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About

My laboratory uses cutting edge molecular and cellular biology techniques to identify vulnerabilities in leukaemia and lymphoma cells that could be exploited for cancer therapy.

Through our research projects we investigate the contribution of key cellular genes that control proliferation and cell death for the growth and chemosensitivity of both normal and malignant cells.

My laboratory also has a strong interest in virus-associated cancers, in particular in Epstein-Barr virus-associated lymphomas. We aim to understand how viral proteins can manipulate host cell proliferation and death to contribute to cancer development, growth and chemoresistance.

We have a wealth of accurate pre-clinical models of leukaemia and lymphoma that we utilise in our experiments, as well as expertise in the following techniques:

  • CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genome editing
  • lentiviral production and transduction of cells
  • drug screening
  • efficacy and toxicity testing of drugs in culture and in preclinical models
  • analysis of preclinical models of cancer

Publications

Selected publications from A/Prof Gemma Kelly

Aubrey BJ, Janic A, Chen Y, Chang C, Lieschke EC, Diepstraten ST, Kueh AJ, Bernardini JP, Dewson G, O’Reilly LA, Whitehead L, Voss AK, Smyth GK, Strasser A, Kelly GL. Mutant TRP53 exerts a target gene-selective dominant-negative effect to drive tumor development. Genes Dev. 2018;32(21-22):1420-1429. PMID: 30366906

Brennan MS, Chang C, Tai L, Lessene G, Strasser A, Dewson G, Kelly GL, Herold MJ. Humanized Mcl-1 mice enable accurate preclinical evaluation of MCL-1 inhibitors destined for clinical use. Blood. 2018;132(15):1573-1583. PMID: 30139826

Fitzsimmons L, Boyce AJ, Wei W, Chang C, Croom-Carter D, Tierney RJ, Herold MJ, Bell AI, Strasser A, Kelly GL, Rowe M. Coordinated repression of BIM and PUMA by Epstein-Barr virus latent genes maintains the survival of Burkitt lymphoma cells. Cell Death Differ. 2018;25(2):241-254. PMID: 28960205

Baell JB, Leaver DJ, Hermans SJ, Kelly GL, Brennan MS, Downer NL, Nguyen N, Wichmann J, McRae HM, Yang Y, Cleary B, Lagiakos HR, Mieruszynski S, Pacini G, Vanyai HK, Bergamasco MI, May RE, Davey BK, Morgan KJ, Sealey AJ, Wang B, Zamudio N, Wilcox S, Garnham AL, Sheikh BN, Aubrey BJ, Doggett K, Chung MC, de Silva M, Bentley J, Pilling P, Hattarki M, Dolezal O, Dennis ML, Falk H, Ren B, Charman SA, White KL, Rautela J, Newbold A, Hawkins ED, Johnstone RW, Huntington ND, Peat TS, Heath JK, Strasser A, Parker MW, Smyth GK, Street IP, Monahan BJ, Voss AK, Thomas T. Inhibitors of histone acetyltransferases KAT6A/B induce senescence and arrest tumour growth. Nature. 2018;560(7717):253-257. PMID: 30069049

Merino D, Kelly GL, Lessene G, Wei AH, Roberts AW, Strasser A. BH3-Mimetic Drugs: Blazing the Trail for New Cancer Medicines. Cancer Cell. 2018;34(6):879-891. PMID: 30537511

Kotschy A, Szlavik Z, Murray J, Davidson J, Maragno AL, Le Toumelin-Braizat G, Chanrion M, Kelly GL, Gong JN, Moujalled DM, Bruno A, Csekei M, Paczal A, Szabo ZB, Sipos S, Radics G, Proszenyak A, Balint B, Ondi L, Blasko G, Robertson A, Surgenor A, Dokurno P, Chen I, Matassova N, Smith J, Pedder C, Graham C, Studeny A, Lysiak-Auvity G, Girard AM, Gravé F, Segal D, Riffkin CD, Pomilio G, Galbraith LC, Aubrey BJ, Brennan MS, Herold MJ, Chang C, Guasconi G, Cauquil N, Melchiore F, Guigal-Stephan N, Lockhart B, Colland F, Hickman JA, Roberts AW, Huang DC, Wei AH, Strasser A, Lessene G, Geneste O. The MCL1 inhibitor S63845 is tolerable and effective in diverse cancer models. Nature. 2016;538(7626):477-482. PMID: 27760111

Aubrey BJ, Kelly GL, Kueh AJ, Brennan MS, O’Connor L, Milla L, Wilcox S, Tai L, Strasser A, Herold MJ. An inducible lentiviral guide RNA platform enables the identification of tumor-essential genes and tumor-promoting mutations in vivo. Cell Rep. 2015;10(8):1422-1432. PMID: 25732831

Kelly GL, Grabow S, Glaser SP, Fitzsimmons L, Aubrey BJ, Okamoto T, Valente LJ, Robati M, Tai L, Fairlie WD, Lee EF, Lindstrom MS, Wiman KG, Huang DC, Bouillet P, Rowe M, Rickinson AB, Herold MJ, Strasser A. Targeting of MCL-1 kills MYC-driven mouse and human lymphomas even when they bear mutations in p53. Genes Dev. 2014;28(1):58-70. PMID: 24395247

Kelly GL, Long HM, Stylianou J, Thomas WA, Leese A, Bell AI, Bornkamm GW, Mautner J, Rickinson AB, Rowe M. An Epstein-Barr virus anti-apoptotic protein constitutively expressed in transformed cells and implicated in burkitt lymphomagenesis: the Wp/BHRF1 link. PLoS Pathog. 2009;5(3):e1000341. PMID: 19283066

Kelly G, Bell A, Rickinson A. Epstein-Barr virus-associated Burkitt lymphomagenesis selects for downregulation of the nuclear antigen EBNA2. Nat Med. 2002;8(10):1098-1104. PMID: 12219084

Lab research projects

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