OICR young investigator Irina Kalatskaya

With accelerating technological advancements of genomics laboratory equipment, genomic data is now being processed at a much faster rate than in recent years, resulting in large quantities of data output. All of this data needs to be analyzed to discover new cancer targets. Scientists in the Informatics and Bio-computing Platform at OICR are responsible for organizing and interpreting the genomic data, a vital step on the road to improved diagnostic treatments and personalized medicine.

“Extensive amounts of genomic data are being collected worldwide, but a lack of powerful tools to help store, classify, organize and analyze the information is hindering the capacity for discovery in cancer research,” says Dr. Irina Kalatskaya, a Scientific Associate in OICR’s Informatics and Bio-computing Platform. “The most important and complicated step is to make biological sense of this information. I’m looking for regions of highly-interconnected proteins that might help to understand the mechanism of cancer progression,” she adds.

Kalatskaya studies patients with esophageal cancer. In her research it was noticed that local amplification of the chromosome 7 region is associated with poor patient survival. By applying pathway and network-based analysis on the differences between patients with local amplification of chromosome 7 and those without, she found one cluster of genes associated with T-cell signaling and another cluster associated with chemokines and chemokine receptors, several of which are involved in attraction of T and B lymphocytes. Her findings suggest that tumours with these amplification events may produce fewer T-cell chemo-attractants and have fewer T-cells, leading to worse rates of survival for patients. The results were recently published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research, but require further validation in a larger number of patients.

The ultimate objective of the research is to identify molecular proteins specific for each type of cancer which will help physicians detect genomic alterations in patients before they develop cancer, helping doctors to find new strategies to prevent tumours from developing or becoming fatal.

Kalatskaya is passionate about prevention of cancer because of a family connection with the disease, “I want revenge. I want to prevent cancer.” Her determination to defeat cancer and a life-long love of mathematics and science inspired her to become a cancer researcher.

She first discovered her interest at the age of 16 when she presented a scientific project at the International Environmental Project Olympiad in Istanbul in 1995 and was awarded a bronze medal. This experience furthered her passion for science. Irina tailored her education to focus on her favourite subjects of mathematics, computer-science, chemistry and physics. In 2005, she earned her PhD in Biochemistry in Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) in Munich, Germany and three years later she completed her first postdoctoral fellowship in Molecular Pharmacology and Biochemistry at the Université de Montréal in Quebec. Irina’s love of different sciences and her lab experiences eventually led her to the field of informatics and bio-computing which combines her scientific interests.

In November 2008, after completing courses in programming, Irina moved to Toronto to join OICR’s Informatics and Bio-computing team. “I am hoping to become a principal investigator in the near future. Now I am gaining experience, accumulating data, building a network of collaborators, applying for grants and writing manuscripts,” she says.

“I feel confident, rewarded, reassured and relaxed even when I am under pressure. The close community of researchers at OICR and Toronto’s Discovery District are good sources of new collaborations, fresh ideas, new data and support. I am very excited to be here.” Irina hopes her algorithm will make an impact on how patients are screened not just in Ontario, but throughout the world. By predicting which diseases patients are likely to develop over their lifetimes, Irina would love a future healthcare system that focuses on prevention and screening reducing the need for treatment.

“Hopefully, in 25 years there will be protocols filtering people who are predisposed for certain types of cancer (based on their genetic mutations, family history, lifestyle and other so far unknown factors) and prevent the development of cancer before it affects their lives. I hope my grandchildren will think about cancer like we think now about the bubonic plague or smallpox.”