Olivia Corradin

One of our recent studies focused on multiple sclerosis (MS). This disease is quite complicated, with immune cells attacking the patient's own brain tissue. 

Dissecting that complexity is a great opportunity for genetics. We're asking what part of the genome is dictating who gets the disease. Several big genetic studies previously identified hundreds of small changes in someone's DNA, which increase their likelihood of developing MS. The challenge is that a single change has a negligible effect. We're most interested in figuring out what they mean cumulatively. 

Collaborating with the Jaenisch lab, we've started manipulating these genetic changes in a type of cell called microglia, then measuring what that does to cells' function.

The big excitement this year is that we've identified sets of genetic changes that have the same function as each other. We weren't able to identify these categories until we began dissecting the entire network of genetic changes and their effects. This opens up the door for thinking about therapeutics that could stop the progression of MS.