An interview with Dr. Amy Gillgrass
MIRC’s newest faculty member
MIRC would like to welcome Dr. Amy Gillgrass, who is joining the centre as an Assistant Professor and initiating a research program focusing on studying HIV/TB co-infections. Dr. Gillgrass brings years of valuable expertise and knowledge in immunology, with a diverse background in infection and immunity as well as cancer research.
After completing her Master of Science under the supervision of Dr. W.J. Miller, Dr. Gillgrass joined Dr. Kaushic’s lab as a research assistant, where she primarily worked on studying the impact of hormones on viral infections in the female genital tract. From there, she completed her PhD under the supervision of Dr. Ali Ashkar, with a focus on stimulating the immune system to fight cancer. During her graduate studies, Dr. Gillgrass was the recipient of several prestigious awards including the NSERC-Canada Postgraduate Scholarship A, the D.C. Russell Memorial Scholarship, the CIHR Frederick Banting and Charles Best Graduate Scholarship Award (Doctoral), and the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation Fellowship (Doctoral).
Dr. Gillgrass’ passion for immuno-oncology led her to complete a translational postdoctoral fellowship in the Department of Oncology under the supervision of Dr. Anita Bane. She continued her funding success by obtaining the highly competitive Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation Fellowship (Post-Doctoral). Along with pursuing research, Dr. Gillgrass spent a lot of time teaching in various capacities at McMaster University. Her breadth of experience spans both academia and industry, as she was recently a Scientist for Turnstone Biologics. MIRC is honoured to have Dr. Gillgrass join us as a new faculty member.
I have been a part of the MIRC group for a long time in a variety of capacities. I think that experience has given me a unique perspective on the department. I have always been impressed by the level of expertise in the group and how people collaborate so readily. In addition, having experts in so many areas of Immunology really makes this a fantastic place to produce high level science. When this opportunity arose it was an easy decision to make as I haven’t seen this same collaborative and supportive environment elsewhere.
I plan to establish a research laboratory that develops models to study the pathology/immunology of human disease. My primary research focus will be on immunology, mucosal immunology, infectious disease and virology. In particular, I plan on establishing humanized mouse models to enable comprehensive examination of human trophic viruses such as Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). Forty per cent of deaths in people with HIV are from co-infections with tuberculosis (TB)(WHO-2016).
The lack of HIV/TB co-infection models has been widely acknowledged in the field and experts have denoted this as an unmet scientific need. Thus, I will establish a novel model of HIV/TB co-infection. This model is necessary because treatment, prophylaxis and disease outcome has been shown to be different in individuals singly infected with HIV or TB or those co-infected with both. In general HIV/TB co-infections can be lethal because each tends to speed the progression of the other. HIV/TB co-infection is a global issue that requires further research and establishing this model to closely examine the phenomenon will be an important step towards managing and/or preventing this disease.
In addition to my research program, teaching is a strong interest of mine and I aim to employ innovative teaching techniques to increase student engagement and learning in my classes. I hope to apply this at both the undergraduate and graduate level.
In the short term, I really look forward to establishing my own lab and mentoring/teaching students. In the longer term, I look forward to formulating and answering scientific questions that can contribute to our understanding of human health and disease.
I think if you want to pursue a career in science academia you really have to love it. For me, I look forward to coming each day and really enjoy thinking about and discussing science. In addition I think you have to be willing to work very hard, be persistent/optimistic (since there are many setbacks), and establish good connections with your colleagues.