Bernard Belleau Award

Sponsored by Paraza Pharma Inc.

The Bernard Belleau Award is presented to a scientist residing in Canada who has made a distinguished contribution to the field of medicinal chemistry through research involving biochemical or organic chemical mechanisms.

View the Terms of Reference.

The 2021 winner of the Bernard Belleau Award is:

John Paul Pezacki
University of Ottawa
 

John Paul Pezacki received his BSc from the University of Toronto, and carried out PhD studies at McMaster University with the late John Warkentin, with some of his PhD work being conducted at the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) with Janusz Lusztyk. He then conducted NSERC postdoctoral research with Ronald Kluger working on protein engineering, nitric oxide signaling, and protein conjugation. He was then hired by NRC’s Steacie Institute for Molecular Sciences, but delayed his start in Ottawa to perform an 18-month postdoctoral stint with Peter G. Schultz at the Scripps Institute. At NRC, Pezacki was a Senior Research Officer, Group Leader and Scientific Head for a multi-institute program on biosensor and biochip development. In 2015, he moved to the University of Ottawa as a Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Sciences and Director for the Centre for Chemical and Synthetic Biology. Prof. Pezacki creates and uses chemical and biochemical tools to interrogate host-virus interactions to discover both novel modes for therapeutic intervention and to develop novel diagnostic tools. Professor Pezacki has identified a number of important host factors that restrict virus replication, including host proteins/enzymes as well as non-coding RNAs. He also has several notable awards including the Rutherford Memorial Medal for Chemistry from the Royal Society of Canada, Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee award for contributions to Canada, and is a fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (UK).

Group website

Past Winners