Professor
Max Rady College of Medicine
Biochemistry and Medical Genetics
Room 611 – Basic Medical Sciences Building
745 Bannatyne Avenue
University of Manitoba
Winnipeg, Manitoba R3E 0J9
Phone: 204-789-3431
tamra.ogilvie@umanitoba.ca
Tamra Werbowetski-Ogilvie, BSc, PhD
Research summary
Dr. Tamra Werbowetski-Ogilvie currently holds a Tier II Canada Research Chair in Neuro-Oncology and Human Stem Cells. She has a research focus on neuro-oncology, pediatric cancer, and stem cell biology. Dr. Werbowetski-Ogilvie is interested in studying medulloblastoma, a malignant brain tumor that commonly affects children, and her lab has made significant contributions to understanding the cellular and molecular mechanisms regulating stem cell function and heterogeneity in this cancer.
Her research focuses on central regulators of self-renewal and potential diagnostic biomarkers for medulloblastoma. She has discovered the critical role of transcription factor OTX2 in promoting the self-renewal of medulloblastoma cells and has shown that CD271/p75NTR can be used as a cell surface marker to identify medulloblastoma stem cells. Dr. Werbowetski-Ogilvie routinely utilizes model systems, some of which she first developed, that closely represent the human condition. These include primary medulloblastoma cells from patient tumors, medulloblastoma-like cells derived from human neural precursor cells, and mouse models where these cells are implanted into the cerebellum.
Dr. Werbowetski-Ogilvie has been continuously supported by various funding agencies, including Research Manitoba, the Children's Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba (CHRIM), CancerCare Manitoba Foundation, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), NSERC, the Rally Foundation for Childhood Cancer Research (US), and Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation (US). She has published numerous scientific articles, and her research has been cited over 1,000 times.
Research theme
Neuro-oncology
Pediatric cancer
Stem cell biology
Research interests
Medulloblastoma
Pediatric brain tumors
Cancer stem cells
Keywords
Medulloblastoma
Self-renewal and neural differentiation
Xenotransplantation assays
Gene expression profiling
OTX2
CD271/p75NTR
Research affiliations
Affiliate research scientist, Children’s Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba (CHRIM)
Affiliate scientist, Research Institute in Oncology and Hematology (RIOH), Winnipeg, Manitoba
Biography
Dr. Tamra Werbowetski-Ogilvie is a professor in biochemistry and medical genetics at the University of Manitoba.
She completed her bachelor of science in biology at the University of Western Ontario in 2000 and received her PhD from the Brain Tumour Research Centre at the Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University in 2006, with a research focus on malignant brain tumors. Afterward, she pursued postdoctoral training in human stem cell biology at McMaster University before joining the University of Manitoba as a principal investigator in November 2010.
Dr. Werbowetski-Ogilvie has received several awards for her work, including the Outstanding Reviewer recognition by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) College of Reviewers in 2020, and she has been nominated for the YMCA/YWCA Women of Distinction Award in Manitoba in 2017. She has also received funding and support from various institutions and organizations, including the Canada Research Chair Tier II in Neurooncology and Human Stem Cells (2011-2022), the Junior Investigator Grant Panel Travel Award from the Canadian Cancer Society Research Institute (CCS-RI) in 2011, and the NCIC Harold E. Johns Fellowship Award for the highest-ranking post-doctoral fellow in Canada in the 2007 NCIC competition.
Education
Doctor of Philosophy in Brain Tumour Research, Brain Tumour Research Centre, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec (2006)
Bachelor of Science in Biology (Honours), University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario (2000)
Awards
Recognition for Outstanding Reviewer by Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) College of Reviewers (2020)
Nominee for YMCA/YWCA Women of Distinction Award in Manitoba (2017)
Canada Research Chair Tier II in Neurooncology and Human Stem Cells (2011-2022)
Junior Investigator Grant Panel Travel Award from Canadian Cancer Society Research Institute (CCS-RI) (2011)
McMaster University Faculty of Health Sciences (FHS) Postdoctoral Fellow Publication Award, for Werbowetski-Ogilvie et al., Nature Biotechnology, 2009. McMaster University (2010)
Harold E. Johns Fellowship Award from National Cancer Institute of Canada (NCIC) for the highest-ranking post-doctoral fellow in Canada in the 2007 NCIC competition, McMaster University (2008)
Post PhD Research Fellowship from National Cancer Institute of Canada (NCIC), McMaster University (2007-2010)
Doctoral Research Award from Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), McGill University (2002-2005)
Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Postgraduate Scholarship-Award (PGS-A) (2000-2002)
NSERC Summer Undergraduate Student Research Award (2000)
Contact us
Biochemistry and Medical Genetics
Room 336 Basic Medical Sciences Building
745 Bannatyne Avenue
University of Manitoba
Winnipeg, MB R3E 0J9 Canada