My Research
Projects
Endometrial cancer, Biomarker Discover, Preclinical model development
About me
Dr Asmerom Sengal is medical doctor (MD) and completed his specialisation in Anatomic Pathology on June 2016, and conferred his PhD in the field of molecular oncology at Queensland University of Technology (QUT) in Nov 2020. Dr Sengal is a senior postdoctoral research fellow in the Gynaecological Cancer Laboratory at QUT based @ Princess Alexandra (PA) Hospital Campus and Translational Research Institute (TRI). His research focuses on Gynaecological and breast cancers translational research and involves biomarker assay development and optimisation, preclinical models establishment (PDXs and 3D Organoids), ex-vivo and in vivo drug screening, spatial transcriptomics, bioimaging, digital pathology (AI) and bioimage analysis. He developed, optimised and validated a novel BaseScope RNA in situ hybridization (ISH) assay that detects FGFR2 splice isoforms using exon-exon junction probes. He discovered FGFR2b to FGFR2c isoform switching in endometrial cancer and confirmed FGFR2c is an independent prognostic and predictive biomarker in endometrial cancer patients. In the Lab, he established and characterised the morphological and molecular profile of 24 authentic endometrial cancer PDXs and established independent 3D patient-derived organoids (PDOs) for drug screening.
He published several papers in high-impact international peer-reviewed journals including Clin Can Res and Genome Medicine and presented in international and national conferences. He contributes to different professional committees including Australian and New Zealand Gynaecologic Oncologic Group (ANZGOG) EDEN initiative. Relative to career opportunities, Dr Sengal secured competitive funding including ANZGOG in 2020, Incyte Biopharm as SII grant in 2021) and Cure Cancer Australia Foundation in 2023. He is an academic editor in PLOS ONE in the Science and Medicine section and Frontiers in Oncology in Gynaecological Oncology Section.
Publications
Selected recent publications
1. Sengal A, Bonazzi V, Smith D, et al. Endometrial cancer PDX-derived organoids (PDXOs) and PDXs with FGFR2c isoform expression are sensitive to FGFR inhibition. Preprint (Research Squares) 2023; [https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-2512859/v1].
2. Sengal AT, Smith, D, Snell CE, et al. Spatial Expression of FGFR2b Splice Isoform and its Prognostic Significance in Endometrioid Endometrial Carcinoma. J Pathol Clin Res. 2022. DOI: 10.1002/cjp2.286. S
3. Bonazzi VF, Kondrashova O, Smith D, Nones K, Sengal AT, Ju R, et al. Patient-derived xenograft models capture genomic heterogeneity in endometrial cancer. Genome Medicine. 2022;14(1):3. SJR: 5.067
4. Sengal AT, Bonazzi V, Kondrashova O, Perrin L, Chetty N, Smith D, et al. Targeting FGFR2c isoform, a novel therapeutic target with FGFR inhibitor in endometrial cancer. Molecular Cancer Therapeutics. 2021;20.
5. Sengal AT, Smith D, Rogers R, Snell CE, Williams ED, Pollock PM: Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptor 2 Isoforms Detected via Novel RNA ISH as Predictive Biomarkers for Progestin Therapy in Atypical Hyperplasia and Low-Grade Endometrial Cancer. Cancers 2021, 13(7):1703.
6. Sengal AT, Patch A-M, Snell CE, Smith DS, Leung SCY, Talhouk A, Williams ED, McAlpine JN, Pollock PM: FGFR2c Mesenchymal Isoform Expression Is Associated with Poor Prognosis and Further Refines Risk Stratification within Endometrial Cancer Molecular Subtypes. Clinical Cancer Research 2020, 26(17):4569-4580.
7.Asmerom Sengal, Smith D, Rogers R, Snell CE, Williams ED, Pollock PM: Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptor 2 Isoforms Detected via Novel RNA ISH as Predictive Biomarkers for Progestin Therapy in Atypical Hyperplasia and Low-Grade Endometrial Cancer. Cancers 2021, 13(7):1703.
8.Asmerom Sengal, Nada Haj Mukhtar, Martina Vetter, et.al: Comparison of Receptor-Defined Breast Cancer Subtypes Between German and Sudanese Women: A Facility-Based Cohort Study" Journal of global oncology; 2017, DOI: 10.1200/JGO.2017.010082
9.Asmerom Sengal, Indrojit Roy, 'Molecular Biology of Breast Cancer in the Horn of Africa: Case Series—A Pilot Study of Breast Cancer from Eritrea', ISRN Pathology, 2013: vol. 2013, pp. 1-7.
10. Asmerom Sengal, Andemariam Gebremichael, Jacob Mufunda. Breast cancer clinicopathological presentation, gravity and challenges in Eritrea, East Africa: Management practice in a resource-poor setting. South African Medical Journal 2013; 103(8):526-528.
11. Asmerom Sengal, Ahmed Mohamedani, Hanan Hussien, Alaa Kamal. The role of PCR in the diagnosis of rare appendicular Tuberculosis and mini-literature review update. Case Report in Gastrointestinal Medicine. Volume 2016 (2016)
Supervision
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