Michael John Page PhD Lakehead University Graduate Research Award

Michael John Page was born to Sonja and Roger Page in 1975. Raised in Thunder Bay, Michael graduated from Port Arthur Collegiate in 1994.

In September 1994, Michael moved to Ottawa to study biochemistry at Carleton University, where he graduated with his BSc in 1998. He then moved to Vancouver, British Columbia and entered the University of British Columbia’s (UBC) graduate program in biochemistry and molecular biology. Michael was supported by a competitive graduate studentship grant from Canadian Blood Services.

In 2004, Michael successfully defended his PhD thesis, Bioengineering coagulation factor Xa substrate specificity into Streptomyces griseus trypsin. Michael headed to Washington University in St.Louis, Missouri to complete a postdoctoral fellowship studying the biological activity of thrombin—an enzyme in blood that causes clotting. As a testament to his work, Michael received a two-year fellowship from the American Heart Association. His fellowship, extended for a third year, was followed by the prestigious Career Development K Award. In 2010, at the University of California, San Francisco, Michael developed one of his greatest achievements—a peptide probe that was able to detect blood clots in real time. This discovery won Michael and his team an entrepreneurship competition that led to a patent for the discovery, and later the creation of a company called Biopaint Inc. Michael’s patent—Restricted Interaction Peptide Technology—is in the control of UCSF.

In addition to his cardiovascular work, Michael was most excited about his research on early pancreatic cancer detection. Michael’s last research paper, titled Non-Invasive Imaging and Cellular Tracking of Pulmonary Embolism by Near-Infrared Fluorescence and Positron Emission Tomography, was published in Nature Communication, on October 1, 2015.

Michael passed away unexpectedly in 2013; he was a researcher with a passion for medical research. To honour his memory, the Page family has created the Michael John Page PhD. Graduate Research Award.

Awarded to a student with high academic standing who has completed their undergraduate degree at Lakehead University, and who are proceeding to a Master’s or PhD Program, and conducting laboratory research in the areas of Chemistry, Biology or Physics. The Dean of the Faculty of Science and Environmental Studies will forward their recommendation to the Office of Graduate Studies.