Newcastle University

Introduction

I hold a lectureship in Molecular Epidemiologyin the Institute of Health and Society in which my primary research area is childhood cancers.  Previously my post-doctoral research focused on the developmental origins of health and disease, with a specific interest in the impact of folate nutrition during pregnancy on long-term health in offspring.  

Qualifications

BSc, Medical Microbiology, Newcastle University, 2001

PhD, Modulation of tumourigenesis and DNA methylation in murine intestine by folate depletion, Newcastle University, 2005

Previous Posts

May 2005 - July 2006     Newcastle University, Research assistant under the supervision of Prof Dianne Ford

August 2006 – August 2011   Newcastle University, Research associate under the supervision of Prof John Mathers

Prizes and Awards

Young Investigator Award (for submitted abstracts), 6th International Congress on Developmental Origins of Health and Disease, Santiago, Chile November 2009

Poster Prizes;-

Second prize; Scientific Communication, 6th European Nutrigenomics Conference, Montecatini, Italy, 2009. 

First prize: Scientific Content, 5th European Nutrigenomics Conference, Pots-Dam, Germany, 2008 

Second prize: Scientific Communication, 4th European Nutrigenomics Conference, Oslo, Norway, 2007

First prize (Young Investigators Category): 3rd European Nutrigenomics Conference, Oxford, UK, 2006

Research Interests

My research interests lie within the field of molecular epidemiology, which a strong focus on childhood cancers and include the following areas;-

Developmental origins of health and disease i.e. investigation of environmental influences which may predispose to disease

Impact of cancer incidence and treatment on long term health and disease in patients

Molecular markers of relapse and chemoresistance in childhood cancer  

Research Role

I am principle investigator and co-investigator on a number of research projects. 

Esteem Indicators

Elected member of the Molecular Epidemiology Group Committee of the UKEMS

Associate Editor of Frontiers Epigenomics

Peer Reviewer for primary research journals including British Journal of Nutrition, Epigenetics,  Carcinogenesis, Genes and Nutrition, Clinical Epigenetics, International Journal of Epidemiology

Session Chair at the 7th European Nutrigenomics Conference, Glasgow, UK, September 2010

A principal organiser of the ‘Epigenetics & Developmental Programming Conference’, Newcastle, 21-22^nd March 2011

Memberships

NuGO (Nutrogenomics Organisation 

UKEMS

CCLG

Funding 

McKay JA, Strathdee G, Moorman A (2012-13) Influence of folate intake during development and early life on epigenetic aberrations associated with childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.  Newcastle Heathcare Charity, Joint Research Executive Scientific Committee. £13,034.

McKay JA, Pearce M (2012-13) Influence of non-ionising radiation on epigenetic marks.  Newcastle University Faculty of Medical Sciences Strategic Committee, Wellcome Trust Institutional Strategic Support Fund Project. £800.

McKay JA, Biswas S (2012-13) Effect of chemotherapy on DNA methylation.  Newcastle University Faculty of Medical Sciences Strategic Committee, Wellcome Trust Institutional Strategic Support Fund Project. £3084.

