Sirui Zhou
Assistant Professor, Department of Human Genetics
Email: sirui.zhou@mcgill.ca
Phone: (514) 398-8364
740 Dr Penfield Ave, Room 7101
Montréal, Québec, Canada, H3A 0G4
Sirui Zhou joined the Department of Human Genetics and the Canada Excellence Research Chair in Genomic Medicine as an assistant professor in January 2022. She obtained her PhD from the Université de Montréal in 2017, under the supervision of Dr. Guy Rouleau at the Neuro. Her PhD trainings were focused on the genetic architecture of Nunavik Inuit and intracranial aneurysms in founder populations of Quebec. Later, she pursued her studies in the lab of Dr. Brent Richards at the LDI, as a CIHR postdoctoral fellow. She leveraged multi-omics data and used genetic epidemiological methods to identify tractable biomarkers for osteoporosis, and during the pandemic, to identify potential drug targets for severe COVID-19.
Research Interests
Blood proteins can reflect the biological processes in tissues and thus are the first indicators of disease. They could be directly targeted for therapeutic intervention if the causal relationship between proteins and diseases are elucidated. Environmental and genetic factors associated with different ancestries may also reflect the change in proteomics and interactions between different omics, which could be leveraged to identify targets for disease. Currently, I am interested in using the proteomic, metabolomic and genomic data from the BQC19 (Banque québécoise de la COVID-19) and other large biobanks to explore potential targets that contribute to the risks to severe SARS-CoV2 infection and other related traits in multiple populations
Recent Publications
- Duncan, CJA, Skouboe, MK, Howarth, S, Hollensen, AK, Chen, R, Børresen, ML et al.. Life-threatening viral disease in a novel form of autosomal recessive IFNAR2 deficiency in the Arctic. J Exp Med. 2022;219 (6):. doi: 10.1084/jem.20212427. PubMed PMID:35442417 PubMed Central PMC9026249.
- Brunet-Ratnasingham, E, Anand, SP, Gantner, P, Dyachenko, A, Moquin-Beaudry, G, Brassard, N et al.. Integrated immunovirological profiling validates plasma SARS-CoV-2 RNA as an early predictor of COVID-19 mortality. Sci Adv. 2021;7 (48):eabj5629. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.abj5629. PubMed PMID:34826237 PubMed Central PMC8626074.
- Chen, Y, Forgetta, V, Richards, JB, Zhou, S. Health Effects of Calcium: Evidence From Mendelian Randomization Studies. JBMR Plus. 2021;5 (11):e10542. doi: 10.1002/jbm4.10542. PubMed PMID:34761146 PubMed Central PMC8567492.
- Nilsson, KH, Henning, P, El Shahawy, M, Nethander, M, Andersen, TL, Ejersted, C et al.. RSPO3 is important for trabecular bone and fracture risk in mice and humans. Nat Commun. 2021;12 (1):4923. doi: 10.1038/s41467-021-25124-2. PubMed PMID:34389713 PubMed Central PMC8363747.
- Su, Z, Ren, N, Ling, Z, Sheng, L, Zhou, S, Guo, C et al.. Differential expression of microRNAs associated with neurodegenerative diseases and diabetic nephropathy in protein l-isoaspartyl methyltransferase-deficient mice. Cell Biol Int. 2021;45 (11):2316-2330. doi: 10.1002/cbin.11679. PubMed PMID:34314072 .
- Nakanishi, T, Cerani, A, Forgetta, V, Zhou, S, Allen, RJ, Leavy, OC et al.. Genetically increased circulating FUT3 level leads to reduced risk of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis: a Mendelian randomisation study. Eur Respir J. 2022;59 (2):. doi: 10.1183/13993003.03979-2020. PubMed PMID:34172473 PubMed Central PMC8828995.
- Butler-Laporte, G, Nakanishi, T, Mooser, V, Morrison, DR, Abdullah, T, Adeleye, O et al.. Vitamin D and COVID-19 susceptibility and severity in the COVID-19 Host Genetics Initiative: A Mendelian randomization study. PLoS Med. 2021;18 (6):e1003605. doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1003605. PubMed PMID:34061844 PubMed Central PMC8168855.
- Povysil, G, Butler-Laporte, G, Shang, N, Wang, C, Khan, A, Alaamery, M et al.. Rare loss-of-function variants in type I IFN immunity genes are not associated with severe COVID-19. J Clin Invest. 2021;131 (14):. doi: 10.1172/JCI147834. PubMed PMID:34043590 PubMed Central PMC8279578.
- Zhou, S, Butler-Laporte, G, Nakanishi, T, Morrison, DR, Afilalo, J, Afilalo, M et al.. A Neanderthal OAS1 isoform protects individuals of European ancestry against COVID-19 susceptibility and severity. Nat Med. 2021;27 (4):659-667. doi: 10.1038/s41591-021-01281-1. PubMed PMID:33633408 .
- Wu, H, Forgetta, V, Zhou, S, Bhatnagar, SR, Paré, G, Richards, JB et al.. Polygenic Risk Score for Low-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol Is Associated With Risk of Ischemic Heart Disease and Enriches for Individuals With Familial Hypercholesterolemia. Circ Genom Precis Med. 2021;14 (1):e003106. doi: 10.1161/CIRCGEN.120.003106. PubMed PMID:33440130 .