Kim Hui Lim

• MBBS
• Assessment of JAK/STAT inhibition as a therapeutic target in Primary Biliary Cholangitis

Primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) is a chronic autoimmune disease that predominantly affects women. It is characterised by the destruction of bile ducts by the body’s own immune system. This leads to an accumulation of bile in the liver, causing inflammation and scarring. Consequently, patients face liver failure and require liver transplantation.
 
Currently, ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) is the only drug licensed to treat PBC. However, this only delays progression and does not improve the mortality rate. Furthermore, UDCA is ineffective in a third of PBC patients, particularly the male and pre-menopausal female population. Hence, alternate treatment options are required.

An imbalance in the T-helper 1/17 signalling pathway, responsible for regulating genes involved in immunity, has been associated with the development of PBC. This project aims to evaluate a model of PBC that could allow drugs that inhibit this pathway to be tested in laboratories and determine its therapeutic effect on PBC.

 Funding source: INSPIRE

 Supervisor: Dr John Brain