Dr Collette Britton

Reader (Institute of Biodiversity Animal Health & Comparative Medicine)
Associate (School of Veterinary Medicine)

telephone: 01413302894
email: Collette.Britton@glasgow.ac.uk

R210A Level 2, Institute of III, Urquhart Building, Glasgow G61 1QH

ORCID iD https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5165-312X

Research interests

Our research is focused on understanding the biology of parasitic nematodes and applying this to the design of new therapeutics for parasite control. My laboratory combines molecular and functional studies on important veterinary nematodes and the free-living nematode Caenorhabditis elegans.

Research Interests

We are interested in several key themes associated with identifying mechanisms of vaccine-induced immunity to parasitic nematodes and defining targets for novel therapeutic strategies.

Identification of protective nematode antigens for recombinant vaccine design, with a particular focus on proteases. A major hurdle in vaccine development for parasitic helminths is the expression of recombinant proteins capable of inducing protective immunity. We exploit the nematode C. elegans as an alternative system to express nematode protease enzymes in a similarly folded and glycosylated form to native parasite proteins.
Related article - http://veterinaryresearch.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1297-9716-44-111

Regulation of parasitic nematode development by small RNA molecules, microRNAs. microRNAs can regulate gene expression at the post-transcriptional level and are essential for correct development of C. elegans. We have profiled the expression of microRNAs in different developmental stages of the nematodes Haemonchus contortus and Brugia pahangi. Current work aims to identify the target genes and biological functions of identified microRNAs using inhibitors and mimics.
Related articles -
http://bmcgenomics.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12864-015-1536-y ;
http://bmcgenomics.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-2164-13-4 ;
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5709059/ ;
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5701612/ ;

Influence of parasite and host small RNAs on immune outcome. We are currently examining changes in host microRNA expression in the gut environment following nematode infection or vaccination, to identify potential mechanisms of immune regulation
Related article - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4095049/

Development of reliable RNA interference (RNAi) in parasitic nematodes to directly determine gene function. This focuses on enhancing delivery of RNA and improving nematode in vitro culture to enable identification of phenotypic effects of gene knockdown. This is relevant to the identification of novel targets for drug or vaccine design.
Related article - http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304401715002824

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0020751910002596?via%3Dihub
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0065308X16300173?via%3Dihub

Google Scholar - Publications Profile

Further Information

We collaborate on several of these themes with the Moredun Research Institute, Edinburgh

Editorial Board

2016: Parasite Immunology, Guest Editor Special Issue on “MicroRNAs in host-parasite interactions” Issue available at https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/13653024/39/2
2013 - present: Parasitology
2008: Parasite Immunology, Guest Editor Special Issue on “Transgenic parasites and the immune response”

Grant Advisory Board

2014 - present: BBSRC Committee Panel Member

Invited International Presentations

2018: Berlin, Germany - German Society for Parasitology, Plenary Speaker
2017: Borstel, Germany - Drug Design & Development Seminar (DDDS) of the German Society for Parasitology, Invited speaker
2016: University of Leiden – Invited seminar speaker
2016: San Antonio, Texas, USA – Annual Meeting of American Association for Veterinary Parasitology (AAVP), Plenary Speaker
2016: Tahoe City, USA – Keystone Conference on Drug Discovery for Parasitic Diseases, invited speaker
2015: INRA, Tours, France – Invited seminar speaker
2015: Liverpool, UK – World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology (WAAVP), invited speaker
2013: Bristol, UK – British Society for Parasitology (BSP), session organiser
2011: Sao Carlos, Brazil – Symposium on “Advances in the knowledge of parasite resistance of ruminant hosts and parasites”, invited lecturer
2007: University of Ghent, Belgium – invited seminar speaker
2006: Glasgow, UK - 11th International Congress of Parasitology (ICOPA), invited speaker
2004: Manchester, UK – British Society for Parasitology (BSP), invited speaker

Publications

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Number of items: 56.

