Can I do a research project or Co-op?

The Program does not offer a Co-op option because it already includes a considerable number of practical, hands-on laboratory experiences. If you are interested in pursuing a research career you have the option to register in a Directed Studies (PATH 438) research project in your fourth year.

Research projects are carried out in the lab of a faculty member of the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, who acts as your supervisor.  You and your supervisor decide on the topic of your project.  You are expected to participate in the design of the project as well as perform experiments and data analysis. 

Some examples of BMLSc students’ research projects:

  • Examination of nuclear insulin receptor substrate 1 as a potential biomarker for human breast cancers (Genetic Pathology Evaluation Centre, Jack Bell Research Centre)
  • Pathogen Innactivation in Stored Platelets Using UVC (Centre for Blood Research)
  • Airway Inflammation and Remodelling in COPD: Relationship to Infection (The iCAPTURE Centre, St. Paul’s Hospital)
  • Genome-wide scan for calcific aortic valve stenosis (BC Cancer Research Agency)
  • Comparison of lab tests in the evaluation of Pregnancy Associated Proteinuria (GEM Program, Children’s and Women’s Health Centre of British Columbia)
  • Implementation of a method for the detection of illicit drugs in hair using LCMS and GCMS (Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, UBC)
  • Molecular Characterization of Cryptosporidium (BC Centre for Disease Control)
  • Serum sulfatide presentation by CD1b molecules (Children’s and Women’s Health Centre of British Columbia)
  • A Histological Analysis of the impact of the Cholesterol Transporter ABCG1 on Atherosclerosis and Alzheimer’s Disease (Child and Family Research Institute)
  • Macrophage Heterogeneity and Atherosclerosis (Healthy Heart Program, St. Paul’s Hospital)
  • Killing of AML stem cells by allogeneic natural killer cells (Terry Fox Laboratory, BC Cancer Research Centre)
  • Novel Aqueous Two-phase System for Separation of Antigen Modified Red Blood Cells (Centre for Blood Research)
  • Investigation of platelet microaggregation (Canadian Blood Services)
  • Oxidative effects of NRTI administration during pregnancy (Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, UBC)
  • Epigenetic Effects of Methyltetrahydrofolate (Children’s and Women’s Health Centre of British Columbia)
  • Investigation of the effect of macrophage polarization on apoptosis (Healthy Heart Program, St. Paul’s Hospital)
  • Regulators of α4 integrin phosphorylation (Child & Family Research Institute)
  • RBC Storage Lesion Assay Development and Comparison of Storage Solutions (Centre for Blood Research)