Senior Clinical Lecturer
- About
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- School/Department
- School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition
Biography
I studied preclinical medicine at St Andrews University before completing my clinical training and undertaking my PhD at Cambridge University. Following this I moved to the University of Edinburgh to train as a pathologist and was appointed as a SCREDS clinical lecturer in 2018, recently moving to Aberdeen in March 2022 to take up a Senior Lecturer post in the IMS.
My research focuses on the molecular mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative diseases with a particular focus on ALS. The work in my lab involves studying patient samples (tissue and biofluids) for molecular differences that could explain why people with ALS have such diverse symptoms, including differences in disease progression and cognitive involvement. The aim of our work is to identify targets that could be used for diagnosis or to monitor disease progression, or ultimately, for therapies to improve the outlook for people with ALS.
Have a look at our lab website for up to date news, information about our group members, and a description of our ongoing projects:
- Research
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Research Overview
Our lab searches for the earliest indicators of motor neurone disease/ALS in non-central nervous system tissues, particularly the digestive tract. The aim is to facilitate widespread clinical testing and trigger earlier therapeutic intervention.
https://gregorylaboratory.com/
Our team:
Dr. Fergal Waldron (Advanced Research Fellow)
Fergal’s research examines factors that influence disease heterogeniety in ALS with special focus on the role of inflammation and immune pathways. His work involves a combination of experimental, bioinformatics and evidence synthesis approaches to answer fundamental questions in ALS research.
Fergal obtained his PhD in Evolutionary Genetics from the University of Cambridge before undertaking postdoctoral work at the Institute of Evolutionary Biology at the University of Edinburgh. His past research has focused on the evolutionary genetics of antiviral immunity in invertebrate animal models, and the evolution of antiviral immunity across invertebrates. https://www.abdn.ac.uk/people/fergal.waldron#about
Dr. Holly Spence (Research Fellow)
Holly’s research focuses on the physical biology of neurodegeneration in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Frontotemporal dementia.
Holly completed her PhD in Medical Sciences at University of Aberdeen investigating the role of brain iron in age-related cognitive decline and exploring the relationships between brain iron and blood markers for iron and inflammation.
Current Research
Understanding the extra-motor manifestations of ALS
Many people living with motor neuron disease will experience cognitive dysfunction during their disease. In fact, motor neuron disease is now considered part of the same disease spectrum of frontotemporal dementia, characterised by cognitive dysfunction in behaviour, language, fluency and executive functioning. Our group have created several deeply-phenotyped post-mortem tissue cohorts to try to understand what makes some people more susceptible to these non-motor/cognitive symptoms, something that we hope will allow us to open therapeutic avenues for susceptible individuals in the future. Our group are also interested in non-central nervous system manifestations of motor neuron disease. Non-neurological symptoms are common in people with motor neuron disease, and we showed recently that the same pathology that is seen in the brain at post-mortem can be seen in non-central nervous system tissues (particularly gut tissues) many years prior to motor or cognitive symptom onset. This could provide us with a biomarker for early diagnosis and possibly even improve chances for early therapeutic intervention.
Inflammation & molecular crowding in ALS
One of the unifying pathological features in the majority of neurodegenerative diseases is the presence of aberrantly misfolded intra- and extra-cellular protein aggregates. These aggregates are present in the central nervous system at post-mortem, but our group was the first to show that these aggregates are also present in non-CNS tissues many years prior to neurological symptom onset in motor neuron disease. We are interested in common pathomechanisms that could be driving this aggregation in different CNS and non-CNS organs. Our central hypothesis for this work is that aggregation and cellular dysfunction is precipitated by crowding of the intracellular environment potentiating the aggregation of aggregation-prone proteins and preventing their disassembly. We believe that this could be potentiated by extrinsic pressure on cells, caused by inflammation and extracellular oedema, constricting their environment resulting in compression that reduces cell volume. Indeed, we see distinct inflammatory activation signatures in sequencing data from motor neuron disease patients. Our group is interested in investigating specific mechanisms of inflammation and understanding how these mechanisms could be manipulated therapeutically.
