mbally@bccrc.ca

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Department:	Advanced Therapeutics (@ the BCCRC since 1991)
Research Role:	Department Head
Education:	B.Sc. (Biol.), Texas A&M University, 1977 M.Sc. (Biol.), Texas A&M University, 1979 Ph.D. (Biochemistry), UBC, 1984 MRC Postdoctoral Fellow, Terry Fox Laboratory-BC Cancer Agency MRC Centennial Fellow, Biochemistry-U.B.C
Birthplace:	Canada
Phone:	604-675-8020
Fax:	604-675-8183

Research Interests:

In order to achieve this, my research group embraces two fundamental principles: (i) drug combination products will be dependent on use of drug carrier technologies and (ii) drug combination products should achieve optimal therapeutic effects using better tolerated drug doses. I have extensive expertise on the use of liposome drug carriers for improving the specificity of anti-cancer drugs as well as enabling the use of some exciting new biologically active agents, such as therapeutically active antibodies, nucleic acid drugs (antisense oligonucleotides and siRNA) and therapeutically active peptides. In general terms, liposomes are small microscopic bags prepared from natural and synthetic lipids (fats). The therapeutic activity of conventional anti-cancer drugs can be improved, sometimes dramatically, when given intravenously trapped inside these lipid bags. Mechanistically, it has been suggested that liposomal drugs deliver more drug to tumors then conventional drug and development of this technology has been based on achieving improvements in drug delivery to sites of cancer growth. It is believed that delivery of liposomal drug carriers from the blood to interstitial sites within the tumor is due to characteristics of tumor blood vessels. In addition, my research clearly establishes that drug release from liposomes, whether in the blood compartment or within the tumor, can increase tumor cell exposure to anticancer drugs. Based on this understanding, my lab is now using drug carriers, such as liposomes, to provide the format to deliver combinations of drugs that are shown, via high content cell screening assays, to interact to achieve better than expect (synergistic) therapeutic activity.