I was excited to see that Moderna and Merck & Co. announced mid-term results of a Phase 2b trial on mRNA-4157, a messenger RNA vaccine that was individualized to treat patients with high-risk Stage III/IV melanoma. This vaccine is an investigational individualized neoantigen therapy (INT), which uses the unique DNA sequence of the patient's cancerous cells to create mRNA that can be translated into up to 34 neoantigens. This mirrors the central dogma of molecular biology in which genetic information is transcribed from DNA to create RNA, and RNA is translated to form proteins. Neoantigens are tumour-specific mutations that promote T-cell response to cancerous cells. The mRNA vaccine was encapsulated in lipid nanoparticles, which are sphere-shaped vesicles made of lipids. The vaccine can be brought into receiving cells via endocytosis, in which the cell membrane buds off to form a vesicle which envelops the nanoparticle to bring it into the cytoplasm. A Phase 2 trial is a clinical trial that assesses the effectiveness and side effects of a drug by testing it on a few hundred patients. In this study, the vaccine was tested on 157 patients with high-risk Stage III/IV melanoma and used in combination with KEYTRUDA. KEYTRUDA is an immunotherapy that inhibits PD-1 checkpoint proteins from non-covalently binding to PD-L1 partner proteins that can be present on cancer cells. Since the bonding of checkpoint proteins to its ligands on certain cells suppresses the immune response of T-cells to them, inhibiting PD-1 proteins can increase T-cell response to cancer cells. When the vaccine was used with KEYTRUDA, the possibility of death or the cancer recurrence was decreased by 49% and when the vaccine was compared to the usage of KEYTRUDA alone, mRNA-4157 decreased the chance of death or metastasis by 62%. This made mRNA-4157 a very promising therapeutic. Vaccines are also being developed to treat pancreatic cancer and lung cancer. I am looking forward to seeing how the rest of the clinical trials play out especially because University of Toronto researchers including Professor Bowen Li, have conducted similar work about using lipid nanoparticles to deliver mRNA more directly to muscles and avoid off-target organs, which also has applications for treating melanoma.

Jan 22, 2024

By Natalie Cheung

‘Medicinal chemistry’ was officially named an interdisciplinary science after World War II. Still, optimizing chemical compounds and synthesizing new ones for practicing medicine has been done since the earliest days of human civilizations. Applications of herbs and other materials to treat wounds and diseases is a long-used strategy that forms the basis of modern medicine. Medicinal chemistry focuses on how pharmaceuticals are developed to diagnose, prevent, and treat diseases. With that in mind, scientists from many disciplines have applied their knowledge while working together, allowing this fundamental field to rapidly flourish into how mainstream it is today. In fact, the extraordinary accomplishments of medicinal chemistry within the past two decades have been groundbreaking (or rather molecule-breaking) in cancer research. The 2010s were described as ‘The Decade of Immunotherapy’ by the Cancer Research Institute and with good reason. In that time frame, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first immunotherapy treatments for different cancers, enabling oncologists to prescribe them if applicable. Immunotherapy, or Biological Response Modifier (BRM) therapy, utilizes the body’s immune system to influence its response to cancer cells. Scientists began looking into small molecule-based methods to treat cancer as the pharmacokinetics of small-molecule immuno-oncology agents allow them to overcome the challenges that immune checkpoint antibodies face. While cancer-treating antibodies were already a breakthrough in immunotherapy and had suitable pharmacodynamics, their pharmacokinetics caused them difficulty penetrating tumor-infected tissue and effectively targeting specific cells. In targeted immunotherapy, small molecules more easily penetrate cells to influence them through an immune response or create biomarkers and produce a target for antibodies cell. Monoclonal antibodies can also mark the cells for an immune response or may contain materials that stop growth or cause cell suicide in cancer cells. The biochemistry of the small-molecule drugs and therapeutic antibodies had to be specifically adapted to detect and produce the desired effect when interacting with the molecules of infected cells. This aspect of researching medicinal chemistry, though complex, highlights how important it is for researchers to share knowledge as, in the future, this approach is hoped to reduce or even prevent patients’ exposure to radiation from chemotherapy. A highly in-depth understanding of how the biological, chemical, and physical properties of materials in the body interact and function is crucial for synthesizing chemicals for therapeutic use and the continued advancement of pharmaceutical research to find even more effective treatments and perhaps preventions.

