Natalie Strynadka, CBR Principal Investigator and Professor in the Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, is one of 13 researchers to receive a Senior International Research Scholar (SIRS) award from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI). This will be Dr. Strynadka’s 5th award from the HHMI and is in recognition of her major contributions to delineating the mechanisms underlying antibiotic resistance and bacterial pathogenicity. Congratulations to Natalie and her team!

Research Abstract:
Natalie Strynadka uses a multidisciplinary structural biology approach to study the molecular details and function of membrane protein assemblies that play key roles in antibiotic resistance and bacterial pathogenicity. Her goal is to use this information to guide design of novel antibiotics and vaccines to treat bacterial infections.

About Dr. Strynadka

Dr. Strynadka is the Canada Research Chair in Antibiotic Discovery and Medicine. She has also been named a Medical Research Council of Canada Scholar, a Canadian Institute of Health Research Scientist, a Burroughs Wellcome New Investigator in the Pharmacological Sciences, a Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research Senior Scholar, and a Canada Council of the Arts National Killam Fellow. In addition, she was also awarded a Canada Research Tier 1 Chair in Antibiotic Discovery, the NSERC Doctoral Thesis Prize, the CFI New Opportunities Award, the Merck Frosst Prize, the UBC Killiam Research Prize, and the Steacie Prize of the National Research Council of Canada.

About Senior International Research Scholars (SIRS)

The Senior International Research Scholars (SIRS) awards support outstanding biomedical scientists working outside the U.S. who have made significant contributions to fundamental research in the biological sciences.

The SIRS awardees, selected from a group of previous HHMI international research scholars, are respected leaders in their fields. Their experience will make them valuable mentors to HHMI’s international early career scientists, and will strengthen the growing network of international biomedical researchers.

The SIRS awardees are based in Canada, Latin America, Europe, South Africa, and Australia. They are studying a variety of topics, including genetic interaction networks, the immune response, infectious and parasitic diseases, RNA splicing, stem cells, neurogenesis, and protein assembly.

For a full list of SIRS please click here.