2020

Doyle, S. R. et al. (2020) Genomic and transcriptomic variation defines the chromosome-scale assembly of Haemonchus contortus, a model gastrointestinal worm. Communications Biology, 3, 656. (doi: 10.1038/s42003-020-01377-3) (PMID:33168940) (PMCID:PMC7652881)

Britton, C. , Emery, D. L., Mcneilly, T., Nisbet, A. and Stear, M. J. (2020) The potential for vaccines against scour worms of small ruminants. International Journal for Parasitology, 50(8), pp. 533-553. (doi: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2020.04.003) (PMID:32569640)

Britton, C. , Laing, R. and Devaney, E. (2020) Small RNAs in parasitic nematodes - forms and functions. Parasitology, 147(8), pp. 855-864. (doi: 10.1017/S0031182019001689) (PMID:31843030) (PMCID:PMC7284814)

Hanks, E., Todd, H., Palarea-Albaladejo, J., Mcneilly, T. N., Britton, C. and Ballingall, K. T. (2020) A novel technique for retrospective genetic analysis of the response to vaccination or infection using cell-free DNA from archived sheep serum and plasma. Veterinary Research, 51(1), 9. (doi: 10.1186/s13567-020-0737-9) (PMID:32024546) (PMCID:PMC7003321)

2019

Albuquerque, A. C. A., Bassetto, C. C., Almeida, F. A., Hildersley, K. A., McNeilly, T. N., Britton, C. and Amarante, A. F.T. (2019) Differences in immune responses to Haemonchus contortus infection in the susceptible Ile de France and the resistant Santa Ines sheep under different anthelmintic treatments regimens. Veterinary Research, 50, 104. (doi: 10.1186/s13567-019-0722-3) (PMID:31783921) (PMCID:PMC6884896)

Hodgkinson, J. E. et al. (2019) Refugia and anthelmintic resistance: concepts and challenges. International Journal for Parasitology, 10, pp. 51-57. (doi: 10.1016/j.ijpddr.2019.05.001) (PMID:31125837) (PMCID:PMC6531808)

Marks, N. D. et al. (2019) Profiling microRNAs through development of the parasitic nematode Haemonchus identifies nematode-specific miRNAs that suppress larval development. Scientific Reports, 9, 17594. (doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-54154-6) (PMID:31772378) (PMCID:PMC6879476)

2018

Sallé, G. et al. (2018) Transcriptomic profiling of nematode parasites surviving vaccine exposure. International Journal for Parasitology, 48(5), pp. 395-402. (doi: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2018.01.004) (PMID:29534987) (PMCID:PMC5909036)

Palevich, N., Britton, C. , Kamenetzky, L., Mitreva, M., de Moraes Mourão, M., Bennuru, S., Quack, T., Scholte, L. L. S., Tyagi, R. and Slatko, B. E. (2018) Tackling hypotheticals in helminth genomes. Trends in Parasitology, 34(3), pp. 179-183. (doi: 10.1016/j.pt.2017.11.007) (PMID:29249363)

Doyle, S. R. et al. (2018) A genome resequencing-based genetic map reveals the recombination landscape of an outbred parasitic nematode in the presence of polyploidy and polyandry. Genome Biology and Evolution, 10(2), pp. 396-409. (doi: 10.1093/gbe/evx269) (PMID:29267942) (PMCID:PMC5793844)

2017

Gillan, V. et al. (2017) Increased expression of a microRNA correlates with anthelmintic resistance in parasitic nematodes. Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology, 7, 452. (doi: 10.3389/fcimb.2017.00452) (PMID:29209592) (PMCID:PMC5701612)

Terron-Canedo, N., Weir, W. , Nicolson, L., Britton, C. and Nasir, L. (2017) Differential expression of microRNAs in bovine papillomavirus type 1 transformed equine cells. Veterinary and Comparative Oncology, 15(3), pp. 764-774. (doi: 10.1111/vco.12216) (PMID:27039895)

Britton, C. (2017) microRNAs - key players in host-parasite interactions. Parasite Immunology, 39(2), e12418. (doi: 10.1111/pim.12418) (PMID:28171701)

Gu, H. Y., Marks, N. D., Winter, A. D., Weir, W. , Tzelos, T., McNeilly, T. N., Britton, C. and Devaney, E. (2017) Conservation of a microRNA cluster in parasitic nematodes and profiling of miRNAs in excretory-secretory products and microvesicles of Haemonchus contortus. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 11(11), e0006056. (doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0006056) (PMID:29145392) (PMCID:PMC5709059)

2016

Britton, C. , Roberts, B. and Marks, N.D. (2016) Functional genomics tools for Haemonchus contortus and lessons from other helminths. Advances in Parasitology, 93, pp. 599-623. (doi: 10.1016/bs.apar.2016.02.017) (PMID:27238014)

