Past, present and future: Academic life from the lens of Dr. Terry Snutch

This article was edited by Santanu Sasidharan from the Tokuriki lab, Michael Smith Laboratories 

This is the third article in our Past, Present and Future series, where we explore the journeys of inspiring faculty whose work is shaping the future of research. In this instalment, we feature Dr. Terry Snutch. Dr. Snutch is a professor at the Michael Smith Laboratories as well as the Departments of Psychiatry and Zoology, and is Director of Translational Neuroscience at the Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health. He is a renowned Canadian neuroscientist and molecular biologist, best known for his pioneering research in the field of ion channel biology. Dr. Snutch has made significant contributions to understanding the molecular mechanisms of calcium channels and their role in neurological disorders such as epilepsy, chronic pain, and migraine. His work has helped bridge basic neuroscience and therapeutic development, influencing both academic research and pharmaceutical innovation. Dr. Snutch has played a vital role in Canadian science policy and biotechnology, including as a founding director of several biotech companies and as a key leader in national research initiatives.

1. How has your research evolved and impacted your field?

 My lab’s research has taken a number of distinct tracks over the past three decades. For the first 10-12 years, we started out by identifying and cloning the family of voltage-gated calcium channels expressed in mammals. We focused on characterizing the properties of nine genes for calcium channels that are expressed in neurons. In doing so, my lab demonstrated that the calcium channels were much more complicated at the molecular level than previously thought, findings which had a significant impact on the field. Over the course of the next 5-7 years, we determined that the individual subtypes of calcium channels are uniquely regulated by second messengers, most significantly showing how neurotransmitters regulate these channels in neurons.

This evolved into a now 20-year interest to invent and develop novel targeted molecules to treat patients with neurological disorders. We were one of the first translational neuroscience endeavours in academia, one that further evolved into a biotechnology spin-off company. This eventually led to a phase 3 human trial with a drug that later received FDA approval, rare for a small spin-off company. Our work has also provided academia and industry with a plethora of new targets for drugs to treat human brain disorders.

During this time, my lab’s work has evolved from traditional molecular genetics approaches, towards employing new, state-of-the-art methodologies such as nanopore-based sequencing. Since 2014 we have engaged with Oxford Nanopore to help develop, test and employ both wet lab and computer-based methodologies in this rapidly evolving new field. Our expertise in nanopore-based sequencing inadvertently led us to become deeply involved during the COVID-19 pandemic. In late February 2020 as the pandemic was just beginning, we realized that the portable, simple and inexpensive nanopore platform could help by rapidly sequencing SARS-CoV-2 variants from patients, leading to us identifying the first CoV-2 sequence in a Canadian patient. In March 2020, I co-founded the Canadian COVID-19 Genomics Network (CanCOGeN-VirusSeq), bringing together all 13 of Canada’s provincial and territorial health labs, the National Microbiology Laboratory, and over 40 hospitals and 6 academic centers to share data that informed health authorities and policy-makers how to best protect Canadians. This was a massive effort with incredibly humbling outcomes. Through decades of innovation and collaboration, my lab has continuously evolved to meet emerging scientific and public health challenges and translating foundational discoveries into real-world impact.

2. What major challenges have you encountered during your research career?

Over the years, one thing that hasn’t been a challenge is attracting highly qualified graduate and postdoctoral trainees. The combination of our scientific record, UBC, the MSL and Vancouver represent an attractive opportunity to many young scientists. Rather, the largest challenge has been securing consistent, stable funding while the academic and translational funding programs have evolved. Although we have had ongoing basic science funding from CIHR for over 30 years, the amount of funding available has not kept up with the increase in the number of Canadian scientists. Additionally in our case, there has not been an easy pathway to securing funding for our translational activities, as they don’t fit neatly under any CIHR reviewing committee. Despite these challenges, our lab has been committed to impactful research and has found innovative ways to sustain and expand both our basic and translational programs.

3. Are there any research topics in your field that you believe are currently undervalued? Where do you see these areas heading in the next 5–10 years?

Neuroscience is one of the fastest evolving areas in biomedical research. The field has rapidly incorporated advances across imaging at the neuronal and whole brain levels, optogenetics, circuit delineation using transgenic markers, proteomics, metabolomics, and whole genome analyses from patients. This has been very exciting. Moving forward, there is a need to generate more representative animal models of brain diseases. While most biomedical research involves mouse models, mice aren’t strong models for more complex human brain disorders such as mood disorders as well as neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s, ALS, stroke and Parkinson’s. The next frontier lies in developing more predictive, translationally relevant models that better reflect the human condition and truly advance our understanding and treatment of complex brain disorders.

4. What advice would you offer to someone beginning their research career in your area?

Focus is critical when just starting out as an independent scientist. Don’t try and take on too broad of a topic at the start of your program and instead try to focus on a couple of specific projects where you can make new contributions to the field. Passing on advice from Michael Smith, be sure to make your mark as a young scientist by publishing at least 3 or 4 research papers and at least one review in that specific area before turning your attention to other interests.

For early career researchers, I would also suggest working more independently and leaning on postdoctoral fellows and technicians to get you off the ground, rather than relying on junior trainees for the generation of data and paper writing.

Finally, I’d also recommend setting up as many relevant collaborations as possible, both locally and externally. Most aspects of impactful science these days requires a combination of many technical approaches and skillsets, and it is in your best interest to bring these in through collaborations rather than trying to reinvent the wheel for each new methodology required.