Awards
Recognizing the strides and achievements of proteomics researchers.
The CNPN-Tony Pawson Proteomics Award recognizes remarkable achievements on the fundamental understanding and/or practice of proteomics in biological sciences. Formerly called the “CNPN Distinguished Researcher Award”, this award was renamed in 2014 in recognition of the seminal contributions to the proteomics field of one of the most influential Canadian scientists of all time, the late Prof. Tony Pawson, who received the CNPN award in 2013.
Tony Pawson Proteomics Award 2023
The CNPN – Tony Pawson Proteomics Award recognizes remarkable achievements in the fundamental understanding and/or practice of proteomics in biological sciences. Formerly called the “CNPN Distinguished Researcher Award”, the award was renamed in 2014 in recognition of the seminal contributions to the proteomics field of one of the most influential Canadian scientists of all time, the late Prof. Tony Pawson who received the CNPN award in 2013.
Past recipients of the award are: Leonard Foster (2022), Daniel Figeys (2021), Anne-Claude Gingras (2020), Jennifer Van Eyk (2019), Gilles Lajoie (2018), Pierre Thibault (2017), Michael D. Tyers (2016), Guy Poirier (2015), Christopher Overall (2014), Tony Pawson (2013), Michel Desjardins (2012), Jack Greenblatt (2011) and John Bergeron (2010).
Nominations are open for the 2023 Award (self-nominations are permitted). The award will be presented at the CNPN annual meeting, held in Regina, Saskatchewan. The awardee will present a lecture on their work and receive an award consisting of a trophy and a $2000 prize.
Applicant Eligibility
- The applicant must be a Canadian citizen and/or work at a Canadian Institution at the time of application
- The applicant must be able to receive the award and present a lecture at the 2023 CNPN meeting
How to apply
- The candidate or sponsor must submit a complete pdf application before March 24, 2023.
- The application should consist of:
- A cover letter briefly describing why the nominee is appropriate for the award; this should include names and email addresses of three supporters who may be contacted by the review committee
- A short CV, including the full contact information for the applicant,
- A paragraph suitable for publication on the CNPN website and in the program of the CNPN meeting (see https://cnpn.ca/past-recipients/ for past recipients).
- A CV (max. 6 pages) highlighting the nominees most significant achievements.
- The pdf file and the email header should read: CNPN2022_Pawson _Award_LASTNAME_FIRSTNAME.
- Incomplete or late applications will not be considered.
The successful applicant will be notified by April 14, 2023.
New Investigator Award 2023
The CNPN – New Investigator Award is a recent initiative of the CNPN to recognize the contributions of an outstanding early career researcher to the fundamental understanding and/or practice of proteomics in the biological sciences. This award will help new investigators gain visibility in the field and encourage early-stage Investigators to consider how proteomics may be used in their research.
Past recipients of the award are: Jennifer Geddes-McAlister (2022), Hannes Roest (2021), Jean-Philippe Lambert (2020).
Nominations are open for the 2023 Award (self-nominations are permitted). The award will be presented at the CNPN annual meeting, held in Regina, Saskatchewan. The awardee will present a lecture on their work and receive an award consisting of a trophy and a $2000 prize.
Applicant Eligibility
- The applicant must be a Canadian citizen and/or work at a Canadian Institution at the time of application
- The applicant must be able to receive the award and present a lecture at the 2023 CNPN meeting
- The applicant will be within the first 6 years of their independent appointment (with consideration for leaves of absence in accordance with CIHR guidelines)
How to apply
- The candidate or sponsor must submit a complete pdf application before March 24, 2023.
- The application should consist of:
-
- A cover letter briefly describing why the nominee is appropriate for the award; this should include names and email addresses of three supporters who may be contacted by the review committee
- A paragraph suitable for publication on the CNPN website and in the program of the CNPN meeting (see https://cnpn.ca/past-recipients/ for past recipients).
- A CV (max. 6 pages) highlighting the nominees most significant achievements.
-
- The pdf file and the email header should read: CNPN2022_New_Investigator_Award_LASTNAME_FIRSTNAME.
- Incomplete or late applications will not be considered.
2023 CNPN-Tony Pawson Proteomics Award
Dr. Brian Raught, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Dr. Brian Raught is a Senior Scientist, at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network (UHN), and a Full Professor in the Department of Medical Biophysics at the University of Toronto. His work is focused on: (i) the development of powerful mass spectrometry (MS) – based techniques to identify and characterize protein-protein interactions and post-translational modifications (PTMs); (ii) using these techniques to better understand fusion proteins implicated in cancers, and the ubiquitin (Ub) and ubiquitin-like protein (Ubl) systems (e.g. SUMO, UFM1, NEDD8, etc.), and; (iii) working with many excellent collaborators to better characterize individual proteins, protein complexes and (membrane-bound and membrane-less) organelles. Dr. Raught has published >175 papers that have been cited 28,963 times.
Dr. Brian Raught is a Senior Scientist, at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network (UHN), and a Full Professor in the Department of Medical Biophysics at the University of Toronto. His work is focused on: (i) the development of powerful mass spectrometry (MS) – based techniques to identify and characterize protein-protein interactions and post-translational modifications (PTMs); (ii) using these techniques to better understand fusion proteins implicated in cancers, and the ubiquitin (Ub) and ubiquitin-like protein (Ubl) systems (e.g. SUMO, UFM1, NEDD8, etc.), and; (iii) working with many excellent collaborators to better characterize individual proteins, protein complexes and (membrane-bound and membrane-less) organelles. Dr. Raught has published >175 papers that have been cited 28,963 times.

