Translational Medicine and Clinical Pharmacogenomics

My group is concerned with helping translate the benefits of basic genomic research to improve the diagnosis and treatment of human disease. One of our key areas of interest in this area is human development. We are working to use genomic data to improve our monitoring of the living human fetus, and to suggest potential therapies for developmental disorders. My group has also applied our methods to many other fields of medical importance, including cancer and Alzheimer's disease.

Pharmacogenomics - the use of genomic techniques to develop better drugs to treat disease - remains an exciting research area for bioinformatics scientists. In industry, I've worked to develop predictive models of drug response to help tailor medications to those individuals most likely to benefit or to identify individuals at highest risk of adverse side effects. In the future, developing new methods to identify better drug targets has the potential to revolutionize the pharmaceutical industry, leading to better understanding of mechanisms of action, more personalized treatments, and lower costs for both producers and consumers.

Sample publications:

• Slonim, Koide, et al., 2009
• Maron, et al., 2007
• Burczynski, et al., 2005
• O'Toole, et al., 2005

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