David W.L. Ma

My interest in the role of nutrition in human health began while working as a summer research student under the mentorship of Dr. M.T. Clandinin at the University of Alberta. This subsequently led to graduate work in the area of nutrition and cancer. I obtained my PhD in Medical Sciences in 2001 at the University of Alberta conducting research on the anticancer properties of conjugated linoleic acids in breast cancer. I continued to pursue further training examining the linkage between diet and cancer in my postdoctoral research at Texas A&M University in the lab of Dr. R.S. Chapkin. I investigated the role of omega-3 fatty acids and folate in the emerging field of membrane rafts. The study of membrane rafts such as caveolae is a new area of membrane biology which has dramatically changed our understanding of the role of lipids in regulating signal transduction pathways. In 2004, I took up a faculty position in the Department of Nutritional Sciences at the University of Toronto as an Assistant Professor. Building on my PhD and postdoctoral work, I developed a research program investigating the effects of bioactive fatty acids (conjugated linoleic acids and omega-3 fatty acids) on breast cancer. In 2007, I joined the faculty in the Department of Human Health and Nutritional Sciences at the University of Guelph.