Platform Administrator Award Winner
Platform Scientist Award Winner
BROOKE RING
NHU TRIEU
Brooke has 10 years of research experience specializing in molecular biology, cytometry, microscopy and laboratory management.
She graduated with a BSc. Hons In Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine and MSc. in Life Sciences from Trent University. She managed a virology laboratory at Trent University and taught Virology and Infectious Diseases before coming to Queen’s University in 2012.
She worked as the research assistant for clinician-scientist, Dr. Michael Rauh in Pathology and Molecular Medicine. After 6 six years she branching into lab management for multiple research labs in the Pathology department, including the Queen’s Laboratory for Molecular Pathology. She has expertise running confocal microscopy, flow cytometry, NanoString Technology and Next-Generation Sequencers.
In 2019, she became the Manager of Operations and Facilities at Queen’s CardioPulmonary Unit (QCPU) under scientific director, Dr. Stephen Archer. Brooke oversees operation of both the KHSC satellite clinic’s daily operations, as well as, the state-of-the-art research centre. She not only lends her strong background in lab management to QCPU, but her significant bench experience as a Research Scientist, aiding in the Genomics, Molecular Imaging and Cytometry labs.
The Queen’s Cardiopulmonary unit (QCPU)
The Queen’s Cardiopulmonary unit (QCPU) is an 8000ft2 translational research center which was created 7 years ago based on $10 million funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) and the Government of Ontario. QCPU is an infrastructure platform within TIME (Translational Institute of Medicine), a research institute based in the Department of Medicine.
QCPU’s mission includes growing the externally funded research enterprise for the Department of Medicine and QHS, while assisting our faculty and trainees in their efforts to produce cutting-edge research publications and competitive grants. QCPU aspires to embody research excellence and to ensure that Queen’s University is recognized internationally as a center for translational research.
Housed within the Bioscience Complex, QCPU is strategically located in the heart of Queen’s campus, within a short walk to the School of Medicine Building, Kingston Health Sciences Centre (KHSC) and many departments within the Faculty of Health Sciences (QHS). QCPU has a Bench-to-Bedside philosophy, meaning it endeavours to advance human health by connecting patient care with discovery science. Although we initially had an emphasis on heart, lung, blood and vascular diseases, QCPU has evolved into a broad, translational research facility which provides three faculties of the Queen’s research community access to an expert team of scientists and various state-of-the-art research platforms. QCPU is a unique research core not only at Queen’s University, but nationally, as its collaborative design allows our team of scientists to conduct a wide variety of research services including histology, super-resolution confocal microscopy, microCT/PET/SPECT-scanning, cell culture, flow cytometry and cell sorting, and next-generation sequencing, and mass cytometry all under one roof. The QCPU scientists not only perform and analyze research, they also provide training for dozens of graduate students and staff each year.
We are also home to a KHSC satellite clinic with clinical trials capacity. QCPU’s KHSC satellite contains a patient reception, echocardiography and pulmonary function laboratories (activation pending), and four patient examination rooms. Historically, the QCPU clinic performs eight echocardiograms (ECHO) per day; however, the clinic operated at a reduced capacity for portions of 2022 due to sonographer shortages caused by the pandemic. The echocardiography laboratory represents a beneficial partnership which provides KHSC with a state-of-the-art imaging facility, and Queen’s researchers with access to the services of expert sonographers and ongoing maintenance of the equipment. Since 2021, the QCPU clinic also became home to a paediatric cardiology and a respirology clinic.
Nhu Trieu started her full time staff role as an electron and confocal microscopist (biology specialization) in the Microscopy and Microanalysis Facility (MMF) at the University of New Brunswick (UNB) in 2016 after graduating from the University of Alberta in 2015 with a B.Sc in Biology, specialization in Genetics. Her eclectic research experiences have included studying chromatin remodelling proteins in mice, telomeres in humans, Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy in cell culture and mammal models, and helping to identify new species of sponges. Since joining the MMF, she has added histology and cryosection to the facility service offerings as well as non-biological sample preparation. Currently, she also pursues her M.Sc in Biology part-time at UNB and studies the function of matrix metalloproteinase 11 in zebrafish using molecular tools she developed.
Nhu Trieu is passionate about developmental biology and spends a lot of time training and mentoring students and other academics, not only in microscopy but also in research design, methodology troubleshooting, and professional development. She is also very passionate about the future and advocacy of microscopy and core facilities as a councillor at large for the Microscopical Society of Canada (MSC) and part of the organization committee for the 50th meeting in June 2024. When she is not working in the lab, she coaches youth and adult athletes at her aerial gym Brass Monkey. On the world stage, Nhu represented Canada at the Pole Art World Championships in Italy as an amateur athlete and her journey is covered internationally in Muscle & Fitness HERS.
The Microscopy and Microanalysis Facility, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton (NB)
Starting in the 1960’s, the microscopy and microanalysis facility (MMF) at the University of New Brunswick is a multi-disciplinary platform that offers a wide array of services and expertise for the microscopical imaging and microanalysis of all types of samples (biological, chemical, geological, material). The facility consists of three professional staff – Douglas Hall (geology), Stephen Cogswell (engineer), and Nhu Trieu (biology). We support the work of academics, non-profits, industry, and government within Canada and internationally.
The facility houses five electron-beam instruments (JEOL6400 SEM, Hitachi SU-70 SEM, JEOL2011 TEM/STEM, SCIOS 2 DualBeam FIB SEM, JEOL 733 Microprobe), two confocal scanning laser microscope (Leica SP2, Leica SP8), digital light microscopes, an X-ray micro CT (Skyscan 1072), and two sample preparation wetlabs. Access to the instrumentation is on a ‘first-come, first-serve’ basis and users pay an hourly instrument rental fee. Users have the option in being trained to operate the equipment themselves or in employing the services of the staff of the MMF from sample preparation to imaging to data analysis.
The MMF offers training on all of the instruments and in advanced analytical techniques: EDS,WDS, EELS, EFTEM, electron diffraction, numerous specialized sample preparation techniques (including histology, cryo-sectioning, cryo-SEM, cryo-TEM). Special lectures in microscopy techniques are offered for classroom presentations or for groups of interested researchers upon request. More information is available at https://emunit.ext.unb.ca/index.php or microscopy@unb.ca or 506-453-4887.