Through the generosity of private donors and matching funds from the University, a substantial number of endowments have been established to provide internal awards to CSB graduate students. In the Department of Cell & Systems Biology, many of these awards are provided as a top-up to the student’s base stipend in recognition of research and academic excellence.
If you would like to donate to support CSB and its students, click on the button below.
Donor’s Impact: Yoshio Masui Prize in Developmental, Molecular or Cellular Biology
Professor Masui (1931-2024) was an influential CSB researcher whose fundamental discoveries revealed the factors that induce cells to grow.
Professor Masui was curious, wise and kind. With prizes from many prestigious awards, including the Manning Award, the Gairdner Award and the Lasker Award, he generously established an award to support graduate students in their careers.
Masui arrived at U of T in 1968, in search of “freedom for research – neither interference with nor solicitation for choices of research projects”. His area of expertise – developmental biology – was practically unknown. The study of development in living organisms would soon become an essential discipline and Masui himself would be cited in his Order of Canada as “one of Canada’s finest scientists”.
The freedom provided by U of T allowed him to make good use of his curiosity and led to many significant insights. Working with basic equipment, Masui and his students were able to pinpoint two factors that govern cell proliferation.
Masui’s citation for the Order of Canada notes “The discovery of MPF and the characterization of its biochemical properties marked the start of all modern-day research on the regulation of cell division. This work has been critical to understanding the causes of diseases like cancer.”
This year’s Masui Award went to Charlotte Martin for her work investigating the functional consequences of tissue-specific alternative splicing in the worm C elegans.
Please consider making a donation to continue Professor Masui’s legacy of supporting excellence in Developmental, Molecular or Cellular Biology.
Donor’s Impact: Dr. Christine Hone-Buske Scholarship for Outstanding Publication by a PhD Student
We are enormously grateful to Carmen Buske, the mother of Christine Hone-Buske, who established the annual Dr. Christine Hone-Buske Scholarship for Outstanding Publication by a PhD Student in 2019 to support students in the Department of Cell & Systems Biology.
The scholarship was created in memory of Dr. Christine Hone-Buske (February 10, 1984 – May 22, 2019), who completed her undergraduate and graduate studies at the University of Toronto, receiving her PhD for studies in Behavioural Neuroscience from Cell & Systems Biology in 2013.
As a student, teaching assistant and researcher at U of T, Christine approached her work with confidence, curiosity and drive. Her mentorship, enthusiasm and exceptional communications skills benefitted the students and the scientists she encountered throughout her career, and earned her thousands of followers and admirers on social media.
This award honours Christine’s intellect and innovative spirit by recognizing PhD students in Cell and Systems Biology who have published a peer-reviewed article that demonstrates research excellence.
The recipient of the 2026 Dr Christine Hone-Buske Award is Kailynn MacGillivray for her publication on “Widespread association of Polycomb complex–deposited histone H2A monoubiquitylation with enhancers and neuronal gene regulation”.