Congratulations to Dr. Abiola Olaitan, assistant professor in biology, for being named one of the 2023 Gairdner Early Career Investigator Competition Award Winners.
The Gairdner Early Career Investigator (ECI) Competition invites promising Canadian researchers to submit research summaries for consideration by the Canada Gairdner Award winners, who select their top candidates. Winners join the Laureates in Toronto, Ontario, for Gairdner Science Week to present their own research to an international audience, build new scientific connections, and represent the exceptional work being done at all levels of the Canadian research ecosystem.
Dr. Olaitan, who joined the faculty of science in early 2023, was selected by Drs. Bonnie Bassler, Peter Greenberg and Michael Silverman, who are being awarded for their work on quorum sensing. They chose Dr. Olaitan for his work on Clostridioides difficile (c. diff) and antibiotic resistance. Dr. Olaitan recently uncovered the molecular basis that mediates heme-dependent metronidazole resistance among a global collection of C. difficile, accounting for over 40% of metronidazole resistance. This discovery presents an opportunity to develop innovative methods for early detection and prevention of metronidazole resistance in C. difficile infection patients.
Dr. Olaitan will be presenting on his research during Gairdner Science Week in October.