Research Group
- Dr Julian Pratt, Principal Investigator
- Dr Marie Parker, Research Associate
- Prof. John Kirby, Collaborator
- Dr Ryzard Smolenski, Collaborator
Location
- Leeds University, Leeds, UK
Title
- Ischaemic Epigenetics in the Transplanted Kidney
Organ transplantation is a severe insult to the donor organ, exacerbated by the duration and temperature of the storage conditions. We hypothesise that upon transplantation, extensive damage to DNA occurs caused by ischaemia/reperfusion injury, with significant effects on genes expressed by the donor tissue.
One form of such damage is potentially the demethylation of specific cytosines in the DNA sequence which normally perform regulatory functions to limit gene expression. Where so-called ‘aberrant demethylation’ occurs it is already known to have profound effects in cancerous tumours. Since potential exists for similar changes to occur in transplanted kidneys, we wish to investigate the extent to which the donor genome is modified and to assess the consequences of such modifications.