Translational Medicine
As a clinician scientist, I am keen to facilitate the translation of experimental science to the clinic. As part of this research theme, our group regularly perform systematic-reviews and meta-analyses, spanning a wide range of clinical questions, including evaluations of both the preclinical and clinical literature. Data quality assessments and research recommendations are also an integral part of our approach. Examples of previous projects are listed below. This research is particularly useful for undergraduates (clinical and non-clinical), PhD students and early career researchers who want to gain a better understanding of a particular research topic and often results in high-value translational publications. We often have projects ongoing in this area and are happy to design new bespoke projects for individuals to lead on, so get in touch if you are interested.
Knowledge Exchange
Our group are involved with the LEARN (lived experience and researcher network) a patient engagement initiative run through MND Scotland.
Have a look at some of our recent patient advocacy engagement work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pp_JbFXfuX4
Collaborations
Dr. Neil Shneider (Columbia University/Elanour & Lou Gerrig ALS Centre)
Dr. Mathew Horrocks (University of Edinburgh)
Prof. Gian Gaetano Tartaglia (Italian Institute of Technology, Genoa)
Dr. Elsa Zacco (Italian Institute of Technology, Genoa)
Prof. Liam Holt (New York University)
Dr. Hemali Phatnani (New York Genome Centre)
Prof. Ai Yamamoto (Columbia University)
Prof. Sharon Abrahams (University of Edinburgh)
Prof. Pietro Fratta (University College London)
Prof. Paul Fowler (University of Aberdeen)
Prof. Cord Langner (Medical University of Graz, Institute of Pathology)
Dr. James Longden (e-therapeutics PLC, Edinburgh)
Funding and Grants
Medical Research Council Equipment Grant – “NanoString Integrated Spatial Biology Platform”: £610,839(2023)Award to PI Jenna Gregory, and co-investigators Paul Fowler (University of Aberdeen), Elaina Collie-Duguid (University of Aberdeen), Gillian Milne (University of Aberdeen) and Kristine Nellany (NHS Grampian).
Target ALS Foundation Award: $1,000,000(2022 – 2024)Award to Jenna Gregory as one of four PIs with $250 K direct costs award to the Gregory lab. Collaborative grant with Mathew Horrocks (Edinburgh University), Neil Shneider (Columbia University), Elsa Zacco (Italian Institute of Technology, Genoa) and Gian Gaetano Tartaglia (Italian Institute of Technology, Genoa).
Motor Neurone Disease Association Grant: £200,000(2022 – 2024)Award to Jenna Gregory as one of 4 PIs with £10 K direct costs award to the Gregory lab. Collaborative grant with lead PI Valeria Gerbino (Fondazione Santa Lucia, Rome), Tom Manniatis (Columbia University), and Jemeen Sreedharan (King’s College London).
MND Scotland Research Award: £75,000(2022 – 2024)Award to Jenna Gregory (PI)
Royal Society Small Grant Scheme: £20,000(2022 – 2023)Award to Jenna Gregory (PI)
NIH Transformative Research Award (TRO1): $8,400,000(2021 – 2026)Award to Jenna Gregory as one of four PIs with $1.2M direct costs award to Gregory lab. Collaborative grant with Liam Holt (New York University) and Hemali Phatnani & Ai Yamamoto (Columbia University).
Chan Zuckerberg Initiative Neurodegeneration Challenge Network (CZI-NDCN) Collaborative Supplement: $60,000(2021 – 2022)Award to Jenna Gregory one of four PIs. Collaborative grant with Michael Ward (NIH), Pietro Fratta (UCL) and Hemali Phatnani (Columbia University).
