Christina A. Harrington, Ph.D.
- Research Associate Professor of Molecular and Medical Genetics, School of Medicine
- Associate Director, Integrated Genomics Laboratory, IG.Integrated Genomics
- Special Projects, Shared Resources, OHSU Knight Cancer Institute, School of Medicine
Biography
Dr. Harrington is the associate director of the Integrated Genomics Laboratory at OHSU and a research associate professor in the Department of Molecular and Medical Genetics. She also leads special projects in shared resources at the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute.
Dr. Harrington directed the Gene Profiling Shared Resource at OHSU for over two decades and led the DNA Services Core from 2014 - 2023. Until July 2022, she oversaw the Integrated Genomics Lab (IGL), a centralized laboratory for next-generation sequencing, DNA microarray, high-throughput real-time PCR technologies and RNA and DNA processing services comprised of the Massively Parallel Sequencing Shared Resource, the Gene Profiling Shared Resource, and the DNA Services Core. In her current role with the IGL, she is responsible for outreach and education. She has worked in the field of gene regulation and with RNA and DNA analysis technologies throughout her research career. Her technical experience includes DNA microarrays, real-time PCR, and sequencing. At OHSU she initially set up and managed the Affymetrix microarray core in 2000 and has continued to expand resources and expertise for core users seeking services and support for high-throughput, genome-wide analyses of RNA and DNA. She served as the associate director for shared resources for the Knight Cancer Institute from 2020 through 2023.
Before joining OHSU, Dr. Harrington was employed at Affymetrix from 1997 through 2000, as a senior staff scientist and manager of the Scientific Liaison Group. In this capacity, she was involved in the development of the GeneChip array expression profiling application. She was responsible for the Affymetrix Academic User Center, a program of research collaborations with academic investigators. Before her position at Affymetrix, Dr. Harrington worked in the field of molecular neurobiology, from 1995-1997 as a research officer at the Garvan Institute for Medical Research in Sydney, Australia, and earlier as a principal research fellow in the Laboratory for Molecular Pharmacology, University College, London, United Kingdom.
Dr. Harrington has a Ph.D. in molecular, cellular and developmental biology from the University of Colorado, Boulder, and a bachelor's degree in biology from California Institute of Technology. In addition to overseeing the operation of the IGL and the GPSR for many years, Dr. Harrington has collaborated with many research groups on campus to apply RNA and DNA analysis techniques to important questions in biomedical research. Recent publications include work examining transcriptomic analysis of archival samples (Pennock et al., BMC Medical Genomics, 2020), cerebral spinal fluid for small RNA biomarkers of Alzheimer's disease (Lusardi et al., J Alzheimer's Disease, 2016, and Sandau et al., 2020), and identification of gene expression changes that may provide diagnostic information for patients with inflammatory disease (Rosenbaum et al., JAMA Ophthalmology, 2015 and Am. Journal of Ophthalmology, 2021). In addition, she is a collaborator on the Healthy Oregon Project (O'Brien et al., Am Journal of Human Genetics, 2023).
Education and training
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Degrees
- Ph.D., 1982, Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder
Areas of interest
- genomics technology, gene expression regulation, biomarkers, research core facilities
Publications
Publications
Novel recruitment approaches and operational results for a statewide population Cohort for cancer research
Journal of Clinical and Translational ScienceDeciphering spatially distinct immune microenvironments in glioblastoma using ferumoxytol and gadolinium-enhanced and FLAIR hyperintense MRI phenotypes
Neuro-Oncology AdvancesMolecular profiling of pre- and post-treatment pediatric high-grade astrocytomas reveals acquired increased tumor mutation burden in a subset of recurrences
Acta Neuropathologica CommunicationsPopulation screening shows risk of inherited cancer and familial hypercholesterolemia in Oregon
American Journal of Human GeneticsEnrichment of IGF-1R and PPARγsignalling pathways in orbital inflammatory diseases
British Journal of OphthalmologyRNA isolation from micro-quantity of articular cartilage for quantitative gene expression by microarray analysis
International Journal of Medical SciencesIdentifying RNA Biomarkers and Molecular Pathways Involved in Multiple Subtypes of Uveitis
American journal of ophthalmologyRevising the Diagnosis of Idiopathic Uveitis by Peripheral Blood Transcriptomics
American journal of ophthalmologyTofacitinib as a Steroid-Sparing Therapy in Pulmonary Sarcoidosis, an Open-Label Prospective Proof-of-Concept Study
LungPerformance of Validated MicroRNA Biomarkers for Alzheimer's Disease in Mild Cognitive Impairment
Journal of Alzheimer's DiseaseRNA-Seq of human whole blood
Scientific ReportsRNA-seq from archival FFPE breast cancer samples
BMC Medical GenomicsValidation of MicroRNA Biomarkers for Alzheimer's Disease in Human Cerebrospinal Fluid
Journal of Alzheimer's DiseasemicroRNA-130a suppresses breast cancer cell migration and invasion by targeting FOSL1 and upregulating ZO-1
Journal of cellular biochemistrySimilar expression profiles in CD34+ cells from chronic phase chronic myeloid leukemia patients with and without deep molecular responses to nilotinib
OncotargetAnalysis of extracellular RNA in cerebrospinal fluid
Journal of Extracellular VesiclesEffects of selection for ethanol preference on gene expression in the nucleus accumbens of HS-CC mice
Genes, Brain and BehaviorGene expression profiling and heterogeneity of nonspecific orbital inflammation affecting the lacrimal gland
JAMA ophthalmologyMicroRNAs in human cerebrospinal fluid as biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease
Journal of Alzheimer's DiseaseAML suppresses hematopoiesis by releasing exosomes that contain microRNAs targeting c-MYB
Science signalingMicroRNA signatures of colonic polyps on screening and histology
Cancer Prevention ResearchFibrosis, gene expression and orbital inflammatory disease
British Journal of OphthalmologyMolecular diagnosis of orbital inflammatory disease
Experimental and Molecular PathologyOrbital pseudotumor can be a localized form of granulomatosis with polyangiitis as revealed by gene expression profiling
Experimental and Molecular Pathology