Postgraduate

MBBS personal tutor

Undergraduate

Nutritional Epidemiology for FHN degree course 

• Mckay JA, Adriaens M, Xie L, Manus C, Evelo CT, Ford D, Mathers JC. Consequences of Folate Depletion during Development and High Fat Intake from Weaning on Adiposity, Gene Expression and DNA Methylation in Adult Mice. In: Journal of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease: 7th World Congress on Developmental Origins of Health and Disease. 2011, Portland, Oregon, USA: Cambridge University Press.
• McKay JA, Ford D, Relton CL, Evelo CT, Adriaens M, Mathers JC. Consequences of Folate Depletion during Development for DNA Methylation and Gene Expression in the Fetal Mouse. In: Journal of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease: 7th World Congress on Developmental Origins of Health and Disease. 2011, Portland, Oregon, USA: Cambridge University Press.
• McKay JA, Williams EA, Mathers JC. Effect of maternal and post weaning folate supply on gene-specific DNA methylation in the small intestine of weaning and adult Apc+/Min and wild type mice. Frontiers in Epigenomics 2011, 2, 23.
• McKay JA, Adriaens M, Xie L, Evelo CT, Relton CL, Ford D, Mathers JC. Folate Depletion during Development Causes Gene Expression Changes in Fetal and Adult Mouse Liver. In: Journal of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease: 7th World Congress on Developmental Origins of Health and Disease. 2011, Portland, Oregon, USA: Cambridge University Press.
• McKay JA, Xie L, Harris S, Wong YK, Ford D, Mathers JC. Blood as a surrogate marker for tissue-specific DNA methylation and changes due to folate depletion in post-partum female mice. Molecular Nutrition & Food Research 2011, 55(7), 1026-1035.
• McKay JA, Wong YK, Relton CL, Ford D, Mathers JC. Maternal folate supply and sex influence gene-specific DNA methylation in the fetal gut. Molecular Nutrition & Food Research 2011, 55(11), 1717-1723.
• Palou M, Picó C, McKay JA, Sánchez J, Priego T, Mathers JC, Palou A. Protective effects of leptin during the suckling period against later obesity may be associated with changes in promoter methylation of the hypothalamic pro-opiomelanocortin gene. British Journal of Nutrition 2011, 106(5), 769-778.
• McKay J, Waltham K, Williams E, Mathers J. Folate depletion during pregnancy and lactation reduces genomic DNA methylation in murine adult offspring. Genes and Nutrition 2010, 6(2), 189-196.
• Mckay JA, Mathers JC. Diet induced epigenetic changes and their implications for health. Acta Physiologica 2011, 202(2), 103-118.
• Jackson KA, Valentine RA, Mckay JA, Swan DC, Mathers JC, Ford D. Analysis of differential gene-regulatory responses to zinc in human intestinal and placental cell lines. British Journal of Nutrition 2009, 101(10), 1474-1483.
• Mathers JC, Mckay JA. Epigenetics - Potential Contribution to Fetal Programming. In: Early Nutrition Programming and Health Outcomes in Later Life: Obesity and Beyond. 2009, Dordrecht, Netherlands: Springer.
• Mckay JA, Adriaens ME, Ford D, Relton CL, Evelo CTA, Mathers JC. Bioinformatic interrogation of expression array data to identify nutritionally regulated genes potentially modulated by DNA methylation. Genes & Nutrition 2008, 3(3-4), 167-171.
• McKay JA, Williams EA, Mathers JC. Gender-specific modulation of tumorigenesis by folic acid supply in the Apc+/Min mouse during early neonatal life. British Journal of Nutrition 2008, 99(3), 550-558.
• Jackson KA, Helston RM, McKay JA, O'Neill ED, Mathers JC, Ford D. Splice variants of the human zinc transporter ZnT5 (SLC30A5) are differentially localized and regulated by zinc through transcription and mRNA stability. Journal of Biological Chemistry 2007, 282(14), 10423-10431.
• Helston RM, Phillips SR, McKay JA, Jackson KA, Mathers JC, Ford D. Zinc Transporters in the Mouse Placenta Show a Coordinated Regulatory Response to Changes in Dietary Zinc Intake. Placenta 2007, 28(5-6), 437-444.
• McKay JA, Williams EA, Mathers JC. Folate and DNA methylation during in utero development and aging. Biochemical Society Transactions 2004, 32(6), 1006-1007.
• McKay JA, Groom A, Potter C, Coneyworth LJ, Ford D, Mathers JC, Relton CL. Genetic and Non-Genetic Influences during Pregnancy on Infant Global and Site Specific DNA Methylation: Role for Folate Gene Variants and Vitamin B₁₂. PLoS One 2012, 7(3), e33290.
• Langie SAS, Achterfeldt S, Gorniak JP, Halley-Hogg KJA, Oxley D, van Schooten FJ, Godschalk RWL, McKay JA, Mathers JC. Maternal folate depletion and high-fat feeding from weaning affects DNA methylation and DNA repair in brain of adult offspring. The FASEB Journal 2013. In Press.