Home Department: Undeclared
Mentor: Jesse Engreitz (Genetics)

"Mapping Noncoding Risk Variants of Coronary Artery Disease to Enhancers and Their Target Genes"

Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) affects 20 million Americans, and while many genetic risk variants of CAD lie outside genes, little is known about how they cause diseases. Studies have shown that disease variants can disrupt enhancers that control gene expression. Coco’s project will use predictive models to nominate potential enhancers affected by CAD variants. She will then analyze results from CRISPRi screens that perturbed these candidate enhancers to validate and locate their target genes. Finally, Coco will edit the variants directly into confirmed enhancers to measure the effect on gene expression. These results will guide future therapy strategies for CAD.