Jan 22, 2024

By Iman Mansoor

We often get sick with various kinds of illnesses, but the drill is the same each time. We get sick, go to our doctor, and get some medications prescribed. We often do not think much of this, and just take the medications until we start to feel better. However, many times doctors often prescribe a specific class of medications, specifically known as ‘Antibiotics’. An antibiotic is an antimicrobial substance, and essentially fights bacteria. It does this by either killing the bacteria or by inhibiting its growth/ability to reproduce. These medications are essential in the treatment and prevention of illnesses caused by bacterial infections. Aside from the actual name of the drug on the prescription bottle, another indicator of antibiotics is that they are prescribed over a certain timeframe. For example, you have a fever, and your doctor prescribes you to take a pill once every 8 hours for a week. Many people do not heed this advice, and instead stop taking the medication once they start to feel better. This doesn’t seem like such a big deal, however, that time period is specifically designed to ensure that all the bacteria has been killed off inside your body. Stopping intake of antibiotics prematurely can be detrimental to not only you, but anyone who gets infected through interaction with you. This infection comes from the remnants of bacteria still left in your body that were resistant to the initial doses of antibiotics. As Kelly Clarkson says, “What doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger”. This is especially relevant to bacteria, as that resistance allows them to prosper in the host's body, and be even further resistant to the same antibiotics. This class of bugs are known as Superbugs, and present an increasing risk to the healthcare industry. Many life saving procedures and surgeries rely on antibiotics to prevent and treat any bacterial infections. The presence of superbugs can jeopardize the success of such procedures, and even cause more harm than good. As superbugs spread just like other strains of bacteria, the interconnected nature of travel and trade further increases this risk. As seen with the COVID-19 outbreak, containing outbreaks before they become pandemics is becoming increasingly difficult. Recognizing carriers of superbugs is also difficult, as many people are asymptomatic, or new strains of superbugs with very little research information available, do not even have any documented telltale symptoms. However, there are some professions or conditions which increase the chances of a superbug infection. Some examples are people who have chronic illnesses, and thus a weakened immune system, people who work as veterinarians or in animal care facilities, and in agriculture. With such an increasing risk, and not enough ways to fight these superbugs, it is vital to protect yourself by ensuring you complete the full course of antibiotics, and take preventative measures to ensure you do not catch diseases. Some measures can be as simple as washing your hands periodically, getting vaccinated, and practicing good hygiene.

Jan 22, 2024

By Tabinah Salman

Traditionally, medicinal drugs have used a passive drug release mechanism. In this type of mechanism, the drug is locally released in high concentrations and the concentration of the drug then exponentially decays over time. However, this mechanism cannot provide variable or extended drug concentrations. Therefore, to treat diseases such as diabetes, the patient must repeatedly take the drugs to maintain a high concentration that is effective in the treatment process. One improvement to this system was the creation of controlled-release strategies there were based on spatiotemporal profiles. The patient initially takes the drug but the healthcare provider and/or patient decides when the drug is released into body tissues. They can stimulate the release of the drug through various stimuli, including but not limited to temperature, light, magnetic field, ultrasound, electric currents, and mechanical forces. The healthcare provider can track the pathway of the drug to the target tissue. Once the drug reaches the vicinity of the target tissue, the drug can then be stimulated to be released and affect its target tissue. Recently, more autonomous drug release systems have been in development. These drug release systems allow for the release of the drug to be controlled by changes in pathological conditions. These changes, termed endogenous stimuli, include but are not limited to pH, reactive oxygen species/antioxidants, enzymes, glucose, mechanical strain, and temperature. The first four stimuli are biochemical signals whereas the last two are mechanical signals. These have been the most effective at delivering drugs effectively.

