Bio

Mays Al-Dulaymi is a PhD student in Pharmacy co-supervised by Drs. Ildiko Badea and Anas El-Aneed. She obtained her BSc in Pharmacy from Al-Zaytoonah University, Jordan. She worked as a community pharmacist in Jordan and as a research assistant at the University of Toronto before joining the college in 2012 as a MSc student. She transferred to the PhD program in September 2014.

Mays co-founded the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS), University of Saskatchewan Student Chapter. In fact, in recognition of her leadership role as the chapter’s first chair, Mays received the Mark Kroeker Exceptional Student Leadership Certificate from the UofS Graduate Student Association. She also led the Student/Postdoctoral Outreach & Development (SPOD) student-led AAPS program at the U of S and was successful in securing funds to co-sponsor the 5th Western Canadian Medicinal Chemistry Workshop held this September at the UofS.

Research

Mays’ research focuses on the development of novel gemini surfactant-based gene delivery nanoparticles. Her work highlights the role of the structure of novel di-cationic gemini surfactants on the efficiency and biological fate of the delivery system. Mays has already published her research findings in a peer-reviewed journal and is currently preparing two additional manuscripts. In addition, she presented her work in many national and international conferences of which three were oral presentations. This year, Mays won the Annual Life and Health Sciences Research Day poster award in the Structural Chemistry, Biochemistry, and Nano Structure category.

During her studies, Mays was awarded several scholarships, namely a Apotex Graduate Award in Pharmacy, Pharmacy and Nutrition Graduate Scholarship, University of Saskatchewan Graduate Teaching Assistantship, and Canadian Institutes of Health Research Training grant in Health Research Using Synchrotron Techniques (CIHR-THRUST) fellowship.

Peer-Reviewed Publications

  • Hajdu I, Michel D, Al-Dulaymi M, Wasan K, Fonge H, Badea I. Development of Radiolabeled Gene Delivery Nanoparticles as Theranostic Agents for Melanoma. Submitted to Molecular Pharmaceutics, March 2016.
  • Al-Dulaymi M, Chitanda JM, M-Saeid W, Araghi HY, Verrall RE, Grochulski P, Badea I. Di-Peptide-Modified Gemini Surfactants as Gene Delivery Vectors: Exploring the Role of the Alkyl Tail in their Physicochemical Behaviour and Biological Activity. The AAPS Journal, 18(5), 2016: 1168–1181.

Conference Presentations

  • Al-Dulaymi M, Michel D, M-Saeid W, Chitanda J, Verrall R, Grochulski P, El-Aneed A, Badea I. “Novel Peptide-Modified Gemini Surfactants as Gene Carriers: Structure Activity Relationship, Physiochemical Characterizations and Mass Spectrometric Dissociation Behaviour”. Accepted, American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists Annual Meeting and Exposition, Denver, CO, USA, November 2016.
  • Al-Dulaymi M and El-Aneed A. “Establishment of Mass Spectrometric Fingerprints of Novel Peptide-Modified Gemini Surfactants Used as Gene Delivery Vectors”. Talk presented at the 5th Western Canadian Medicinal Chemistry Workshop, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, September 2016.
  • Al-Dulaymi M and El-Aneed A. “Tandem Mass Spectrometric Analysis of Novel Positively Charged Peptide-Modified Gemini Surfactants”. Presented at the 21st International Mass Spectrometry Conference, Toronto, ON, Canada, August 25, 2016.
  • Al-Dulaymi M and El-Aneed A. “Tandem Mass Spectrometric Analysis of Novel Positively Charged Peptide-Modified Gemini Surfactants Used as Gene Delivery Vectors”. Presented at NATO Advanced Study Institute: Molecular Technologies for Detection of Chemical and Biological Agents, Campora San Giovanni, Calabria, Italy, April 2016.
  • Al-Dulaymi M. The Use of Mass Spectrometer as Tool to Monitor the Fate and Bio-distribution of Gemini Surfactants. Talk presented at NATO Advanced Study Institute: Molecular Technologies for Detection of Chemical and Biological Agents, Campora San Giovanni, Calabria, Italy, April 2016.
  • Al-Dulaymi M, Chitanda JM, Verrall RE, Grochulski P, Badea I. “Peptide-modified gemini surfactants as non-viral gene delivery vectors: structure activity relationship”. Presented at the 23rd Annual Life and Health Science Research Day, Saskatoon, SK, March 2016.
  • Al-Dulaymi M, Chitanda JM, Verrall RE, Grochulski P, Michel D, Badea I. “Structure activity relationship of novel peptide-modified gemini surfactants as gene delivery vectors: the influence of lysine substitution in the spacer on the physiochemical characterizations and biological activity”. Presented at the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists Annual Meeting and Exposition, Orlando, FL, USA, October 2015.
  • Al-Dulaymi M, Chitanda JM, Verrall RE, Grochulski P, Badea I. “Amino acid-based gemini surfactants as gene transfection agents: exploring the correlation between the physicochemical characteristics and the biological activity”. Presented at the Canadian Light Source 18th Annual Users’ Meeting and Related Workshops, Saskatoon, Sk, May 2015.
  • Al-Dulaymi M, M-Saeid W, Poorghorban M, Chitanda J, Verrall R, Grochulski P, Badea I. “ Di-Peptide-Modified Gemini Surfactants as Gene Delivery Vectors: The Role Of The Alkyl Tail In The Supramolecular Assembly and Biological Activityˮ. Presented at the Fifth Annual Canadian Institutes of Health Research-Training grant in Health Research Using Synchrotron Techniques Retreat, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, December 2014.
  • Al-Dulaymi M. The Rational Design of Di-Cationic Gemini Surfactant as Topical Gene Delivery System. Talk presented at the 4th Western Canadian Medicinal Chemistry Workshop, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, September 2014.
  • Al-Dulaymi M, M-Saeid W, Poorghorban M, Chitanda J, Verrall R, Grochulski P, Badea I. “ The Impact Of Varying The Alkyl Tail Of Glycyl-Lysine Modified Gemini Surfactants-Based Gene Delivery Systemˮ. Presented at the 4th Western Canadian Medicinal Chemistry Workshop, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, September 2014.
  • Al-Dulaymi M, M-Saeid W, Chitanda J, El-Aneed A, Verrall RE, Badea I. “ Novel biosimilar gemini lipid-based nanoparticles as effective and safe non-viral delivery agents ˮ. Presenetd at the Canadian Society for Pharmaceutical Sciences Annual Symposium, Vancouver, BC, Canada, June 2013.
  • Al-Dulaymi M, M-Saeid W, Chitanda J, El-Aneed A, Verrall R, Badea I. “ Novel Peptide-Substituted Gemini Surfactant-Based Nanoparticles as Effective and Safe Non-Viral Gene Delivery Agents ˮ. Presented at the University of Saskatchewan's 20th Annual Health Science Research Day. Saskatoon, SK, Canada, March 2013.