UNIVERSITY OF PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND
UPEI biology professor awarded 2023 Emerging Scholar Research Grant by Canadian Cancer Society

Dr. Pat Murphy, an assistant professor in biology at the University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI), has received a 2023 Emerging Scholar Research Grant from the Canadian Cancer Society (CCS) for his research into the role of bioactive metabolites in breast cancer. The grant is valued at $600,000 over five years. 

Murphy is exploring ways to unlock the bioactive properties of kynurenine pathway metabolites to design new therapeutic approaches to breast cancer, which still causes over 5,500 deaths in Canada despite modern medicines.  

Metabolism is the breakdown of nutrients to generate energy and fuel cancer cell growth, said Murphy. The process also creates products metabolites that have other purposes besides generating energy. Kynurenine is a metabolite of the nutrient tryptophan. Cancer medicines that block kynurenine production have performed poorly, particularly in breast cancer. Kynurenine also breaks down further into metabolites that, in addition to other roles, limit tumor growth. 

"At this time, the beneficial roles of kynurenine metabolites have not been explored," he said. "Since they could explain the modest effects seen when blocking kynurenine production, it is critical they be understood. In the short term, this project will be the first of its kind to find out whether bioactive roles of metabolites in breast cancer may inspire better medicines. In the long term, this approach could allow us to re-imagine how metabolites work in cancer biology to reveal new ways to increase patient survival." 

Dr. Greg Naterer, vice-president academic and research at UPEI, congratulated Murphy on being named a CCS Emerging Scholar. 

"On behalf of UPEI, I congratulate Dr. Murphy for securing this competitive and prestigious grant," he said. "This exciting research has the potential to make a significant difference to people who are living with cancer and their families." 

Among other grants, Murphy has received $300,000 through the CCS's 2021 Atlantic Cancer Research (ACR) Grants competition for breast cancer research. He has been involved with the Beatrice Hunter Cancer Research Institute since he was a postdoctoral researcher, first as a trainee in the Institute's cancer research training program, and now as an associate scientist. 

Murphy is the second UPEI researcher to receive an Emerging Scholar grant from the CCS, the first being Dr. Marya Ahmed, an associate professor of chemistry, in 2021. 

The Canadian Cancer Society recently awarded $8.7 million in 2023 Emerging Scholar Research Grants to 16 early-career researchers who are pursuing scientific advances of the highest relevance to help transform the future of cancer research. With this funding, the recipients will develop their cancer research programs in Canada and pursue important scientific advances of the highest quality and potential for impact across the four pillars of health research: biomedical; clinical; health services; and social, cultural, environmental, and population health.