Clinical pathology

The most common reason for the failure of new therapies in early phase drug discovery is lack of efficacy. A major part this is due to the unsolved problem of how to demonstrate that drug pathways have been engaged early in target tissues in humans. Furthermore, it remains unclear how to measure drug efficacy following a therapeutic intervention because pathology occurs in tissues, whereas experimental readouts focus on easy to access cells in the blood. The Clinical Pathology platform aims to provide the underpinning technology, to use pathology-based biomarkers to de-risk therapeutic development and accelerate delivery of new medicines.

By focussing on human tissues obtained via minimally invasive techniques, the platform will deliver good clinical practice (GCP) compliant analysis of human tissues to be used in innovative clinical trials in which mechanistic cellular markers are used as endpoints for proof of efficacy. This platform builds on and extends to other disease indications in the Kennndy Institute, the successful pilot of the Arthritis Therapy Acceleration Programme (A-TAP) which has provided evidence that such a strategy can work.

Academic lead

Christopher Buckley

Kennedy Professor of Translational Rheumatology and Director of Clinical Research

Co-leads

Mark Coles

Professor of Immunology

Jagdeep Nanchahal

Professor of Hand, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery

Daniele Biasci

Group Leader (Innovation Investigator track) in A-TAP Data Science

KEY COLLABORATORS

Clinical Pathology works closely with the Tissue Biology platform, particularly in use of the Hyperion Imaging System and to facilitate new experimental medicine studies, as well as with the Data Science Platform and investigators in the Clinical Translational and Experimental Medicine Theme.
Beyond supporting groups at the Kennedy Institute in their research programmes, the Platform works with other research units both within and external to the University. In particular, the Clinical Pathology Platform works closely in collaboration with Prof Andrew Filer (University of Birmingham) who leads the Birmingham Tissue Analytics, Prof Adam Croft (University of Birmingham) who leads the MRC Partnership TRICIA (Tissue Research In Childhood Arthritis) and Prof Holm Uhlig (University of Oxford) who leads the Janssen funded CAROGRAPHY consortium. It also works closely with members of the RACE Consortium from the Universities of Glasgow, Newcastle and Birmingham.