Publications by authors named "Hannah Shailes"
Article Synopsis
- Diagnosing pediatric tuberculosis (TB) is complicated, but changes in host gene expression in blood can help identify biomarkers and improve understanding of the immune response in children with TB.* -
- The study involved stimulating blood samples from 102 children with confirmed TB, TB infection, pneumonia, and healthy controls, and analyzing the gene expression differences using microarrays.* -
- Researchers identified specific gene signatures that effectively distinguish TB from pneumonia, with high accuracy (AUC of 100% for one gene and 91.7% for a combination of two genes), paving the way for new diagnostic tests aligned with WHO standards.*
Background: Mutations in the tumor suppressor gene Adenomatous Polyposis Coli () are found in 80% of sporadic colorectal cancer (CRC) tumors and are also responsible for the inherited form of CRC, Familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP).
Methods: To identify novel therapeutic strategies for the treatment of mutated CRC, we generated a drug screening platform that incorporates a human cellular model of mutant CRC using CRISPR-cas9 gene editing and performed an FDA-approved drug screen targeting over 1000 compounds.
Results: We have identified the group of HMG-CoA Reductase (HMGCR) inhibitors known as statins, which cause a significantly greater loss in cell viability in the mutated cell lines and in mutated patient derived xenograft (PDX) models, compared to wild-type cells.
Kawasaki disease (KD) is a paediatric vasculitis associated with coronary artery aneurysms (CAA). Genetic variants influencing susceptibility to KD have been previously identified, but no risk alleles have been validated that influence CAA formation. We conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) for CAA in KD patients of European descent with 200 cases and 276 controls.
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- There is currently no diagnostic test for Kawasaki disease (KD), leading to potential delays in treatment and increased risk of serious complications like coronary artery aneurysms.
- The objective of the study was to identify a gene expression signature in whole blood that could differentiate children with KD in their early illness (first week) from those with other febrile conditions.
- The research involved a diverse group of 404 children for discovery testing, and a separate validation group showed promising results in using gene expression patterns to effectively distinguish KD from other infections and inflammatory diseases.
Article Synopsis
- Clinical differentiation between bacterial and viral infections in children is challenging, leading to both unnecessary antibiotic use and missed bacterial infections.
- The study aimed to identify a specific blood RNA expression signature to accurately distinguish between bacterial and viral infections in febrile children across several countries from 2009 to 2013.
- The RNA signature was tested on children with confirmed bacterial and viral infections, showing promising results in distinguishing these infections, potentially improving diagnosis and treatment decisions.