Carla Johnson
PhD Student - MRC DTP in Precision Medicine
Research title: Identifying blood brain barrier signatures in cerebral malaria and central nervous system infections to inform treatment targets and patient stratification.
Research summary
My project focuses on identifying blood-brain barrier signatures in cerebral malaria and central nervous system infections to inform treatment targets and patient stratification. Cerebral malaria is the deadliest complication of malaria caused by Plasmodium falciparum. The parasites infect red blood cells that, in turn, stick to blood vessels in the brain, leading to blood-brain barrier breakdown and potentially fatal brain swelling. Identifying the cause of blood-brain barrier breakdown is key to identifying new treatments but has been elusive using prior approaches. This project aims to enhance our understanding of this complex biological process by employing spatial techniques on an archival collection of post-mortem cerebral malaria samples. This will allow us to characterise in detail what individual cells in the brain are doing and how they are interacting with other cells and with the parasite.
Supervisors
Conferences
Poster presenter – American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 2024 Annual Meeting