Diagnostic Applications Of Microarrays In Organ Transplantation
Approximately 200,000 people in the USA and Canada are alive today because of organ transplants. However, despite recent progress in organ transplantation, the immune response to foreign tissue remains an obstacle to success. Powerful drugs are needed to prevent rejection. Also, better methods of detecting and measuring rejection are needed. The goal of the Diagnostic Applications of Microarrays in Organ Transplantation project is to develop tests that can determine when rejection is present and when it is not, so that patients can be managed more effectively, with fewer side effects.
Dr. Philip Halloran, Director of the Alberta Transplant Institute believes that the new technology of microarrays or gene chips - may be the solution. "Microarrays allow the expression of many thousands of genes to be measured on one tiny chip", he explains. "Made like computer chips, these tools could provide a powerful new window on diseases." Dr. Halloran's team has developed microarrays as tests to detect and measure rejection mechanisms, and will validate these tests in the field using a large-scale international clinical study.
The transplantation researchers work at the University of Alberta and the Capital Health Region, a regional health authority based in Edmonton. The Alberta Transplant Institute will conduct clinical and biological studies in transplant patients, in parallel with experimental studies, that will create new ways of looking at transplant patients to improve outcomes through more precise diagnosis. Their work will also aid in drug development by defining and measuring treatment mechanisms, some of which will be applicable to other organ diseases.
This project aligns with the objectives of Genome Canada to capture the power of new technologies to improve diagnosis and treatment of human health problems. The Diagnostic Applications of Microarrays in Organ Transplantation initiative establishes Canadian leadership in the fields of genomics and bioinformatics, as well as in the field of organ transplantation. The potential benefits to Canadians resulting from this initiative include improved health for organ transplant recipients, opportunities for investment and patents, and extension of this powerful technology to other health problems involving organ diseases, with a goal of preventing organ failure and reducing the burden of chronic disease.