The EpiLab • University of Toronto Mississauga
Behind every paper is a room full of people who burned popcorn in the break room, argued over PCR settings, and celebrated results at 9pm on a Tuesday. This is that room.
In the lab and beyond
From holiday parties to lab selfie days, we take the science seriously and not much else.
Annual Tradition
Lab Selfie Day
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Annual Tradition
We are very good scientists. The pumpkins did not survive peer review.
Annual Tradition
Brisket, BBQ, and a taste of the south. Science is hard. Eating together is easy.
EpiLab Annual BBQ — Summer 2025
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Lab Outing — April 2024
When the total solar eclipse passed over Toronto in April 2024, Luca — our resident astrophotographer — got the whole lab excited enough to drag a telescope to a park. He got the shot. We got a memory. Science wins.
Total Solar Eclipse — Toronto, April 2024
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Annual Tradition — Winter 2024
We made it out in 2024. 2025, we tried our best. Special mention to everyone at the table for their heroic, unanimous, ultimately futile effort to get Dr. Zovkic to look at the camera.
Christmas Party 2024
Everyone: "Iva, look at the camera!" · Iva: 👀
Alumni Spotlight
Dr. Gilda Stefanelli left the EpiLab to found her own lab at the University of Ottawa — and we couldn't be prouder. She is missed every single day, and we wish her and her team nothing but success. This photo perfectly captures the energy she brought to this lab.
Gilda Stefanelli, Ph.D.
Celebrating a delivery. Or science. Honestly, both.
Now leading the Stefanelli Lab at the University of Ottawa. 🎉
Conference Highlights
The EpiLab made its presence known at the Fusion conference — and came home with hardware. Tim McLean and Luca Hategan both took home Poster Prize Winner awards. Two students, two prizes, one very proud lab.
🏆 Poster Prize Winners — Tim McLean & Luca Hategan
Fusion: Epigenetics & Epitranscriptomics Conference, 2022
Lab Culture
Curious by default
We recruit people who ask questions before they accept answers. Whether you are troubleshooting a protocol or choosing a dissertation topic, intellectual honesty is the baseline here.
Two labs, one culture
The Walters and Zovkic labs share space, equipment, and a running debate about whose model system is harder to work with. The answer changes weekly. The camaraderie does not.
People first
Good science takes time, and good scientists take breaks. We celebrate milestones loudly, support setbacks quietly, and make sure there is always something to look forward to at the end of a long experiment.
Follow along
Our Instagram is curated by a student with a keen eye and a camera that never seems to run out of battery. For a more candid look at lab days, conference trips, and the occasional celebratory cake, give us a follow.
@theepilab