Lachlan Staker

Lachlan Staker

Higher Degree by Research Candidate

School of Biomedicine

Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences

Lachlan is a PhD candidate at the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI), working under the supervision of Professor Paul Thomas, Dr. Fatwa Adikusuma and Professor Robert Casson, in the Gene Editing Lab. The primary focus of his research is designing gene editing therapeutic strategies for treating autosomal dominant Retinitis Pigmentosa (adRP), the leading cause of inherited genetic blindness, by utilising CRISPR/Cas9 and Prime Editing technology.

Current Research Project: Designing novel mutant specific CRISPR/Cas9 therapeutic strategies towards treating autosomal dominant Retinitis Pigmentosa (adRP)

Retinitis Pigmentosa is the leading cause of retinal degeneration globally, resulting in progressive breakdown of the retinal cells which eventually leads to blindness. The largest proportion of Retinitis Pigmentosa causative mutations are autosomal dominant (heterozygous for the disease allele) and are attractive targets for genetic therapeutic intervention. Utilising CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing, the aims of my project are to specifically target common autosomal dominant Retinitis Pigmentosa (adRP) causative genes, RHO and NR2E3, in hope of rescuing the disease phenotype.

With the generation of preclinical genetic models, the aim is to target the disease genetically by either Knock-Out (KO) of the mutant allele and/or correction of the mutant allele into the wild-type sequence utilising a range of CRISPR/Cas9 technologies including Prime Editing, to hence prevent further retinal degeneration.

 

Current members of the Gene Editing Lab (2022): Jesse Kennedy, Ashleigh Geiger, Sandra Piltz, Dr Gelshan Godahewa, Melissa White, Dr Mark Bunting, Jayshen Arudkumar, Dr Fatwa Adikusuma, Michaela Scherer, Joshua Chey, Luke Gierus, Caleb Lushington, Dr Stefka Tahseva (absent), Professor Paul Thomas, Suraiya Onnesha and Lachlan Staker
Current members of the Gene Editing Lab (2022): Jesse Kennedy, Ashleigh Geiger, Sandra Piltz, Dr Gelshan Godahewa, Melissa White, Dr Mark Bunting, Jayshen Arudkumar, Dr Fatwa Adikusuma, Michaela Scherer, Joshua Chey, Luke Gierus, Caleb Lushington, Dr Stefka Tasheva (absent), Professor Paul Thomas, Suraiya Onnesha and Lachlan Staker.

 

  • Preprint
    Year Citation
    2024 Chey, Y., Gierus, L., Lushington, C., Arudkumar, J., Geiger, A., Staker, L., . . . Adikusuma, F. (2024). Enhancing gRNA Transcript levels by Reducing the Scaffold Poly-T Tract for Optimal SpCas9- and SaCas9-mediated Gene Editing.
    DOI

2024:

Practical demonstrator: University of Adelaide, SCIENCE 2100, SCIENCE 2101, MBS Practicals A and B 
 

2023:

Practical demonstrator: University of Adelaide, SCIENCE 2100, SCIENCE 2101, MBS Practicals A and B 

  • Other Supervision Activities
    Date Role Research Topic Location Program Supervision Type Student Load Student Name
    2024 - 2024 Other Screening Prime Editing Candidates for treating RHO P23H adRP The University of Adelaide Bachelor of Science Advanced (Honours) Other - Georgia Tuck

  • Committee Memberships
    Date Role Committee Institution Country
    2024 - ongoing Board Member Adelaide Protein Group (APG) ASBMB Australia

  • Memberships
    Date Role Membership Country
    2024 - ongoing Member Australian Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB) Australia
    2023 - ongoing Member Australia and New Zealand Society for Cell and Developmental Biology (ANZSCDB) Australia
    2020 - ongoing Member Golden Key International Honour Society Australia

  • Presentation
    Date Topic Presented at Institution Country
    2024 - 2024 Poster Presentation Biomolecular Horizons 2024 The University of Adelaide Australia
    2024 - 2024 Poster Presentation Adelaide Protein Group AwardsFest 2024 The University of Adelaide -
    2023 - 2023 Poster Presentation Florey Post Graduate Research Conference The University of Adelaide Australia
    2023 - 2023 Poster Presentation Adelaide Protein Group AwardsFest The University of Adelaide Australia
    2023 - 2023 Poster Presentation International Congress of Genetics (ICG) The University of Adelaide Australia
    2023 - 2023 Poster Presentation SAHMRI Research Showcase The University of Adelaide Australia
    2023 - 2023 Poster Presentation Australian and New Zealand Society for Cell and Developmental Biology (ANZSCDB) Adelaide meeting The University of Adelaide Australia
Connect With Me
External Profiles