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UBC SCIENCE CONNECT
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News and Events for
UBC Science Alumni | Issue 4, 2018
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Could a deadly mushroom help battle cancer?
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UBC chemists have produced the first synthetic version of a toxin found in the infamous death cap mushroom. The toxin can kill cancer cells, but extracting it from wild mushrooms is time consuming, so a synthetic version could save lives.
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New issue of Earth Matters
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Earth Matters is back! This annual magazine features profiles of EOAS faculty members, students and alumni, plus news and awards. From crustal evolution to water turbulence, learn all about the research going on at UBC.
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Diamonds narrate their life story
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Although diamonds are admired for their flawless appearance, diamond ‘imperfections’ can provide valuable information about their formation and Earth’s structure. “Inclusions can tell us the story of a diamond’s life,” says geologist Maya Kopylova.
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Gut enzymes could yield universal blood
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Since the 1980s chemists have tried to use enzymes to create universal blood, which could ease blood shortages. Now, UBC researchers have found a new group of enzymes in the human gut that can accomplish the task 30 times better than previous candidates.
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Chasing after jellyfish
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UBC alumna Jessica Schaub (BSc 18) has developed a new way to study jellyfish clusters: drones. Her research could allow us to analyze jellyfish behaviours and populations in greater detail. Read this and other EOAS alumni profiles in Earth Matters.
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Biochem alumnus looking to harness power of yeast
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Biochemist and molecular biologist Matthew Dahabieh (BSc 06’, MSc 08’, PhD 13’) explains why yeast research is a big deal. “Since the 1800s, industry has focused on a very small set of strains that are useful, and now there’s a bottleneck in yeast biodiversity.”
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Out of the blue
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Botanist Patrick Keeling details the evolutionary thread connecting malaria and coral reefs. Corals provide an “unexpected glimpse into the transition from symbiont to parasite.”
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Geologist Charles Fipke receives alumni award
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Charles Fipke (BSc’ 73) has received a 2018 UBC Alumni Award of Distinction. The internationally respected geologist founded Canada’s first commercial diamond mine. A successful business person, philanthropist and volunteer, Fipke’s generosity has benefited Alzheimer’s research, the protection of wild animals, and UBC’s Okanagan campus in his hometown of Kelowna.
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Kudos
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UBC researcher David Boyd has taken on the role of special rapporteur on human rights and the environment for the UN Human Rights Council.
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Vanessa Auld has begun a five-year term as head of UBC’s Department of Zoology.
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The Canadian Association of Physicists has awarded medals to Andrea Damascelli, Alison Lister and Ariel Zhitnitsky.
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Brett Finlay has received a $5.8M Foundation Grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research to support his research on host-microbe interactions.
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Lab manager and biologist Winnie Cheung is a recipient of the UBC President’s Staff Awards.
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New theory on how Earth’s subduction zones form
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New work from EOAS researcher Matthijs Smit and international colleagues indicates that some of Earth’s most active seismic zones are formed by plate tectonic changes elsewhere on the planet.
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