Mar 1, 2024

By Ananya Balaji

Year of Study: 3

Programs of Study: Biochemistry & Music and Culture

The study of the synthesis, characterization, and manipulation of materials at the nanoscale—typically, 1 to 100 nanometers—is known as nanochemistry. The study delves into the distinct characteristics and actions of nanomaterials, resulting in progress across multiple domains such as healthcare, electronics, energy, and catalysis. The goal of nanomedicine is to use small particles called nanoparticles to create exact treatments for various conditions. These particles find application in a wide range of medication delivery methods, including radiation, cancer, gene therapy, and AIDS therapy. These particles' two advantages are their small size and the fact that they are made of biodegradable materials. They dissolve quicker and enter your body more readily since they are so little and have a large surface area. They can also quickly enter tumours, the brain, and lungs. The Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines are two well-known examples of how mRNA is used to help create immunity to the virus; however, because mRNA degrades quickly, it is delivered into cells using a lipid nanoparticle delivery system. The mRNA molecules are encapsulated and shielded by them, which permits them to enter cells safely and give directions to make viral proteins that set off an immune response. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is another example of nanochemistry in healthcare; it creates finely detailed images of your tissues and organs through the utilization of radio waves and magnetic fields. Contrast agents with improved magnetic characteristics over conventional agents can be created thanks to nanochemistry. Stronger signals can be produced by designing nanoparticles, such as those based on iron oxide or gadolinium, which will enhance image quality and improve tissue contrast on those.

Mar 1, 2024

By Jennifer Zaman

Year of Study: 2

Programs of Study: Biochemistry, Biology, Natural Sciences & Environmental Management

Last December, “Casgevy” was the first gene therapy (CRISPR/Cas9) which has been FDA approved for the treatment of Sickle Cell disease. Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a blood disorder in which red blood cells (RBC) take on a rigid “sickle” shape. How the disease works is that hemoglobin, a protein in the red blood cells that carries oxygen to tissues in the body, becomes abnormal due to recessive inheritance of genes which code for the abnormal protein hemoglobin “S”. The red blood cells that take on the “sickle” shape, are prone to dying much earlier than unaffected cells. This results in a consistent shortage of red blood cells which can cause severe pain and organ damage due to insufficient amounts of oxygen delivery. This rare disease which has been the cause of life threatening disabilities and early death has harmed roughly 6,500 people in Canada and approximately 100,000 Americans and has most impacted Black and Hispanic communities.The gene therapy Casgevy is a somatic gene therapy approved for patients 12 and older. It functions by modifying blood stem cells via genome editing, CRISPR/Cas9 technology. CRISPR/Cas9 removes or adds or replaces where DNA has been cut previously by the technology and these modified stem cells are transplanted back into the patient within the bone marrow by engrafting, promoting the increase of hemoglobin.One of my main concerns with this innovation is whether or not it will be affordable since genome wide sequencing (GWS), a method medical geneticists use to diagnose illnesses, has dropped in pricing dramatically over the years, from roughly 3 billion during the time of the HUman Genome Project to it's price today which ranges from a couple hundred to couple thousand dollars.. Currently the therapy is priced at around 2.2 million due to the complexity of the treatment.

Mar 1, 2024

By Idil Gure

Year of Study: 3

Programs of Study: Biochemistry

Bloodstains are frequently encountered in crime scenes. Accurately estimating a bloodstain's age is paramount to criminal investigation but challenging. Scientific methods such as high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), RNA degradation, and the analysis of serum (the plasma of the blood after clotting factors have been removed) have been explored but have limited forensic application due to multiple factors. For example, the last technique mentioned is not a good approach to most investigations due to the amount of blood found on the crime scene rarely being sufficient to extract the ideal amount of serum to analyze. In recent case studies, gaining popularity around 2017, vibrational spectroscopy techniques, such as Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, are gaining popularity as fast, non-destructive, quantitative, and precise methods. More specifically, attenuated total reflection (ATR)-FTIR is known to be one of the most common measurement techniques for FTIR, due to its broad range of applications and accuracy. One of those applications is, precisely, investigating the age of the bloodstain. FTIR is efficient in identifying and quantifying bloodstain degradation due to occurrences such as autoxidation of hemoglobin when blood is exposed to air. In multiple publications from 2017-2020, ATR-FTIR is experimentally used to differentiate bloodstains by age, bloodstains found both outdoors and indoors. Results consistently showed that, as the period in which the bloodstain was exposed increased, the absorbance values collected from the spectroscopy analysis decreased. This is attributed to the structural changes in hemoglobin. Other discoveries obtained from this analysis were different peaks observed in each FTIR spectrum for each blood type. For example, peaks at 1033 cm−1 and 2844 cm−1 are present in AB and O blood and absent in A and B blood.

