Bruce A. Vallance, PhD
Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Dr. Bruce Vallance is a Professor and CH.I.L.D. Foundation Research Chair in Pediatric Gastroenterology, at BC Children’s Hospital and the University of British Columbia.
He has led the Pediatric Gastroenterology Research Program at BC Children’s Hospital and the University of British Columbia since 2003. Growing up in small town Ontario, Dr. Vallance spent work terms in industrial as well as university laboratories as he pursued his Cooperative Bachelor’s degree in Genetics and Immunology at the University of Waterloo. His PhD studies at McMaster University’s Intestinal Disease Research Program in Hamilton focused on understanding the causes of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), under the supervision of its director Prof. Stephen Collins. In 1999, he moved to Vancouver, joining Prof. Brett Finlay’s microbiology laboratory at the University of British Columbia to study disease-causing gut bacteria. In 2003, he established his own laboratory at BC Children’s Hospital to study the critical role played by gut bacteria in driving the intestinal inflammation that characterizes IBD. Now internationally recognized for his research on disease-causing bacteria, Dr. Vallance is also widely known for his work identifying novel ways the intestinal immune system defends against these microbes. Awarded the Canada Research Chair in Pediatric Gastroenterology (2004-2014), and now holding the endowed CH.I.L.D. Foundation Research Chair, Dr. Vallance has created a large and international team of dedicated trainees and staff. Using bacteria isolated from IBD patients with Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis to generate novel cell culture and mouse models, his group is developing new ways to target these bacteria, with the goal of therapeutically treating or even preventing patients from developing IBD.

Adam Shuhendler, PhD
Biodistribution

Adam Shuhendler completed his graduate training at the University of Toronto in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, studying biochemical toxicology (M.Sc.) and developing nanoparticle dosage forms for drug delivery to multidrug resistant breast cancer (Ph.D.). In efforts to track the fate of his nanoparticles, he developed an interest in imaging that led him to a postdoctoral fellowship at Stanford University in the Department of Radiology, School of Medicine. There, Adam developed skills in enzyme and bioanalyte-sensitive molecular imaging agent design and implementation. In July 2015, Adam took up an assistant professorship in the Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Sciences at the University of Ottawa, where he holds a Canada Research Chair (Tier 2) in Chemical Biology. His lab focuses on the development of MRI and PET molecular imaging agents that report on the activity of enzymes and small molecules with biochemical importance in cancer, atherosclerosis, injury, and inflammation.

David W. Mullins, PhD
Cancer Immunotherapy

Dr. Mullins is Assistant Professor in the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth College (Hanover, NH), with appointments in the Departments of Medical Education and Microbiology/Immunology. Dr. Mullins is also a Member of the Immunology and Cancer Immunotherapy Research Program at Dartmouth’s Norris Cotton Cancer Center (Lebanon, New Hampshire).

Dr. Mullins is a recognized expert in cancer immunobiology and immune cell trafficking to tumours. He received a PhD in Immunology from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), studying pharmacologic approaches to reverse the immunosuppressive activity of tumour-associated macrophages He completed advanced training in tumour immunology and cancer immunotherapy at the University of Virginia, where his work demonstrated tissue-specific targeting of vaccine-induced lymphocytes. Through translational research and clinical trials, he continues to investigate and develop novel strategies for immune therapy of metastatic cancers.

Dr. Mullins is an active member of the American Association of Immunologists, serving on the Committee for Immunology Education. He also serves as a reviewer for leading immunology journals, including the Journal of Immunology, Cancer Research, Clinical Cancer Research, and the Journal of Immunotherapy.