Innovation Profile: Dr Mick Bhatia
McMaster University
Dr Bhatia has made headlines for his groundbreaking science but also for a decision he made in 2006. Courted by top institutions in the US, he instead chose Toronto Region as the place to conduct his research. Dr Bhatia is Director of the McMaster Stem Cell and Cancer Research Institute and a leading member of the Toronto Region's vibrant stem cell research community.
Uncovering the secrets of human stem cells
Dr Mick Bhatia has made headlines for his groundbreaking science but also for a decision he made in 2006. Courted by top institutions in the US, he instead chose Toronto Region as the place to conduct his research.
A renowned developmental biologist, Dr Bhatia accepted a position as inaugural
Scientific Director and Senior Scientist of the new Stem Cell and Cancer Research
Institute in the Michael G DeGroote School of Medicine at McMaster University in
Hamilton, Ontario.
Why choose Toronto Region? "It comes down to the people and the support to those scientists," says Dr Bhatia, a Canada Research Chair in Human Stem Cell Biology. "There's an incredible depth of knowledge in stem cells that can't be purchased or grown elsewhere."
Dr Bhatia has shed new light on human embryonic stem cells and blood-forming ones. In a paper in Nature in 2007, his group advanced understanding of the way in which embryonic stem cells decide to grow, make copies of themselves, or differentiate into mature cell types.
"It's a community decision," explains Dr Bhatia, "and we identified new players in the community." His findings could help scientists direct not only stem cells, but their environment, to grow into desired cell types that could someday be used for tissue repair.
More recently, Dr Bhatia discovered that cancer stem cells largely ignore their environment. He also identified a way to distinguish cancer stem cells from normal ones. His team aims to identify compounds that target harmful cancer stem cells and leave normal stem cells necessary for regeneration and repair unharmed.
Dr Bhatia's research also holds promise for leukemia patients and others with blood diseases. He is working to generate blood stem cells from patients' own reprogrammed skin cells. This would overcome the problem of finding a matching donor for bone marrow transplantation. US makers of transplantation products are interested, and Dr Bhatia has teamed up with groups in the UK and Korea.
Another project is to create Canada's first pluripotent stem cell library. It will describe how cells respond to numerous genes and chemicals, provide information on screening methods and unique cell lines developed by Dr Bhatia's lab and be available to academics and industry worldwide.
Honoured with awards, Dr Bhatia is the Michael G DeGroote Chair in Stem Cell and Cancer Biology, Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences at McMaster, and Associate Professor (Continuing) at the Schulich School of Medicine at the University of Western Ontario.
The institute's team of 60 shares 15,000 square feet of open lab space designed for human stem cell research.
The region also holds appeal for the Toronto-born scientist and his young family. "We can enjoy the outdoor activities in Hamilton and Niagara Region, and be able to pop into Toronto to watch the Toronto Maple Leafs and Raptors. It's very unique."
© 2010 Toronto Region Research Alliance