Researcher Melina Malinen, Doctor of Pharmacy, has received a significant Marie Skłodowska-Curie (MSCA) Individual Fellowship awarded by the European Commission. Malinen works in the School of Pharmacy at the University of Eastern Finland. The MSCA Individual Fellowship was granted for a two-year project that studies whether transporter proteins and bile acids are associated with the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis.
Malinen returned to Finland after spending three years as a post doc researcher at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy in North Carolina, which has been ranked as the leading pharmacy institution in the United States of America.
With the increasing prevalence of obesity and metabolic syndrome, fatty liver disease has become increasingly common. In Finland, up to 1.2 million people are estimated to suffer from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The disease may progress from cellular fat accumulation to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and liver cirrhosis, but its effects on cell membrane transporters and drug pharmacokinetics are poorly understood. Hepatic transporters carry not only drugs, but also endogenous compounds, such as bile acids. Changes in pharmacokinetics, on the other hand, can have an impact on drug efficacy and safety.
The project uses targeted proteomics to determine the concentrations of transporters in the liver tissue of NAFLD and NASH patients, and metabolomics to measure liver tissue bile acid concentrations. The measured transporter and bile acid concentrations will be compared to serum bile acid concentrations, as well as to genome-wide RNA sequencing data. The project also applies CRISPR-Cas9 technology to study the role of transporters in bile acid transport in liver cells. The project will increase our understanding of fatty liver diseases, making it possible for health care professionals and authorities to ensure safe and effective drug therapies for NAFLD patients.
The project continues the collaboration between the School of Pharmacy at the University of Eastern Finland and UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy in 2016–2018, which was funded by the Erasmus+ Global programme. The project will be carried out in collaboration between Professor Paavo Honkakoski, Professor Seppo Auriola and Professor Jussi Pihlajamäki at the University of Eastern Finland, and Professor Mikko Niemi at the University of Eastern Finland. The project also includes a visit to Professor Bruno Stieger's laboratory at the Hospital of Zürich.
For further information, please contact:
Project Researcher Melina Malinen, melina.malinen(at)uef.fi
OSTtrans project: https://cordis.europa.eu/project/rcn/215740_en.html