2015

Britton, C. , Winter, A. D., Marks, N. D., Gu, H., McNeilly, T. N., Gillan, V. and Devaney, E. (2015) Application of small RNA technology for improved control of parasitic helminths. Veterinary Parasitology, 212(1-2), pp. 47-53. (doi: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2015.06.003) (PMID:26095949) (PMCID:PMC4535316)

Britton, C. (2015) Ascaris: The Neglected Parasite, by Celia Holland. Parasitology, 142(4), p. 633. (doi: 10.1017/S0031182014001541)[Book Review]

Winter, A. D. et al. (2015) A novel member of the let-7 microRNA family is associated with developmental transitions in filarial nematode parasites. BMC Genomics, 16, 331. (doi: 10.1186/s12864-015-1536-y) (PMID:25896062) (PMCID:PMC4428239)

2014

Britton, C. , Winter, A. D., Gillan, V. and Devaney, E. (2014) microRNAs of parasitic helminths – identification, characterization and potential as drug targets. International Journal for Parasitology: Drugs and Drug Resistance, 4(2), pp. 85-94. (doi: 10.1016/j.ijpddr.2014.03.001)

2013

Roberts, B., Antonopoulos, A., Haslam, S.M., Dicker, A.J., Mcneilly, T.N., Johnston, S.L., Dell, A., Knox, D.P. and Britton, C. (2013) Novel expression of Haemonchus contortus vaccine candidate aminopeptidase H11 using the free-living nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Veterinary Research, 44, 111. (doi: 10.1186/1297-9716-44-111) (PMID:24289031) (PMCID:PMC4176091)

Britton, C. (2013) Proteases of nematodes: from free-living to parasite. In: Kennedy, M.W. and Harnett, W. (eds.) Parasitic Nematodes: Molecular Biology, Biochemistry and Immunology. Cabi Publishing, pp. 354-374. ISBN 9781845937591 (doi:10.1079/9781845937591.0351)

Caffrey, C.R., Britton, C. and McKerrow, J.H. (2013) Helminth cysteine proteases. In: Rawlings, N.D. and Salvesen, G. (eds.) Handbook of Proteolytic Enzymes. Elsevier Science, pp. 1949-1957. ISBN 9780123822192 (doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-382219-2.00444-0)

Laing, R. et al. (2013) The genome and transcriptome of haemonchus contortus, a key model parasite for drug and vaccine discovery. Genome Biology, 14(8), R88. (doi: 10.1186/gb-2013-14-8-r88)

Saunders, G. I., Wasmuth, J. D., Beech, R., Laing, R. , Hunt, M., Naghra, H., Cotton, J. A., Berriman, M., Britton, C. and Gilleard, J. S. (2013) Characterization and comparative analysis of the complete Haemonchus contortus β-tubulin gene family and implications for benzimidazole resistance in strongylid nematodes. International Journal for Parasitology, 43(6), pp. 465-475. (doi: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2012.12.011)

2012

Baker, R.H., Britton, C. , Roberts, B., Loer, C.M., Matthews, J.B. and Nisbet, A.J. (2012) Melanisation of teladorsagia circumcincta larvae exposed to sunlight: a role for GTP-Cyclohydrolase in nematode survival. International Journal for Parasitology, 42(10), pp. 887-891. (doi: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2012.06.005)

Baker, R.H., Britton, C. , Roberts, B., Loer, C.M., Matthews, J.B. and Nisbet, A.J. (2012) Melanisation of Teladorsagia circumcincta larvae exposed to sunlight: a role for GTP-cyclohydrolase in nematode survival. International Journal for Parasitology, 42(10), pp. 887-891. (doi: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2012.06.005)

Selkirk, M.E., Huang, S.C., Knox, D.P. and Britton, C. (2012) The development of RNA interference (RNAi) in gastrointestinal nematodes. Parasitology, 139(5), pp. 605-612. (doi: 10.1017/S0031182011002332)

Britton, C. , Samarasinghe, B. and Knox, D.P. (2012) Ups and downs of RNA interference in parasitic nematodes. Experimental Parasitology, 132(1), pp. 56-61. (doi: 10.1016/j.exppara.2011.08.002)

Britton, C. (2012) RNA interference: A potential discovery tool for therapeutic targets of parasitic nematodes. In: Parasitic helminths: Targets, screens, drugs and vaccines. Wiley-Blackwell, pp. 89-103.

