part of his research, he built a high-performance storage system that dynamically optimizes how hardware resources are allocated as workload requirements evolve. His work reduces the time and money required to perform data-intensive analysis tasks. | Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Graves studied the economic interactions between consumers and firms in both established and emerging markets. His research highlights the sophisticated motivations behind features of the economy we observe every day, such as sales at a grocery store or entrepreneurs pitching new projects. | Doctor of Philosophy in Economics (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Guan studied the effect of the autonomic nervous system and individual stress profile in predicting ischemic stroke after an initial transient ischemic attack. She developed a novel predictive tool for use in emergency and other clinical settings to help physicians identify the high-risk patients and provide personalized medical care for them. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Davis' study uncovers the procedures and policies governing the military's acquisition and ongoing control of vast tracts of national territory in Canada and the United States. In examining how emergency war powers and land use practices took hold and were given permanent spatial arrangements, this study provides a critical overview into origins and functions of North American defense lands. | Doctor of Philosophy in History (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Mumuni studied teacher practices in kindergarten classrooms, in Ghana. His findings revealed that teaching practices were developmentally appropriate, making learning meaningful through contextually relevant language of instruction, age-and culturally-appropriate learning materials, and the use of storytelling, traditional songs and traditional rhymes. | Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD) |
| 2017 | Dr. Klein-Bosgoed studied protein synthesis in anucleate blood platelets. She investigated a technology based on UV light and vitamin B2 that is designed to kill potential pathogens in blood products. Her findings will lead to the advancement of blood safety in transfusion medicine. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (PhD) |