Contact Details
- Phone
- +64 21 0838 0187
- jaya.montecillo@postgrad.otago.ac.nz
University Links
- Position
- PhD Candidate
- Department
- Department of Medicine (Christchurch)
- Qualifications
- BBioMedSci(Hons)
- Research summary
- Measurement of new biomarkers for cardiovascular disease
Research
Jaya is a PhD student at the Christchurch Heart Institute's Translational Biodiscovery Laboratory under the supervision of Dr Janice Chew-Harris, Professor Chris Pemberton, and Professor Richard Troughton.
Her research focuses on a blood protein called suPAR, which reflects inflammation and has been linked to heart disease. She is investigating the different forms of suPAR that circulate in the blood to see whether they can better identify patients at risk of developing or worsening cardiovascular conditions. To support this, she is developing new laboratory tests to detect these forms more accurately, with the aim of improving suPAR's utility cardiovascular risk prediction and diagnosis.
Publications
Montecillo, J., Troughton, R. W., Richards, A. M., Pemberton, C. J., & Chew-Harris, J. (2025). Influence of protein glycosylation on the measurement of soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor. Journal of Applied Laboratory Medicine, 10(6), 1564-1579. doi: 10.1093/jalm/jfaf147 Journal - Research Article
Pirker, T., Keys, T., Pham, T., Montecillo, J., Byers, M., Adamson, P., Richards, A. M., & Pemberton, C. (2024). The cardioprotective potential of soluble urokinase Plasminogen Activator Receptor (suPAR) in myocardial ischemia. European Heart Journal, 45(Suppl. 1), ehae666.3657. doi: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehae666.3657 Conference Contribution - Published proceedings: Abstract
Montecillo, J., Troughton, R., Pemberton, C., & Chew-Harris, J. (2024). Removal of glycosylation improves performance of soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) levels for acute decompensated heart failure diagnosis. Heart, Lung & Circulation, 33(Suppl. 2), (pp. S58). doi: 10.1016/j.hlc.2024.04.218 Conference Contribution - Published proceedings: Abstract
Montecillo, J., Pirker, T., Pemberton, C., & Chew-Harris, J. (2024). suPAR in cardiovascular disease. In G. S. Makowski (Ed.), Advances in clinical chemistry (Vol. 121). (pp. 89-131). London, UK: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/bs.acc.2024.04.005 Chapter in Book - Research
Montecillo, J., Pirker, T., Richards, M., Pemberton, C., & Chew-Harris, J. (2023). Protein glycosylation influences soluble urokinase Plasminogen Activator Receptor (suPAR) measurements. Heart, Lung & Circulation, 32(Suppl. 2), P16. doi: 10.1016/j.hlc.2023.04.237 Conference Contribution - Published proceedings: Abstract