Mar 27, 2024

By Julia Gorovitz

Year of Study: 1

Programs of Study: Physics and Astrophysics & Chemistry

In forensic science the combinations of the disciplines of science and the law, different instruments or techniques regularly used in labs can be applied to solving a case. The fingerprint has been a staple of forensic investigation, Sir Francis Galton is recognized as the first person to publish a classification system for fingerprinting and noting their main features of loops, whorls, and arches in the 19th century. Artificial intelligence (AI) has been a hot button topic in recent years due to its variety of versatility in the artistic, corporate world, and also within the industry of forensics. There are some current applications of the technology as well as many potential implications in the field. One current application of the technology has been for analyzing digital evidence, for detecting faces and objects. It can also be a quick way to extract texts of interest from documents, however, recently there have been some experimental applications of the technology. Earlier this January Columbia University’s undergraduate engineers have utilized AI to analyze the uniqueness, characterized by forensic contributors such as Galton, and have claimed in their research that fingerprints may not differ too much from person to person. Though their paper has been rejected by well-established forensic journals, the team claims that the AI, which has been fed 60,000 prints from a public U.S government database, uses a different kind of marker than the traditional branching and endpoints observed. The technology used the angles and curvature of swirls and loops in the center of the fingerprint. This demonstrates that AI has a potential in improving accuracy within the field. It is worth noting the team creating using this technology had no prior knowledge of forensics and the system they were using had been only working with thousands of fingerprints, so access to broader datasets would be needed for more careful validation. The paper they created was appealed by a professor of innovation in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and was accepted for publication by Science Advances. The professor discussed that this research into AI could help provide knowledge for pre-existing forensic datasets, which could have major implications in the field, such as properly convicting or acquitting others.

Mar 27, 2024

By Idil Gure

Year of Study: 3

Programs of Study: Biochemistry

Chemistry often finds itself at the heart of gripping narratives in TV shows and movies, where it transcends textbooks and laboratory settings to capture the imagination of millions. From life-or-death problem-solving to whimsical experimentation, chemistry brings authenticity and intrigue to the screen, transforming science into a central character in its own right. One of the most celebrated depictions of chemistry is AMC’s Breaking Bad. The series artfully blends accurate chemical processes with high-stakes drama. Walter White’s mastery of chemical reactions is central to the story, with scenes showcasing the creation of thermite to break through metal locks or the use of hydrofluoric acid to dissolve organic matter. These moments not only provide an adrenaline rush but also serve as a subtle nod to the real-world power—and responsibility—of chemical knowledge. On the cinematic stage, The Martian demonstrates the life-saving potential of chemistry. Stranded on Mars, the protagonist, Mark Watney, relies on his scientific expertise to generate water by chemically reducing hydrazine. This gripping display of ingenuity and survival underscores the role of chemistry as a tool for problem-solving in extreme environments. For younger audiences, movies like Flubber take a more whimsical approach, imagining the creation of an elastic, gravity-defying substance. While the science is fantastical, it plants the seeds of curiosity about polymers and experimental chemistry in budding scientists. Even beyond entertainment, these portrayals reveal how chemistry shapes the fabric of everyday life. Whether solving crimes, exploring new frontiers, or inventing extraordinary materials, the integration of chemistry into storytelling fosters a deeper appreciation for the science that powers our world. By weaving together reality and imagination, TV shows and movies bring chemistry into focus—not as an abstract subject, but as a creative, dynamic force. They remind us that chemistry is not confined to laboratories; it’s a lens through which we can understand and shape our universe.

Nov 19, 2024

By Kimia Karim Koshteh

Year of Study: 2

Programs of Study: Biochemistry