October Research Rounds
PRiME Research Rounds is a monthly research presentation featuring talks from PRiME Principal Investigators and Fellows. The seminar sessions bring the PRiME community together for engaging discussions!
Date: Friday, October 30, 2026, 1:00 - 2:00PM (Light refreshments will be provided)
Location: Red Seminar Room, Terrence Donnelly Centre, 160 College Street
Speakers:
Dr. Helen Tran
PRiME PI
Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry, University of Toronto
“Sequence-defined N-substituted glycines as polyethylene glycol replacements ”
Dr. Helen Tran is an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto in the Department of Chemistry (cross-appointed in the Department of Chemical Engineering). Her research program centers on polymers with defined sequence and architecture to develop emergent functional materials. She was an Intelligence Community postdoctoral fellow with Prof. Bao at Stanford University, a National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate fellow with Prof. Campos at Columbia University, a post-baccalaureate fellow with Dr. Zuckermann at the Molecular Foundry, and an undergraduate at UC Berkeley.
Jingan (Charles) Chen
2026 PRiME Fellow
PhD Candidate, Institute of Biomedical Engineering & Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto
“Nonviral delivery of chemically modified tRNA rescues nonsense mutations in cystic fibrosis”
Jingan (Charles) Chen is a PhD candidate in Dr. Bowen Li’s laboratory at the University of Toronto’s Institute of Biomedical Engineering. His research integrates RNA engineering, chemical modification, and lipid nanoparticle design to advance precision genetic medicines. He has developed chemically modified suppressor tRNAs that rescue disease-causing nonsense mutations in cystic fibrosis, alongside non-viral delivery systems that target therapeutic RNA to specific tissues. His interdisciplinary research bridges fundamental RNA design and therapeutic development, advancing RNA-based therapies for genetic diseases, with broader applications in gene editing, immunotherapy, and vaccination.