DERI/PHURI Seminar with Dr Jochen M Schwenk (KTH - Royal Institute of Technology ) and Claudia Fredolini from SciLifeLab
When: Thursday, December 7, 2023, 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Where: Zoom
Speaker: Dr Jochen M Schwenk (KTH ) and Claudia Fredolini (SciLifeLab)
Please join us on Thursday 7th December for this joint DERI/PHURI seminar. We are delighted to welcome Dr Jochen M Schwenk who is Professor of Translational Proteomics at KTH - Royal Institute of Technology; and Claudia Fredolini from SciLifeLab
Zoom link: https://qmul-ac-uk.zoom.us/j/81148100921
Title: Monitoring the dynamic architecture of the circulating proteomes
Abstract: Recent technological advances have enabled us to study the proteins circulating in human blood at unprecedented depth and precision. We are now in an era to further unlock the potential of proteomics and investigate the constituents of human blood at scale. However, a key to understanding the proteome's dynamic architecture across heterogeneous phenotypes requires new learnings about possible sources of bias and pleiotropy. Still, the blood sample in the analysis will remain its entity, hence a proxy of the phenotype. Over the last decade, we continuously developed validation schemes for (primarily) affinity proteomics efforts and included various data types to create knowledge from the analysis of clinical samples. More recently, we started to explore the potential of remote self-sampling of the general population outside the hospital. The challenge is to decompose the combinatorial dynamic and variability induced by pre-analytical, genetic, lifestyle, and clinical parameters and learn how these affect the dynamic architecture of the circulating proteomes. Besides longitudinal multi-omics efforts to describe person-specific proteomes, I will discuss opportunities offered by deep profiling of self-sampling blood and data-driven analysis strategies.
Bio: Dr Jochen M Schwenk holds a position as a Professor in Translational Proteomics at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology, situated in Stockholm, Sweden. His academic journey started with a Ph.D. in Biochemistry, from which he focussed on the multiplexed analysis of circulating blood proteins, a field he believes holds the key to comprehending human health and disease conditions. His laboratory is located at the Science for Life Laboratory and is a part of the Human Protein Atlas. Here, Schwenk and his team focus on a novel aspect of the proteomics biomarker analysis pipeline. They delve into aspects including study design, pre-analytical variables, micro-sampling, assay development, and data integration to explore the potential for emerging translational possibilities. The Schwenk Lab is also known for contributing to various innovative and interdisciplinary research projects, each focusing on different human phenotypes, such as cancer and cardiometabolic disorders. Beyond this, Jochen is the chair of HUPO's Plasma Proteome Project, an elected member of HUPO's Council, and scientific director of SciLifeLab's Affinity Proteomics Unit.
Title: “Microsampling strategies in population health surveillance and epidemics monitoring”
Abstract: Home-sampling devices represent an essential tool for global health diagnostic particularly for screening and surveying hard-to-reach populations. Despite the increasing interest in implementing microsampling strategies in research, healthcare and pharma, the field still lacks widespread use of devices with robust and standardized protocols of analysis. The Affinity Proteomics SciLifeLab Unit is currently developing a population monitoring capability for high-throughput advanced protein analysis of microsamples and research in infectious diseases. The project is part of the Pandemic Laboratory Preparedness Swedish program. The presentation will cover our new pipeline and automated system for qDBS card processing, data management and storage, as well as our research experience with new microsampling devices and strategies for proteomic profiling of enveloped viruses.
About the presenter: Dr. Claudia Fredolini is the Head of the Affinity Proteomics Units and Co-director of the Clinical Proteomics and Immunology Platform at Science for Life Laboratory (SciLifeLab). She holds a PhD in Molecular Medicine with a specialization in immunology and works as researcher at KTH-Royal Institute of Technology Science for Life Laboratory (Stockholm, Sweden). During her academic career she has developed a solid expertise in analytical methods for protein quantification in biofluids, both in mass spectrometry and immunoassays. Her research interest lies on biomarkers validation and translation into clinical practice. Fredolini’s team at SciLifeLab focusses on the development and application of new analytical method, providing technological expertise and research support to clinical and preclinical researchers, industry and healthcare in the field of biomarkers.