Winter, A.D., Weir, W. , Hunt, M., Berriman, M., Gilleard, J.S., Devaney, E. and Britton, C. (2012) Diversity in parasitic nematode genomes: the microRNAs of Brugia pahangi and Haemonchus contortus are largely novel. BMC Genomics, 13, p. 4. (doi: 10.1186/1471-2164-13-4)

2011

Samarasinghe, S.B., Knox, D.P. and Britton, C. (2011) Factors affecting susceptibility to RNA interference in Haemonchus contortus and in vivo silencing of an H11 aminopeptidase gene. International Journal for Parasitology, 41(1), pp. 51-59. (doi: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2010.07.005)

2010

Devaney, E.A. , Winter, A.D. and Britton, C. (2010) microRNAs: a role in drug resistance in parasitic nematodes? Trends in Parasitology, 26(9), pp. 428-433. (doi: 10.1016/j.pt.2010.05.003) (PMID:20541972) (PMCID:PMC2930248)

2009

Nic An Ultaigh, S., Carolan, J. C., Britton, C. , Murray, L. and Ryan, M. F. (2009) A cathepsin L-like protease from Strongylus vulgaris: an orthologue of Caenorhabditis elegans CPL-1. Experimental Parasitology, 121(4), pp. 293-299. (doi: 10.1016/j.exppara.2008.11.002) (PMID:19059238)

2008

Britton, C. (2008) Genetically modified parasites and the immune response. Parasite Immunology, 30(4), pp. 191-193. (doi: 10.1111/j.1365-3024.2008.01018.x)

2007

Geldhof, P., Visser, A., Clark, D., Saunders, G., Britton, C., Gilleard, J., Berriman, M. and Knox, D. (2007) RNA interference in parasitic helminths: current situation, potential pitfalls and future prospects. Parasitology, 134, pp. 609-619. (doi: 10.1017/S0031182006002071) (PMID:17201997)

Knox, D. P., Geldhof, P., Visser, A. and Britton, C. (2007) RNA interference in parasitic nematodes of animals: a reality check? Trends in Parasitology, 23(3), pp. 105-107. (doi: 10.1016/j.pt.2007.01.007) (PMID:17276139)

Murray, L., Geldhof, P., Clark, D., Knox, D. P. and Britton, C. (2007) Expression and purification of an active cysteine protease of Haemonchus contortus using Caenorhabditis elegans. Trends in Parasitology, 37(10), pp. 1117-1125. (doi: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2007.02.012) (PMID:17451718)

2006

Britton, C. and Murray, L. (2006) Using Caenorhabditis elegans for functional analysis of genes of parasitic nematodes. International Journal for Parasitology, 36(6), pp. 651-659. (doi: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2006.02.010) (PMID:16616144)

Geldhof, P., Murray, L., Couthier, A., Gilleard, J. S., McLauchlan, G., Knox, D. P. and Britton, C. (2006) Testing the efficacy of RNA interference in Haemonchus contortus. International Journal for Parasitology, 36(7), pp. 801-810. (doi: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2005.12.004) (PMID:16469321)

2004

Britton, C. and Murray, L. (2004) Cathepsin L protease (CPL-1) is essential for yolk processing during embryogenesis in Caenorhabditis elegans. Journal of Cell Science, 117, pp. 5133-5143. (doi: 10.1242/jcs.01387)

2002

Britton, C. and Murray, L. (2002) A cathepsin L protease essential for Caenorhabditis elegans embryogenesis is functionally conserved in parasitic nematodes. Molecular and Biochemical Parasitology, 122, pp. 21-33.

Gomez-Escobar, N., Gregory, W., Britton, C. , Murray, L., Corton, C., Hall, N., Daub, J., Blaxter, M. and Maizels, R. (2002) Abundant larval transcript-1 and -2 genes from Brugia malayi: diversity of genomic environments but conservation of 5 ' promoter sequences functional in Caenorhabditis elegans. Molecular and Biochemical Parasitology, 125, pp. 59-71.

Hashmi, S., Britton, C. , Liu, J., Guiliano, D., Oksov, Y. and Lustigman, S. (2002) Cathepsin L is essential for embryogenesis and development of Caenorhabditis elegans. Journal of Biological Chemistry, 277, pp. 3477-3486. (doi: 10.1074/jbc.M106117200)

Thompson, F., Britton, C. , Wheatley, I., Maitland, K., Walker, G., Anant, S., Davidson, N. and Devaney, E. (2002) Biochemical and molecular characterization of two cytidine deaminases in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Biochemical Journal, 365, pp. 99-107.

