Drs Anna Blakney and Sabrina Leslie join the Michael Smith Laboratories

Dr. Anna Blakney is jointly appointed as Assistant Professor to the Michael Smith Laboratories and the School of Biomedical Engineering. Her research focuses on the development of new biotechnologies with particular interest in applying cell biology and materials sciences to the engineering of vaccine formulations that deliver self-amplified RNA. An active and impactful science communicator and educator, Dr. Blakney joined Team Halo, an initiative started by the United Nations and Vaccine Confidence Project, which connects scientists and clinicians working on COVID-19 to the general public over TikTok. 

Dr. Sabrina Leslie is jointly appointed as Associate Professor to the Michael Smith Laboratories and the Department of Physics and Astronomy. Dr. Leslie uses single-molecule microscopy to measure biomolecular interactions in the complex and stochastic environments of living cells in real-time. Her innovative research, like the invention of the Convex Lens-Induced Confinement (CLiC) imaging platform, contribute new biotechnologies and therapies that help to understand, identify, and combat both emerging and known diseases.