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Contact Details

Phone
+64 3 479 7471
Email
tania.slatter@otago.ac.nz
Position
Associate Professor and Academic Leader, Course Director Medical Laboratory Science, Histology, for Otago Micro and Nanoscale Imaging (OMNI)
Department
Department of Pathology (Dunedin)
Qualifications
BSc MSc(Dist) PhD
Research summary
Molecular and experimental pathology and translational medicine with a special interest in cancer, perinatal medicine, and autoimmune disease
Memberships
  • Manutū Hanora (Ministry of Health) Laboratory Sector Reference Group
  • Associate Investigator, Maurice Wilkins Centre
Clinical
  • Brain cancer
  • Breast cancer
  • Laboratory medicine
  • Chronic kidney disease
  • Macular degeneration
  • Perinatal disease
  • Autoimmune disease

Research

Our goal is to improve outcomes for those with cancer and other chronic conditions by understanding how the mechanisms that regulate cellular damage and inflammation lead to molecular changes that predispose to life-long health effects.

For this research we use molecular and histo-pathological techniques in combination with collaborative clinical studies. The findings from the laboratory are then tested in clinical trials to see if they lead to improved patient outcomes.

Laboratory medicine is an integral part of medicine with 100% of cancer diagnoses requiring diagnostic laboratory tests. The Medical Laboratory Science programme at Otago works with diagnostic laboratories on collaborative projects aimed at developing new and improving existing tests.

Specific projects in the laboratory are outlined below:

  • Understanding how a variant of the p53 tumour suppressor called Δ133p53 promotes cancer
  • Investigating if new drug indications can better treat those with brain cancer, both tumours that develop and those that spread to the brain
  • Investigating how chronic kidney disease and macular degeneration could be treated
  • Developing new diagnostic tests for cancer patients
  • Investigating DNA damage to the placenta and how this affects fetal and maternal health outcomes. This study is part of the Otago Placental Study in collaboration with the Department of Women's and Children's Health.
  • Investigating DNA damage in autoimmune disease and how this leads to further health complications

Publications

Ray Das, S., Delahunt, B., Lasham, A., Li, K., Wright, D., Print, C., Slatter, T., Braithwaite, A., & Mehta, S. (2024). Combining TP53 mutation and isoform has the potential to improve clinical practice. Pathology. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1016/j.pathol.2024.02.003 Journal - Research Other

March de Ribot, F., Dolan, H., & Slatter, T. (2023). Amiloride fibrosis and survival in an AMD model. Ophthalmic Research, Advance online publication. doi: 10.1159/000531114 Conference Contribution - Published proceedings: Abstract

Wiles, A. K., Mehta, S., Millier, M., Woolley, A. G., Li, K., Parker, K., Kazantseva, M., Wilson, M., Young, K., Bowie, S., Ray, S., Slatter, T. L., Stamp, L. K., Hessian, P. A., & Braithwaite, A. W. (2023). Activated CD90/Thy-1 fibroblasts co-express the Δ133p53β isoform and are associated with highly inflamed rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Research & Therapy, 25, 62. doi: 10.1186/s13075-023-03040-8 Journal - Research Article

Evans, G. E., Mahajan, V., Wakeman, S., Slatter, T., Ponnampalam, A. P., Anderson, T. P., Sarwar, M., & Evans, J. J. (2023). A pilot study using unique targeted testing of the urogenital microbiome has potential as a predictive test during IVF for implantation outcome. Archives of Gynecology & Obstetrics, 307, 1957-1967. doi: 10.1007/s00404-023-06987-w Journal - Research Article

Boix De Jesus, A. N., Taha, A., Wang, D., Mehta, P. M., Mehta, S., Reily-Bell, A., Polwatta Lekamlage, S., Machado Saraiva, A., Tahmeedzaman, T., … Royds, J., Braithwaite, A., Hung, N., & Slatter, T. L. (2023). Increased expression of the Δ133p53ß isoform enhances brain metastasis. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 24, 1267. doi: 10.3390/ijms24021267 Journal - Research Article

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