I received my MSc in Integrative Biology from Laurier, and her PhD in Biology from the University of Waterloo, under the supervision of Stephanie DeWitte-Orr, and my HBSc in Molecular Biology and Genetics from McMaster University. After my PhD, I was an industrial research scientist with a local biotechnology company.

My areas of expertise lie in immunomodulation using nanotechnology, and cancer biology at the cellular level.

Despite the recognition of the role of innate immunity in clearing cancerous cells, the current body of research lacks perspective and information on the cancer cell-mediated immune response. We can determine the most optimal targets for cancer therapies by understanding the basic underlying immunological mechanisms within cancer cells.

My research program explores the broad question: What immune pathways are intact in cancer cells?

Poynter, S.J., Herrington-Krause, S., and DeWitte-Orr, S.J. 2019. Two DExD/H-box helicases, DDX3 and DHX9, identified in rainbow trout are able to bind dsRNA. Fish & Shellfish Immunology, 93, 1056-1066.

Poynter, S.J. and DeWitte-Orr, S.J. 2018. Understanding viral dsRNA-mediated innate immune responses at the cellular level using a rainbow trout model. Frontiers in Immunology, 9.

Poynter, S.J., Monjo, A.L., and DeWitte-Orr, S.J. 2018. Identification of three class A scavenger receptors from rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss): SCARA3, SCARA4, and SCARA5. Fish & Shellfish Immunology, 76, 121-125.

Poynter, S.J., Monjo, A., Micheli, G., and DeWitte-Orr, S.J., 2017. Scavengers for bacteria: Rainbow trout have two functional variants of MARCO that bind to gram-negative and–positive bacteria. Developmental & Comparative Immunology, 77, 95-105.

Poynter, S.J., and DeWitte-Orr, S.J. 2015. Length-dependent innate antiviral effects of double-stranded RNA in the rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) cell line, RTG-2. Fish & Shellfish Immunology, 46(2), 557-565.

• HE440P: Environment and Health
• HE432/BI470: Biomedical Virology