Dr Marie-Therese El-Daher
Post-doctoral Research Fellow
- MRC Human Genetics Unit
- Institute of Genetics and Cancer
- College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine
Contact details
Address
- Street
-
MRC Human Genetics Unit
Institute of Genetics and Cancer
The University of Edinburgh
Western General Hospital
Crewe Road - City
- Edinburgh
- Post code
- EH4 2XU
Background
Dr Marie-Therese El-Daher major focus is the study of rare genetic diseases, in the hope of one day achieving effective treatments. She started her PhD in 2010, at the Institute Curie in Paris, in the laboratory of Dr Frederic Saudou, and explored the intricated neurodegenerative mechanisms of Huntington disease, a fatal inherited condition. She then joined the team of the Pr Alain Fischer and Dr Genevieve de Saint Basile team, at the Imagine institute in Paris for her first postdoctoral experience. There, she aimed at dissecting the molecular roles of a gene involved in primary immune deficiency and associated with different degrees of intestinal inflammation. This unique journey provided close interaction with clinicians and patients, strengthening her determination to understand these orphan diseases. In 2019, she had the fantastic chance to become a member of the laboratory of Pr Yanick Crow at the IGC, and her current work aims at investigating how rare mutations in certain genes instigate an inappropriate interferon-mediated neuroinflammation disorders.
Qualifications
2009-2013: Ph.D. in Neuroscience, Paris Saclay University, France
2007-2009: Master and European Magister degree in Genetics, University of Paris Diderot-Paris Descartes, France
2004-2007: Bachelor’s Degree in Genetics, University of Tours, France
Open to PhD supervision enquiries?
Yes
Current PhD students supervised
Dec 2021-present: Gaofeng Zhu, PhD student on the INFLANET scheme, part of Marie Skłodowska-Curie.
Past PhD students supervised
2020: Olivia Rafai, PhD student rotation project, Translational Neuroscience Programme, University of Edinburgh
Current research interests
My current research relates to type I interferonopathies, which are Mendelian disorders characterised by chronically enhanced type I interferon signalling. This signalling plays an essential role in our immune response to infections; contrastingly, its incorrect activation in a non-infectious setting can be pathogenic, leading to multiple tissue damage and autoinflammatory diseases. I believe that deriving insights from the study of genetics disease provides a matchless opportunity to deconvolute biological complexity in the human context. By doing so, this not only improves overall knowledge on fundamental mechanisms regulating health, but it also enables the development of targeted therapeutic interventions for diseases for which we unfortunately do not yet have a cure.Conference details
- Scottish Biomedical Postdoctoral Researcher Conference 2023, Glasgow, United Kingdom, September 2023.
Selected speaker: cGAS Modulates Chromatin State and Transcription in ATRX-mediated Activation of Interferon Type I
- Keystone symposium, Chromatin Architecture and Chromosome Organization; Whistler, Canada, March 2018.
Selected poster: Chromatin Organization and Nuclear Function are Altered in Tetratricopeptide Repeat Domain 7A Deficiency.
- 7th NIF Winter School on Advanced Immunology; Awaji, Japan, January 2018.
Selected speaker: Tetratricopeptide Repeat Domain 7A is a nuclear factor that modulates transcription and chromatin structure.
Invited speaker
- College de France, Paris, France, September 2014.
Invited speaker: TTC7A, a key regulator of both immune system and gut homeostasis