2023 New Investigator Award
Dr. Mathieu Lavallée-Adam, University of Ottawa

Mathieu Lavallée-Adam is an Associate Professor at the University of Ottawa in the Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology and is affiliated to the Ottawa Institute of Systems Biology. He obtained a B.Sc. in Computer Science and a Ph.D. in Computer Science, Bioinformatics option, from McGill University. He then performed his postdoctoral research at Scripps Research. His research focuses on the development of statistical and machine learning algorithms for the analysis of mass spectrometry-based proteomics data and protein-protein interaction networks. He also designs computational methods mining proteomics datasets for biological information through their integration with genomics data. Dr. Lavallée-Adam is a recipient of the John Charles Polanyi Prize in Chemistry, rewarding the impact of his bioinformatics algorithms on the mass spectrometry community. One of his publications was also recognized as the 2018 Highlight of the Year by an early career researcher at the Human Proteome Organization World Congress. He was named the 2021 Early Career Researcher of the Year by the Ottawa Institute for Systems Biology. He is also Co-Chair of the HUPO Early Career Researcher Initiative and a member of the HUPO Executive Committee, in which he develops training activities, advocates for junior investigators in proteomics, and organizes events highlighting their research on the international stage. As VP Operations of the CNPN, Dr. Lavallée-Adam also mentors the CNPN Operations Management Team, which builds a set of online activities to bring Canadian proteomics researchers together all year round.

Mathieu Lavallée-Adam is an Associate Professor at the University of Ottawa in the Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology and is affiliated to the Ottawa Institute of Systems Biology. He obtained a B.Sc. in Computer Science and a Ph.D. in Computer Science, Bioinformatics option, from McGill University. He then performed his postdoctoral research at Scripps Research. His research focuses on the development of statistical and machine learning algorithms for the analysis of mass spectrometry-based proteomics data and protein-protein interaction networks. He also designs computational methods mining proteomics datasets for biological information through their integration with genomics data. Dr. Lavallée-Adam is a recipient of the John Charles Polanyi Prize in Chemistry, rewarding the impact of his bioinformatics algorithms on the mass spectrometry community. One of his publications was also recognized as the 2018 Highlight of the Year by an early career researcher at the Human Proteome Organization World Congress. He was named the 2021 Early Career Researcher of the Year by the Ottawa Institute for Systems Biology. He is also Co-Chair of the HUPO Early Career Researcher Initiative and a member of the HUPO Executive Committee, in which he develops training activities, advocates for junior investigators in proteomics, and organizes events highlighting their research on the international stage. As VP Operations of the CNPN, Dr. Lavallée-Adam also mentors the CNPN Operations Management Team, which builds a set of online activities to bring Canadian proteomics researchers together all year round.