Dr. Sachdev Sidhu is an expert in phage display technology and structure-based and combinatorial protein engineering. In 2008, after spending a decade as a principal investigator in the Department of Protein Engineering at Genentech, Inc., Dr. Sidhu joined the University of Toronto to start his academic lab. At Genentech, Dr. Sidhu led the development of phage-displayed synthetic antibody libraries that have since proven to be a rich source of valuable reagents for basic research and potential therapeutics. In addition to antibody engineering, Dr. Sidhu has extensive experience with phage display of other diverse polypeptides, including peptides, peptide-binding domains, hormones and antibody mimics.
The Sidhu lab’s talented scientists, students, technicians and other staff contribute to several projects, and Dr. Sidhu has a successful track record of collaborations with both academic and industry partners, including Drs. Moffat, Kossiakoff, Koide, Wells, Boone, Neel, Rottapel, Shoichet and Reilly (to name a few) and Integrated BioTherapeutics, Genentech, GlaxoSmithKline, Merrimack, SciGenom, and Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (to name a few), respectively. Research in the lab is supported by extensive funding from both public and private sources, including large team grants from Genome Canada and the Ontario Research Fund, to address specific unmet medical needs using protein binders.
The Sidhu lab is located at the Terrence Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research (The Donnelly Centre). In 2011, Dr. Sidhu expanded his laboratory by launching the Toronto Recombinant Antibody Centre (TRAC), an integrated laboratory with a state-of-the-art, high throughput antibody research platform that has been applied to the generation of therapeutic-grade antibodies against hundreds of antigens. The TRAC facilities are located in the Medical Sciences Building, just next to the Donnelly Centre.
Dr. Sidhu is a Professor in the Donnelly Centre at the University of Toronto. The Centre provides a highly motivating collaborative environment, as well as access to state-of-the-art equipment, technology, expertise and services. The Sidhu lab is well outfitted with all the equipment necessary for phage display and for protein purification and analysis, including customized robotics for expediting phage selections and screens.
In addition to his primary appointment as a professor in the Donnelly Centre, Dr. Sidhu is cross-appointed in the Department of Molecular Genetics and the Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering at the University of Toronto. He is also an Adjunt Professor at the Shanghai Institute for Advanced Immunochemical Studies (SIAIS) at ShanghaiTech University.
