Mark Nachtigal

Biography

Dr. Mark Nachtigal received his B.Sc. (Biology) and Ph.D. (Molecular Endocrinology) degrees from the University of Manitoba. His post-doctoral research was conducted in Dr. Holly Ingraham’s laboratory at the University of California, San Francisco in the area of mammalian reproductive tract development. Throughout his graduate and post-graduate training his research projects retained a link to human reproductive cancer biology. In 1998, Dr. Nachtigal was recruited to Dalhousie University as the Rossetti Scholar for Cancer Research to study human epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). While at Dalhousie University he served as the co-chair of the Nova Scotia Cancer Research Training Program (2006-08) and as a member of the CIHR Institute of Cancer Research Advisory Board. Dr. Nachtigal returned to Manitoba in 2010 to continue his research on EOC. He is currently an Associate Professor in the Departments of Biochemistry & Medical Genetics, and Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences, as well as being a Senior Scientist in the Research Institute in Oncology & Hematology at CancerCare Manitoba.

Research Interest

EOC is the fifth leading cause of death by cancer amongst women. Approximately 95 women in Manitoba will be diagnosed with EOC this year. If detected at early stages of the disease, the cure rate approaches 90%; however, >70% of women are diagnosed with advanced disease when rates of survival are closer to 30%. Even after initial successful responses to therapy, EOC recurs in ~85% of patients. Dr. Nachtigal’s laboratory uses a combination of cellular and molecular approaches to investigate human EOC biology with a special interest in recurrent, chemotherapy-resistant disease. With the formation of the Manitoba Ovarian Biobanking Program (MOBP) and cooperation with national programs such as the Canadian Ovarian Cancer Research Consortium (COCRC), his lab will be able to more readily translate data obtained with EOC patient samples to clinically relevant results. The ability to isolate and use patient donated EOC cells in 3-dimensional primary culture provides a more relevant model to assess cell responses. In particular he, in collaboration with other University of Manitoba scientists, is focusing on investigating aspects of ovarian cancer stem cell biology and chromosomal instability, in addition to evaluating novel lipid-based therapeutics for treatment of chemoresistant EOC. This laboratory-based research is being complemented by epidemiologic studies to evaluate whether recent changes in clinical management have produced positive outcomes for the EOC population.