Grant: Undergraduate Student Research Awards (USRA)

"Background and Problem: Colorectal Cancer (CRC) is one of the most preventable cancers, yet it remains the second leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide. A key reason for CRC mortality is diagnosis at advanced stages, which could be avoided through screening. Unfortunately, in Canada, the stool-based test (fecal immunochemical test) has low patient compliance with current CRC screening guidelines. Shrivastav Lab at the University of Winnipeg has developed a simple blood test for CRC screening that showed high effectiveness in a prospective proof-of-concept (POC) clinical study. This test is an immunohistochemical assay based on N-myristoyltransferase 2 (NMT2) protein expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from individuals with CRC or adenomatous polyps (AP), compared with those with no evidence of disease (NED). However, the test requires interpretation by a pathologist, which can lead to interobserver variability. Aim: To develop an RT-qPCR-based test to assess whether NMT2 gene expression can distinguish between colonoscopy-confirmed CRC or AP (n=25) and colonoscopy-confirmed individuals with NED (n=25). Research Design: PBMCs from participants will be used to extract total RNA and quantify NMT2 transcripts using RT-qPCR with validated primers. Data Analysis: We will evaluate sensitivity and specificity curves using the NMT2 assay cutoff value to differentiate CRC, AP, and NED. Feasibility: This project will be a subproject of our ongoing study to validate protein-based tests. We have all the reagents and regulatory approvals to successfully complete the project within the USRA"