Pathological Society Equipment Grant: £7,000(2020 – 2021)Award to Jenna Gregory (PI)
Jean Shanks Foundation and Pathological Society Clinical Lecturer Support Grant: £100,000(2020 – 2022)Award to Jenna Gregory (PI)
Scottish Universities Life Sciences Alliance (SULSA) Travel Award: £5,000(2019)Award to Jenna Gregory (PI)
Edinburgh Neuroscience RS MacDonald Seedcorn Fund: £5,000(2018 – 2019)Award to Jenna Gregory (PI)
Academy of Medical Sciences (AMS) Starter Grants for Clinical Lecturers: £29,435(2018 – 2019)Award to Jenna Gregory (PI)
Academic Trainee Research Support (Division of Pathology, University of Edinburgh): £1,000(2018 – 2019)Award to Jenna Gregory (PI)
Pump-priming Pathology Endowment Fund (Division of Pathology, University of Edinburgh): £2,000(2018 – present)Award to Jenna Gregory (PI)
- Publications
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Clinicopathological analysis of NEK1 variants in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Brain Pathology, e13287Contributions to Journals: ArticlesUnderstanding the influence of altered lipid metabolism on TDP-43 pathology:: a protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis v1
protocols.io.Other Contributions: Other Contributions- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.17504/protocols.io.8epv5xk75g1b/v1
RNA aptamer reveals nuclear TDP-43 pathology is an early aggregation event that coincides with STMN-2 cryptic splicing and precedes clinical manifestation in ALS
Acta Neuropathologica, vol. 147, 50Contributions to Journals: ArticlesSOP and tick-sheet for using TDP-43 RNA aptamer (TDP-43APT) to detect pathological TDP-43 in FFPE-preserved human tissue, as described in Spence and Waldron et al., 2024 (Acta Neuropathologica) v1
protocols.io.Other Contributions: Other Contributions- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.17504/protocols.io.eq2lyjo4mlx9/v1
TDP-43 RNA aptamer staining to detect pathological TDP-43 in FFPE human tissue, as described in Spence and Waldron et al., 2024 (Acta Neuropathologica):: A SOP and tick-sheet. v2
protocols.io (article).Other Contributions: Other Contributions- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.17504/protocols.io.eq2lyjo4mlx9/v2
Distinct neuroinflammatory signatures exist across genetic and sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis cohorts
Brain, vol. 146, no. 12, pp. 5124-5138Contributions to Journals: ArticlesRNA aptamer reveals nuclear TDP-43 pathology is an early aggregation event that coincides withSTMN-2cryptic splicing and precedes clinical manifestation in ALS
Working Papers: Preprint Papers- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1101/2023.10.24.563701
Genotype–phenotype characterisation of long survivors with motor neuron disease in Scotland
Journal of Neurology, vol. 270, no. 3, pp. 1702-1712Contributions to Journals: ArticlesSystematic, comprehensive, evidence-based approach to identify neuroprotective interventions for motor neuron disease: Using systematic reviews to inform expert consensus
BMJ Open, vol. 13, no. 2, e064169Contributions to Journals: ArticlesALS and the Gut-Brain Axis: A protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis assessing the relationship between amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, the gut and its microbiome.
protocols.io.Other Contributions: Other Contributions- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.17504/protocols.io.5qpvorqpzv4o/v1
Distinct neuroinflammatory signatures exist across genetic and sporadic ALS cohorts
Working Papers: Preprint PaperspTDP-43 aggregates accumulate in non-central nervous system tissues prior to symptom onset in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a case series linking archival surgical biopsies with clinical phenotypic data
Journal of Pathology: Clinical Research, vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 44-55Contributions to Journals: ArticlesRandom forest modelling demonstrates microglial and protein misfolding features to be key phenotypic markers in C9orf72-ALS
The Journal of pathology, vol. 258, no. 4, pp. 366-381Contributions to Journals: ArticlesMotor Neuron Disease Systematic Multi-Arm Adaptive Randomised Trial (MND-SMART): a multi-arm, multi-stage, adaptive, platform, phase III randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of repurposed drugs in motor neuron disease
BMJ Open, vol. 12, no. 7, e064173Contributions to Journals: ArticlesProbing TDP-43 condensation using an in silico designed aptamer
Nature Communications, vol. 13, 3306Contributions to Journals: ArticlesA Systematic Approach to Identify Neuroprotective Interventions for Motor Neuron Disease
Working Papers: Preprint PapersInterferon signalling as a potentional therapeutic target in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia – protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis
protocols.io.Other Contributions: Other ContributionspTDP-43 aggregates accumulate in the gut and other non-central nervous system tissues prior to symptom onset in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Working Papers: Preprint PapersNLRP3 inflammasome as a key molecular target underlying cognitive resilience in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
The Journal of pathology, vol. 256, pp. 262-268Contributions to Journals: ArticlesReactive astrocytes acquire neuroprotective as well as deleterious signatures in response to Tau and Aß pathology
Nature Communications, vol. 13, no. 1, 135Contributions to Journals: ArticlesRandom forest modelling of neuropathological features identifies microglial activation as an accurate pathological classifier of C9orf72-related amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
bioRxivContributions to Journals: ArticlesClinical trials in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a systematic review and perspective
Brain Communications, vol. 3, no. 4, fcab242Contributions to Journals: ArticlesDysregulation in Subcellular Localization of Myelin Basic Protein mRNA Does Not Result in Altered Myelination in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.
