RESEARCH SEMINAR SERIES 2014

RESEARCH
SEMINAR
SERIES 2014
Faculty of Science
School of Science, Information Technology and
Engineering
Date Friday 6th June, 2014 at 1:30pm
Room Y016 Lecture Theatre, Ground Floor, Y Building
Title:
New mechanisms regulating blood pressure
arising from the kidney
Presenter: Dr Francine Marques
Abstract
High blood pressure (BP), also known as essential hypertension, is responsible for more than 50% of
the cardiovascular death worldwide, being the principal risk factor for global burden of disease.
Hypertension is a multifactorial condition with a substantial contribution attributed to heritable genetic
factors. The kidney is known to have a role in regulating BP. MicroRNAs are small non-coding RNAs
which bind to untranslated regions of many genes including those responsible for cardiovascular
disease. We previously found that the microRNA miR-181a binds to and regulates the levels of renin
mRNA in vitro and associates with the expression of renin in human kidney. Renin is the rate limiting
enzyme of the renin-angiotensin system, which is targeted by several medications aiming to reduce
BP. We now have explored the role of both renal expression and circulating concentrations of miR181a as a determinant of BP regulation using a large collection of human tissues.
Biography
In 2005 Dr Francine Z. Marques completed her Bachelor degree in Biological Sciences at the Federal
University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), which is ranked the best university in Brazil, majoring in
the Molecular, Cellular and Functional track, obtaining First Class Honours in Genetics. She then
completed in 2006 a Master degree in Molecular Biology and Genetics (Coursework and Research)
in the Post-Graduation Program of Genetics and Molecular Biology, which is a nationally recognised
centre of excellence in research, at the UFRGS. Both her Honours and Masters degrees were in the
Laboratory of Human Molecular Genetics, under the supervision of Prof. Claiton Bau, in the field of
psychiatric genetics, including alcoholism and attention-deficit disorder and hyperactivity (ADHD) in
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Biography - Dr Francine Marques continued….
adults. From 2008 to 2011, she did her PhD, which was awarded in January 2012, in the Basic &
Clinical Genomics Laboratory with Prof. Brian Morris at the School of Medical Sciences and Bosch
Institute, University of Sydney, in the field of the molecular genetics of hypertension. During all of her
degree enrolments she has held very competitive government scholarships, the latest one being an
Endeavour International Postgraduate Research Scholarship from the Australian Government. From
Oct 2011, she has been working at the former University of Ballarat a postdoctoral researcher in the
Collaborative Research Network (CRN), under supervision of Prof. Fadi Charchar. In Jan 2012 she
was awarded a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Peter Doherty and Heart
Foundation co-shared early-career fellowship. Her research is involved in deciphering the molecular
genetics of cardiovascular diseases, including essential hypertension and pathological cardiac
hypertrophy, with special attention to the role of non-coding RNAs. Dr. Marques has been nominated
to several awards and won several others for her research, the latest being the Austin Doyle Award
to be presented in Athens in June at the International Society of Hypertension. Moreover she has
presented her work in 23 local, 46 national and 43 international conferences, and she has published
30 peer-reviewed papers.