NIHAY LAHAM KARAM

Research Director

Assistant Professor in Next Generation Gene Therapy (Tenure track)

I am a researcher actively developing viral vectors for improved gene therapies. My focus in recent years has been to address the unmet need for targeted vectors that can regulate gene expression in specific cell lines. We use elements from super-enhancers which are clusters of enhancers in the genome, to regulate the expression of transgenes to endothelial cells. Our interest in endothelial cells goes hand-in-hand with our aim to improve angiogenic gene therapy for the treatment of ischemic diseases. In addition, to the translational projects that I manage, we are also pursuing new therapeutic targets for angiogenesis. For this endeavour, we are studying the non-coding genome. Our aim is to better understand the different regulatory roles of non-coding RNAs (including enhancers, small and circular RNAs) in affecting gene expression. Gained knowledge and new discoveries will open new avenues for therapeutic developments.

Contact info

Organization

Faculty of Health Sciences, A.I. Virtanen Institute for Molecular Sciences

Email

nihay.laham-karam@uef.fi

Phone

+358 40 355 3292

Keywords

angiogenesis cell culture circular RNAs endothelium geeniterapia gene regulation gene therapy molecular biology non-coding RNA

Teaching Activities

My biggest contribution to teaching comes from the daily guidance I give to students within our group. I supervise PhD, MSc and BSc thesis work, in so doing I instruct students not only in the experimental methods, but also in experimental design, hypothesis formulation and testing as well as data analysis and presentation. I am also involved in teaching a post-graduate course (Translational Virology).