Our People

Dylan Glubb

Associate Professor | Senior Research Officer

Molecular Cancer Epidemiology

07 3845 3725

dylan.glubb@qimrberghofer.edu.au

 

CAREER HISTORY

After completing his BSc and MSc (Hons) at the University of Canterbury (NZ), Dylan worked for five years as a Research Scientist at Antisoma Research Limited (UK), developing antibody-enzyme fusion proteins for cancer therapy. He returned to New Zealand to carry out his PhD research into antidepressant pharmacogenomics at the University of Otago. Afterwards, he continued working at the University of Otago as a Research Fellow, studying the biological function of genes involved with inflammatory bowel disease. Dylan moved to the United States in 2009 to perform postdoctoral training, researching the functional genetics of the VEGF-pathway and its relationship with cancer at the University of Chicago and, subsequently, the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

In 2013, Dylan began working at QIMR Berghofer and has undertaken the functional follow-up of large-scale genetic studies of breast, endometrial and ovarian cancer to identify the likely causal variants and genes that mediate associations with cancer risk and survival.

 

CURRICULUM VITAE

Click the link to view Dylans cv: link

 

CURRENT APPOINTMENTS

2019-present: Senior Research Officer, Department of Genetics and Computational Biology, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute

2019-present: Adjunct Associate Professor, Faculty of Health, Queensland University of Technology

2019-present: Honorary Associate Professor, Faculty of Medicine, University of Queensland

 

PREVIOUS APPOINTMENTS

2017-2019: Visiting Fellow, Faculty of Health, Queensland University of Technology

2013-2019: Research Officer, Department of Genetics and Computational Biology, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute

2011-2013: Postdoctoral Research Associate, School of Pharmacy, University of North Carolina

2009-2011: Postdoctoral Research Scholar, Department of Medicine, University of Chicago

2008-2009: Research Fellow, Department of Pathology, University of Otago

 

ORCID NUMBER

0000-0002-2184-7708

 

RESEARCHER ID

M-7514-2016

 

OTHER PUBLICATIONS

View Dylan’s Google Scholar Publications here

 

CURRENT AREA OF RESEARCH

Dylan’s research interests include functional genetic and genomic studies of disease and follow-up of genome-wide association studies to identify target genes underlying genetic associations. Currently, his main research efforts are focussed on ovarian and endometrial cancer. As a member of the international Endometrial Cancer Association Consortium, he is leading functional genomic studies to identify target genes from the largest GWAS of endometrial cancer performed to date (O’Mara, Glubb et al. Nature Communications, 2018) and GWAS meta-analysis of ovarian and endometrial cancer (Glubb, et al. Cancer Epidemiology, Prevention and Biomarkers, 2020). These analyses will inform the aetiology of gynaecological cancers and have identified new candidates for drug targeting. Dylan is exploring the targeting of these candidates using artificial intelligence approaches to prioritise compounds for further study.

 

RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS

  • Identified candidate target genes at joint endometrial-ovarian cancer risk loci (Glubb et al., Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention, 2020)
  • Produced the first maps of global chromatin looping in normal immortalised and tumoural endometrial cells revealing candidate target genes at endometrial cancer risk loci (O’Mara, et al., Cancers, 2019)
  • Demonstrated increased enrichment of endometrial cancer risk variants in estrogen-stimulated epigenetic marks (O’Mara, Glubb et al. Nature Communications; 2018)
  • Used functional genetic analyses to identify likely causal breast cancer risk variants and target genes (Glubb et al., Cancers, 2020; Michailidou K, Lindstrom S, Dennis J, Beesley J, Hui S, Kar S, Lemacon A, Soucy P, Glubb D et al., Nature, 2017; Glubb et al., American Journal of Human Genetics, 2015)
  • Established the function of VEGF-pathway variants and identified associations with lung cancer phenotypes (Glubb et al., Journal of Thoracic Oncology, 2015; Glubb et al., Clinical Cancer Research, 2012)

 

PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS

2020: External reviewer, Swiss National Science Foundation

2020: Guest editor, Cancers

2018-present: Editorial board member, PLoS One

2018-present: Scientific member, Endometrial Tumour Type Working Group (Australia New Zealand Gynaecological Group)

2018-2019: Active member, American Association for Cancer Research

2017-2018: External grant reviewer, NHMRC

2016-present: Member, Endometrial Cancer Association Consortium

2015-present: Member, Australia New Zealand Gynaecological Group

2014-present: Member, American Society of Human Genetics

 

AWARDS RECOGNITION

2019-2020: Principal Investigator, QIMR Berghofer Proof of Concept Award ($18,154)

2019-2020: CIB, NHMR Project grant ($179,763)

2019: Atomwise Artificial Intelligence Molecular Screen Awards (three molecular screens awarded)

2018: American Society of Human Genetics Reviewer’s Choice Award

2018: The Bridge Residential Training Program Travel Bursary

2018: Principal Investigator, QIMR Berghofer NHMR Near Miss Funding ($50,000)          

2017: Australia New Zealand Gynaecological Oncology Group Travel Award                

2017: Principal Investigator, QIMR Berghofer NHMR Near Miss Funding ($30,000)

2016: CASS Foundation Travel Award

2016: American Society of Human Genetics Reviewer’s Choice Award

2015-2017: Consultant, National Cancer Institute R21 Grant ($384,475)

2014: Finalist, American Society of Human Genetics/Charles J. Epstein Award for Excellence in Human Genetics Research

2014: American Society of Human Genetics Travel Award for best Australian trainee abstract

 

EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND

2009: PhD, Pharmacogenomics, University of Otago

1999: MSc (First Class Hons), Cellular & Molecular Biology, University of Canterbury

1997: BSc, Biochemistry and Plant & Microbial Sciences, University of Canterbury