2001

Thompson, F., Cockroft, A., Wheatley, I., Britton, C. and Devaney, E. (2001) Heat shock and developmental expression of hsp83 in the filarial nematode Brugia pahangi. European Journal of Biochemistry, 268, pp. 5808-5815.

1999

Britton, C. , Redmond, D. L., Knox, D. P., McKerrow, J. H. and Barry, J. D. (1999) Identification of promoter elements of parasitic nematodes in transgenic Caenorhabditis elegans. Molecular and Biochemical Parasitology, 103(2), pp. 171-181. (doi: 10.1016/S0166-6851(99)00121-8)

1998

Britton, C. , McKerrow, J. H. and Johnstone, I. L. (1998) Regulation of the Caenorhabditis elegans gut cysteine protease gene cpr-1: requirement for GATA motifs. Journal of Molecular Biology, 283(1), pp. 15-27. (doi: 10.1006/jmbi.1998.2093) (PMID:9761670)

1997

McCririe, L., Bairden, K., Britton, C. , Buitkamp, J., McKeand, J.B. and Stear, M.J. (1997) Heterogeneity in the recognition of Ostertagia circumcincta antigens by serum antibody from mature, infected sheep. Parasite Immunology, 19(5), pp. 235-242. (doi: 10.1046/j.1365-3024.1997.d01-202.x) (PMID:9194101)

1995

Kennedy, M. W. , Britton, C. , Price, N. C., Kelly, S. M. and Cooper, A. (1995) The DvA-1 polyprotein of the parasitic nematode Dictyocaulus viviparus. A small helix-rich lipid-binding protein. Journal of Biological Chemistry, 270(33), pp. 19277-19281. (doi: 10.1074/jbc.270.33.19277) (PMID:7642601)

Britton, C. , Moore, J., Gilleard, J. S. and Kennedy, M. W. (1995) Extensive diversity in repeat unit sequences of the cDNA encoding the polyprotein antigen/allergen from the bovine lungworm Dictyocaulus viviparus. Molecular and Biochemical Parasitology, 72(1-2), pp. 77-88. (doi: 10.1016/0166-6851(95)00088-I) (PMID:8538702)

1994

Britton, C. , Knox, D.P. and Kennedy, M.W. (1994) Superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity of Dictyocaulus viviparus and its inhibition by antibody from infected and vaccinated bovine hosts. Parasitology, 109(2), pp. 257-263. (doi: 10.1017/s0031182000076381) (PMID:8084670)

1993

Britton, C. , Canto, G. J., Urquhart, G. M. and Kennedy, M. W. (1993) Stage-specific surface antigens of the cattle lungworm Dictyocaulus viviparus. Parasite Immunology, 15(11), pp. 625-634. (doi: 10.1111/j.1365-3024.1993.tb00576.x) (PMID:7877839)

Britton, C. , Canto, G., Urquhart, G. M. and Kennedy, M. W. (1993) Characterization of excretory-secretory products of adult Dictyocaulus viviparus and the antibody response to them in infection and vaccination. Parasite Immunology, 15(3), pp. 163-174. (doi: 10.1111/j.1365-3024.1993.tb00596.x) (PMID:8316410)

Britton, C. , Knox, D. P. and Kennedy, M. W. (1993) Excretory-Secretory Superoxide Dismutase (SOD) of the Bovine Lungworm Dictyocaulus Viviparus. Molecular Helminthology: An Integrated Approach, Tamarron, Colorado, USA, 10-17 Feb 1993. (doi:10.1002/jcb.240530704)

1992

Britton, C. , Knox, D.P., Canto, G.J., Urquhart, G.M. and Kennedy, M.W. (1992) The secreted and somatic proteinases of the bovine lungworm Dictyocaulus viviparus and their inhibition by antibody from infected and vaccinated animals. Parasitology, 105(2), pp. 325-333. (doi: 10.1017/s0031182000074254) (PMID:1454428)

Britton, C. , Canto, G. J., Urquhart, G. M. and Kennedy, M. W. (1992) The antibody repertoire in infection and vaccination with Dictyocaulus viviparus: heterogeneity in infected cattle and genetic control in guinea pigs. Veterinary Immunology and Immunopathology, 31(3-4), pp. 313-322. (doi: 10.1016/0165-2427(92)90018-L) (PMID:1534189)

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