Dr. Patricia Tonin

Biography

Patricia Tonin is a Professor at McGill University in the Department of Human Genetics and the Department of Medicine. Her research focuses on the role of hereditary and somatic genetic factors in high-grade serous ovarian carcinomas. Tonin's work involves the characterization of germline genes in women with hereditary forms of ovarian cancer, providing significant insights into the biology of ovarian cancer and identifying biomarkers for clinical management. Notably, she has contributed to the discoveries surrounding the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes and their application in health care management for women with high inherited risks of breast and ovarian cancers. A major theme of her research includes investigating the contribution of known cancer susceptibility genes in hereditary cancer families, especially within the French Canadian population in Quebec. Additionally, she explores specific somatic molecular genetic events occurring in ovarian cancer cells utilizing a variety of established techniques and high-throughput genotyping technologies, such as whole genome SNP array and exome sequencing. Her research also encompasses the molecular genetic characterization of a uniquely developed ovarian cancer cell line model, which has been made non-tumorigenic through gene transfer to identify molecular pathways essential for high-grade serous ovarian carcinomas.

Research Interests