Post-doctoral research fellow
Dr Arlene D’Silva commenced a post- doctoral research fellow role in 2020 following 2 years as a research assistant in which she successfully established the infrastructure, capability, and standard operating procedures for longitudinal collection of bio fluids (CSF, blood, urine and saliva) from children with neuromuscular disorders at the Sydney Children’s Hospital, Randwick. More than 200 bio specimens (CSF, serum, saliva, urine) from a well-characterised cohort of forty-two SMA patients have been collected and stored to date. Arlene is combining comprehensive patient phenotyping with functional genomic biomarker discovery studies. Currently, she is investigating the role of novel miRNAs, splice variants and other molecular signatures in facilitating understanding of disease pathophysiology and their clinical, pharmacological, and therapeutic utility.