Frontiers in Neuroscience, vol. 15, 705306Contributions to Journals: Articles40 Years of CSF Toxicity Studies in ALS: What Have We Learnt About ALS Pathophysiology?
Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience, vol. 14, 647895Contributions to Journals: ArticlesMitochondrial bioenergetic deficits in C9orf72 amyotrophic lateral sclerosis motor neurons cause dysfunctional axonal homeostasis
Acta Neuropathologica, vol. 141, pp. 257-279Contributions to Journals: ArticlesTransactive response DNA-binding protein-43 proteinopathy in oligodendrocytes revealed using an induced pluripotent stem cell model
Brain Communications, vol. 3, no. 4, fcab255Contributions to Journals: ArticlesGenetics of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
Current Genetic Medicine Reports, vol. 8, pp. 121-131Contributions to Journals: ArticlesUnlocking Spatial Molecular & Cellular Relationships of SARS-CoV-2 in Archived Human Tissue
protocols.io.Other Contributions: Other ContributionsCerebrospinal fluid cytotoxicity in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a systematic review of in vitro studies
Brain Communications, vol. 2, no. 2Contributions to Journals: ArticlesSpatial transcriptomics identifies spatially dysregulated expression of GRM3 and USP47 in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Neuropathology and Applied Neurobiology, vol. 46, no. 5, pp. 441-457Contributions to Journals: ArticlesTherapeutic Targeting of Proteostasis in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Preclinical Research
Frontiers in Neuroscience, vol. 14, no. 2020, 511Contributions to Journals: ArticlesNeuronal clusterin expression is associated with cognitive protection in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Neuropathology and Applied Neurobiology, vol. 46, no. 3, pp. 255–263Contributions to Journals: ArticlesExecutive, language and fluency dysfunction are markers of localised TDP-43 cerebral pathology in non-demented ALS
Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry, vol. 91, no. 2, pp. 149-157Contributions to Journals: ArticlesAn epidemiological profile of dysarthria incidence and assistive technology use in the living population of people with MND in Scotland: Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Frontotemporal Degeneration
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Frontotemporal Degeneration, vol. 21, no. 1-2, pp. 116-122Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/21678421.2019.1672748
- [ONLINE] http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/21678421.2019.1672748
Dysregulation of AMPA receptor subunit expression in sporadic ALS post‐mortem brain
The Journal of pathology, vol. 250, pp. 67-78Contributions to Journals: ArticlesImproved detection of RNA foci in C9orf72 amyotrophic lateral sclerosis post-mortem tissue using BaseScope™ shows a lack of association with cognitive dysfunction
Brain Communications, vol. 2, no. 1, fcaa009Contributions to Journals: ArticlesTargeting mitochondrial dysfunction in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Brain Communications, vol. 1, no. 1, fcz009Contributions to Journals: ArticlesCould an Impairment in Local Translation of mRNAs in Glia be Contributing to Pathogenesis in ALS?
Frontiers in Molecular NeuroscienceContributions to Journals: ArticlesTDP-43 as a potential biomarker for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis
BMC Neurology, vol. 18, 90Contributions to Journals: ArticlesC9ORF72 repeat expansion causes vulnerability of motor neurons to Ca2+-permeable AMPA receptor-mediated excitotoxicity
Nature Communications, vol. 9, 347Contributions to Journals: ArticlesClusterin protects neurons against intracellular proteotoxicity
Acta Neuropathologica Communications, vol. 5, no. 81, 81Contributions to Journals: ArticlesProtocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis of experimental models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Evidence-based Preclinical Medicine, vol. 3, no. 2, pp. 17-19Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/ebm2.23
- [ONLINE] https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ebm2.23
The chaperone HSPB8 reduces the accumulation of truncated TDP-43 species in cells and protects against TDP-43-mediated toxicity
Human Molecular Genetics, vol. 25, no. 18, pp. 3908-3924Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/hmg/ddw232
- [ONLINE] http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/hmg/ddw232
The aggregation and neurotoxicity of TDP-43 and its als-associated 25 kDa fragment are differentially affected by molecular chaperones in drosophila
PloS ONE, vol. 7, no. 2, e31899Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0031899
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus