Okey Igboeli

Dr. Igboeli has significant academic and practical experience in entrepreneurship and research commercialization. Prior to joining the University of Waterloo, he founded and led the drug discovery company, True Spring Pharmaceuticals Inc. His research involved discovery of new chemical entities for the treatment of infectious and non-infectious diseases of veterinary and medical significance, as well as strategic risks involved in new drug discovery.

• Veterinary pharmacology and toxicology

• Drug discovery and drug target validation

• Drug resistance

• Molecular biology

• Technology development and transfer

• Research commercialization

• 2015 MBA University of Prince Edward Island

• 2013 Ph.D. Atlantic Veterinary College, University of Prince Edward Island

• 2006 M.Sc. University of Nigeria

• 2002 DVM University of Nigeria

• 2014 CERC Short-Term Research Placement Award (to the University of Bergen, Norway), UPEI, Charlottetown, PE

• 2013 MBA Entrance Scholarship, UPEI, Charlottetown, PE

• 2012 Innovation and Research Excellence Postdoctoral Fellowship, Innovation PEI, Charlottetown, PE

• 2012 Best Student Oral Presentation Award, Aquaculture Canada Conference, Charlottetown, PE

• 2010 Cooke Aquaculture Award, Best Graduate Student Oral Presentation, 20th APICS Aquaculture and Fisheries Conference, Fredericton, NB

• 2009 Innovation and Research Excellence PhD Fellowship, Innovation PEI, Charlottetown, PE

• 2008 Novartis Ph.D. Fellowship, Charlottetown, PE

• Reviewer, Diseases of Aquatic Organisms

• Member, American Academy of Veterinary Pharmacology and Therapeutics (AAVPT)

• Member, Society of Toxicology (SOT)

• Member, Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC)

• Velocity Science

• President and Founder, True Spring Pharmaceuticals Inc.

• Adjunct Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Atlantic Veterinary College, University of Prince Edward Island

• BIOL 130 - Introductory Cell Biology
  • Taught in 2025
• BIOL 335L - Molecular Biology Techniques
  • Taught in 2025
• BIOL 354 - Environmental Toxicology 1
  • Taught in 2025
• BIOL 439 - Environmental and Natural Products Biochemistry
  • Taught in 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025
• SCBUS 122 - Management of Business Organizations
  • Taught in 2020, 2021, 2022
• SCBUS 225 - Organizational Behaviour in Scientific and Technical Workplaces
  • Taught in 2023
• SCBUS 423 - Workshop 4: Strategic Management of Science and Business
  • Taught in 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024
• SCBUS 424 - Workshop 5: Special Topics in Science and Business
  • Taught in 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024
• WIL 611 - Interdisciplinary Community/Industry Research Project
  • Taught in 2025

* Only courses taught in the past 5 years are displayed.

• Cadoret D., Kailas T., Velmovitsky P., Morita P. and Igboeli O.O. 2020. Proposed Implementation of Blockchain in British Columbia’s Healthcare Data Management. J Med Internet Res Vol 22, No 10 October doi:10.2196/20897

• Braden L., Michaud D., Igboeli O.O., Dondrup M., Hamre L., Dalvin S., Purcell S.L., Kongshaug H., Eichner C., Nilsen F. and Fast M. 2020. Identification of critical enzymes in the salmon louse chitin synthesis pathway as revealed by RNAi-mediated abrogation of infectivity. International Journal for Parasitology 50:873-889 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpara.2020.06.007

• Danzmann R.G., Norman J.D., Rondeau E.B., Messmer A.M., Kent M.P., Lien S. Igboeli O.O., Fast M.D. and Koop B.F. 2019. A genetic linkage map for the salmon louse (Lepeophtheirus salmonis): evidence for high male:female and inter-familial recombination rate differences. Molecular Genetics and Genomics 294:343–363 http://doi.org/10.1007/s00438-018-1513-7

• Poley J.D., Igboeli O.O. and Fast M.D. 2015. Towards a consensus: Multiple experiments provide evidence for constitutive expression differences among sexes and populations of sea lice (Lepeophtheirus salmonis) related to emamectin benzoate resistance. Aquaculture doi: 10.1016/j.aquaculture.2015.06.026.

• Sutherland B.J.G., Poley J.D., Igboeli O.O., Jantzen J.R., Fast M.D., Koop B.F. and Jones S.R.M. 2014. Transcriptomic responses to emamectin benzoate in Pacific and Atlantic Canada salmon lice Lepeophtheirus salmonis with differing levels of drug resistance. Evolutionary Applications doi: 10.1111/eva.12237.

• Igboeli O.O., Burka J.F. and Fast M.D. 2014. Lepeophtheirus salmonis: a persisting challenge for salmon aquaculture. Animal Frontiers 4:22-32.

• Igboeli O.O., Burka J.F. and Fast M.D. 2013. Sea lice population and sex differences in P-glycoprotein expression and emamectin benzoate resistance on salmon farms in the Bay of Fundy, New Brunswick, Canada. Pest Management Science 70:905-914.

• Igboeli O.O., Fast M.D., Heumann J. and Burka J.F. 2012. Role of P-glycoprotein in emamectin benzoate (SLICE®) resistance in sea lice, Lepeophtheirus salmonis. Aquaculture 344-349:40-47.