2020 Wylie Scholar
Kathryn Howe, MD, PhD
Surgeon-Scientist
University Health Network, Division of Vascular Surgery
Toronto General Hospital Research Institute, Division of Biomedical Research
Assistant Professor, Department of Surgery, University of Toronto
Blair Early Career Professorship in Vascular Surgery
“My work in the lab is focused on the treatment and prevention of strokes. The research I do is building the foundation for brand new therapies unlike any that currently exist.”
Dr. Kathryn Howe received the 2020 Wylie Scholar Award for her project “Role of endothelial extracellular vesicle microRNA release and paracrine cellular communication in vulnerable carotid atherosclerotic plaques: a new paradigm for stroke.”
Many people have atherosclerotic plaques in the carotid arteries but only some cause strokes – the problem is scientists don’t know which ones. Dr. Howe’s laboratory is trying to understand how cells within blood vessels communicate with one another in diseases such as atherosclerosis using secreted vesicles containing genetic code. The main goal of this research is to better understand these cellular communication signals in order to identify and treat plaques that are going to cause a problem so that we can prevent a stroke.
Dr. Howe received her PhD in Molecular Immunology, Virology, and Inflammation at McMaster University. She attended medical school at the University of Toronto and completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Sick Kids. Throughout her research career, she has been awarded competitive fellowships from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research & national scholarships. During her Vascular Surgery residency at McMaster, Dr. Howe was a fellow at Stanford University and established her own bench research program investigating the role of endothelial microRNA in vascular disease. Her clinical interests include carotid revascularization & stroke prevention, aneurysm repair, and peripheral vascular disease.
“The Wylie Scholar Award is allowing me to pursue an ambitious research program to find new targets to prevent stroke. Stroke has affected my family & many of my patients. This mission is personal – on behalf of all our loved ones. We’ve already had some early transformative discoveries that set the foundation for new therapies unlike any that currently exist. With the Wylie Scholar Award support, my ideas have been validated by eminent Vascular Surgeon-Scientists and funds provided to continue working towards major breakthroughs in stroke prevention. As an early career Vascular Surgeon-Scientist, I am incredibly honored to be part of this distinguished group & the lineage the Wylie Scholar Award represents.”