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The Côté Lab
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    Machine learning takes disease detection to the next level
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  • 22nd International AIDS Conference | Amsterdam, the Netherlands | 23-27 July 2018 on Jul 23rd 2018. Our PhD candidate Anthony Hsieh will be attending and giving a talk on HIV and immunological aging.

The Côté Lab

Research in Dr. Côté’s Lab concentrates on the mitochondrial toxicity of drugs, primarily antiretroviral drugs used in HIV therapy. The use of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) (triple therapy) has significantly decreased mortality in the HIV infected population. However, HIV therapy is not a cure and treatment is life-long. As HIV infected individuals survive longer, the toxicity of the drugs and their resulting side effects are becoming a significant cause of morbidity and mortality, not to mention a cause of non-adherence to prescribed therapy. The drugs can cause mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) depletion through inhibition of the mtDNA replication by the mitochondrial polymerase gamma, as well as mtDNA damage through mutation/deletion.

Recently, drug-induced changes in mitochondrial gene expression have also been observed. All these can lead to mitochondrial dysfunction in various tissues and a myriad of toxicity symptoms including lipoatrophy, peripheral neuropathy, hyperlactatemia/lactic acidosis, liver failure, renal failure, pancreatitis, wasting, fatigue, some of which can be fatal. Some antiretroviral drugs can also inhibit telomerase, the enzyme complex that elongates telomeric DNA. The effect of antiretroviral drug exposure during early fetal development, childhood and adulthood on telomere length is also a topic of interest in this lab.

Interested in Research?

More information on the training program, faculty, resources and the application process is available.

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Current Research Projects:

Antiretroviral mitochondrial toxicity and telomere attrition in infants born to HIV-infected mothers.

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Antiretroviral mitochondrial toxicity and telomere attrition in HIV-infected adults and children, as well as during pregnancy.

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Mitochondrial toxicity in HIV/hepatitis C virus co-infection antiviral therapy

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Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
Vancouver Campus
2211 Wesbrook Mall
Vancouver, BC Canada V6T 2B5
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