Professor John Loughlin
Prof of Musculoskeletal Research

Introduction

I did my PhD in developmental biology at Leeds University and subsequently carried out postdoctoral studies with Professor Bryan Sykes at the Institute of Molecular Medicine at Oxford University. These involved a molecular genetic analysis of monogenic and polygenic diseases of the musculoskeletal system. I subsequently obtained a fellowship from the Arthritis Research Campaign and established a group at the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics. At that point my focus became the genetic analysis of osteoarthritis (OA) and in 2008 I moved to Newcastle as Professor of Musculoskeletal Research.

Roles and Responsibilities

  • Head of the Osteoarthritis Genetics Group, Institute of Cellular Medicine (ICM)
  • Member of the ICM's management board
  • Mentor for early-stage independent investigators, ICM
  • President Elect of OARSI, the principal international OA research society

Qualifications

  • 1999 MA University of Oxford
  • 1991 PhD Molecular and Developmental Biology, University of Leeds
  • 1987 BSc (Hon) Biochemistry, Liverpool John Moores University

Previous Positions

  • 2002-2007 Lecturer in Musculoskeletal Sciences, University of Oxford
  • 1997-2002 Arthritis Research Campaign Fellow, University of Oxford
  • 1995-1997 Postdoctoral Scientist, Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford
  • 1991-1995 Postdoctoral Scientist, Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Oxford

Memberships

I am a member of the following professional societies:

Research Interests

My groups principal research focus is identifying and then characterising those genes that confer risk towards the development and progression of osteoarthritis (OA).

Through the application of powerful genome-wide association scans involving tens of thousands of OA patients we have identified a large number genes harbouring susceptibility alleles for OA, including the genes CHST11, GDF5, DIO2 and HBP1.

Our efforts are directed toward comprehensive functional analysis of the associated variants within these genes, and in others that are emerging from ongoing scans.

Group Members:

  • Dr Louise Reynard - research fellow
  • Dr Fiona Gee - postdoctoral scientist
  • Dr Michael Rushton - postdoctoral scientist
  • Catherine Syddall - research assistant
  • Madhu Ratnayake - research assistant
  • Clare Clubbs - research technician
  • Emma Rogers - MRes/PhD student
  • Kath Johnson - PhD student
  • Emma Raine - PhD student

Current Work

In addition to my OA research I am also one of the lead investigators for CIMA - the MRC-Arthritis Research UK Centre for Integrated Research into Musculoskeletal Ageing. This is a collaboration between the Universities of Liverpool, Newcastle and Sheffield. CIMA runs until 2017 and further details can be found at the CIMA website - www.cimauk.org/ 

I am also one of the lead investigators for D-BOARD, a European Union FP7-funded 5-year collaborative project directed toward OA biomarker development (http://ec.europa.eu/research/health/medical-research/severe-chronic-diseases/projects/d-board_en.html). D-BOARD also runs until 2017.

Many of the loci that my group investigate harbour polymorphisms that influence gene expression and this has stimulated our study of the tissue-specific effects of cis polymorphism on allelic expression imbalance.

The technical expertise that my group employs includes:

  • genetic association analysis by case-control and family-based methods
  • overall gene expression analysis using microarrays and RNAseq
  • gene expression analysis at the allelic level
  • in vitro studies of gene expression using luciferase reporter assays and EMSAs
  • manipulation of polymorphic sites using TALENs
  • analysis of cell-signalling pathways by protein expression studies and western analysis
  • identification and characterisation of trans-acting factors using ChIP
  • characterisation of cis and trans factors by RNA knockdown and overexpression 
  • targeted epigenetic analysis of CpG sites in candidate loci using cell lines and tissue from human donors
  • genome-wide epigenetic analysis using methylation arrays
  • investigation of gene and protein expression in transformed cells, primary cells and mesenchymal stem cells
  • the identification of novel mutations in Mendelian pedigrees by exome sequencing
  • the identification of rare polymorphisms in OA susceptibility loci by next generation sequencing

Future Research

My groups main effort for the next several years will be to carry out detailed functional studies of the loci identified such that we can understand clearly how the associated variants influence disease risk. This information will then be applied to develop improved diagnostic and prognostic tools and to facilitate the development of new intervention strategies, including novel therapeutics. 

Postgraduate Supervision

I have considerable experience of postgraduate supervision and encourage undergraduates who have a keen interest in genetics and the functional analysis of disease loci to get in touch.

Esteem Indicators

The Osteoarthritis Research Society International (OARSI, http://www.oarsi.org/) is the principal international OA research society and within it I perform a number of roles:

  • President (2015-2017)
  • President-elect (2013-2015)
  • Secretary General (2010-2013)
  • Member of the Board of Directors (2007-2017)
  • Chair of the Ethics Committee (2012-2015)
  • Program committee member and session chair, OARSI Congress 2012, 2013 and 2014
  • Moderator for the pre-congress workshop on "Genetics, genomics and functional analysis of OA susceptibility", OARSI Congress, Barcelona, 2012

Other esteem indicators unrelated to OARSI include:

  • Member of the Fellowship Implementation Committee of Arthritis Research UK (2007-2013)
  • Chair and organiser of the second OA Biomarkers workshop, Atlanta, USA, 2010
  • Member of the Editorial Boards of the journals Osteoarthritis & Cartilage, BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders, Longevity & Lifespan
  • Expert reviewer for INSERM, France, and scientific advisor to the NIH, USA
  • Presented my groups research, and overviews of the research area, at international conferences in Europe, North America and Asia (over 40 oral presentations in the past 5 years) 

Funding

I have been the principal investigator (PI) for 25 grants and the co-investigator (CI) for an additional 9, with a total grant income of £15 million.

I am currently the PI for 6 grants and the CI for 4 grants.

These 10 grants come from the MRC, Arthritis Research UK, the European Union, the Nuffield Foundation, the JGW Patterson Foundation and the William Harker Foundation.

Undergraduate Teaching

  • Lecturer in Molecular Genetics (BMS3010)
  • Supervisor for undergraduate laboratory projects
  • Undergraduate project marker
  • MBBS marker
  • Tutor for Biomedical Scientists 

 

Postgraduate Teaching

  • Lecturer for the MRes course in Musculoskeletal Biology (MMB8002)
  • Lecturer for the MRes course on the Genetics of Common Diseases (MMB8014)
  • Supervisor for MRes laboratory projects