Biography
Dr. Nemer has a PhD in bio-organic chemistry from McGill University. Prior to her arrival at the University of Ottawa, she was Professor of Pharmacology at the Université de Montréal, Director of the Cardiac Development Research Unit at the Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal (IRCM), and a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Cardiovascular Cell Differentiation. At IRCM, she also served as Director of Academic Affairs and Executive Director of Planning and Development.
Dr. Nemer’s research interests focus on the molecular mechanisms of heart development and function, particularly in relation to heart failure and congenital heart diseases. She is renowned, among other things, for her pioneering work on the regulation of natriuretic heart hormones and the identification of several genes essential for heart development. To date, she has published more than 150 articles in prestigious scientific journals and books. She has also been involved in organizing numerous international scientific gatherings. In the past 10 years, she has been invited to speak at over 100 conferences around the world. During her career, she has worked in several different research areas including chemistry, cellular/molecular biology, pathophysiology and clinical studies.
In addition to her scientific achievements, Mona Nemer has demonstrated a strong commitment to the education of the next generation through her supervision of graduate and postgraduate students, as well as her contributions to numerous community services. She has served on several national and international advisory committees and executive boards. She is presently the Chair of the France-Canada Research Fund and serves on the executive committee of the Ontario Council on University Research and the international scientific board of the Lefoulon-Delalande Foundation of the Institut de France. Dr. Nemer is a member of several boards including the Stem Cell Network, the Medical Devices Commercialization Centre, the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute and the University of Ottawa Heart Institute.
Dr. Nemer’s accomplishments have brought her a large number of national and international awards, distinctions and honours, including the McDonald Scholarship from the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, the Women of Distinction Award from the Women’s Y Foundation of Montreal, the Léo Pariseau Prize in Biological and Health Sciences from ACFAS, the Jeanne Manery Fisher Memorial Lectureship Award from the Canadian Society of Biochemistry, Molecular and Cellular Biology and the McLaughlin Medal of the Royal Society of Canada. Dr. Nemer is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, a Member of the Order of Canada, a Chevalier de l’Ordre du Québec and a Knight of the Order of Merit of the French Republic, as well as the recipient of honorary doctorates from universities in France and Finland.