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Dr Chan Anita

Dr Anita Chan

MBBS, M Med(Ophth), FRCS(Ed), FAMS, FRCPath

Head, Translational Ophthalmic Pathology Platform, Singapore Eye Research Institute

Research Interest:

Retinal and RGC Ischemia and Neuroprotection
Ophthalmic pathology and retinal immunobiology research
Ocular Lymphoma and other ocular cancers
Animal models of Glaucoma Disease

Research Appointments

Head, Translational Ophthalmic Pathology Platform, Singapore Eye Research Institute
Clinician Scientist, Translational Ophthalmic Pathology, Singapore Eye Research Institute

Academic Appointments

Assistant Professor SingHealth Duke-NUS Ophthalmology ＆ Visual Sciences Academic Clinical Programme

Clinical Appointments

Head ＆ Senior Consultant Ocular Inflammation ＆ Immunology Department Singapore National Eye Centre
Senior Consultant Cataract ＆ Comprehensive Ophthalmology Department Singapore National Eye Centre
Clinical Director Ophthalmic Pathology Department Singapore National Eye Centre

Profile

Dr Anita Chan graduated from Yong Loo Lin (YLL) School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS) in 1998. She completed her ophthalmology residency at Singapore National Eye Centre (SNEC) and obtained her post graduate ophthalmology fellowship exam from the Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh FRCS(Ed) and FAMS (NUS) in 2007. Dr Chan also completed her general pathology residency at Singapore General Hospital (SGH), Department of Anatomical pathology and cytology and passed her Fellowship in Pathology (FRCpath), Royal College of Pathologists, Edinburgh in 2016. She is currently a practicing uveitis specialist at SNEC and is the Head of the Ocular inflammation and Immunology service. She practices ophthalmic pathology at SGH and is the Clinical director of Ophthalmic Pathology Service in SNEC. She also heads a National medical research Council (NMRC) grant funded Translational ophthalmic pathology platform (TOPP) at the Singapore Eye Research Institute (SERI).

Dr Anita Chan is passionate about research, obtaining her Transition and Clinician Scientist award in 2014 and 2019 respectively. Her research interests are in Precision medicine in ophthalmology and animal models of ophthalmic diseases. Her specific focuses are in neuroglobin neuroprotection, lymphoma and single cell technology. She has recently been awarded the Japan Society for the promotion of science (JSPS) Ronpaku award in 2016 for a fellowship PHD programme at the Tokyo University.

Professional Appointments and Committee Memberships

Fellow, Department of Anatomical Pathology and cytolog, Singapore General Hospital

Education

FRCpath (2016)
FAMS (2007)
FRCS(Ed) (2007)
M Med(Ophth) (2003)
MBBS (1998)

Awards

Clinician scientist award (2019)
Khoo Mentored Research Award (KMRA, 2019)
Japan Society of Promotion of Science (JSPS) Ronpaku (Dissertation PhD) Program (2016)
Transition Award (2014)
Fellowship Award in Ophthalmic Pathology, Singapore National Eye Centre (2011)
The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) Basic Science Award, Doheny Eye Institute (2010)
Health Manpower Development Plan (2009)

Research Studies

Precision medicine using single cell genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics and lipidomics in fluid biopsies to diagnose and manage primary vitreoretinal lymphoma
Developing a SARS-CoV-2 antibody and cytokine test kit for tears to evaluate its potential risks to the ocular surface post COVID-19 infection
Role of monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1) in hypertensive anterior uveitis (HAU): a potential biomarker of prolonged intraocular pressure elevation and chronicity of HAU
Neuroprotective role of Tocotrienol in rodent microbead induced glaucoma
Investigating the role of the primary angle closure glaucoma (PACG) susceptibility gene, PLEKHA7 in Plekha7-/- mutant rats
Using Epdr1tm1b Knockout (KO) Mice to Determine the Ocular Phenotype of Primary Angle Closure Glaucoma (PACG) Susceptibility Gene, EPDR1 and Its Effects on Cellular Adhesion Related Pathways

Publications

Tan LTL, Hong JC, Goh WL, Chang EWY, Wang VSW, Poon E, Somasundaram N, Farid M, Chan ASY*, Chan JYS*. Clinical features and survival outcomes of ocular melanoma in a multiethnic Asian cohort. Sci Rep. 2020 Oct 1;10(1):16367. doi:10.1038/s41598-020-73534-x. PMID: 33004998; PMCID: PMC7529790
Chan ASY*, Tun TA, Allen JC ,Lynn MN, Tun SBB, M, Barathi VA, Girard MJA, Aung T, Aihara, M. Longitudinal optic nerve head (ONH) optical coherence tomography (OCT) structural changes in a primate microbead model of ocular hypertension (OHT). Sci Rep 10, 14709 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-71555-0
Tan WJ, Wang MM, Ricciardi-Castagnoli P, Tang T, Chee SP, Lim TS, Chan ASY. Single-cell MYD88 sequencing of isolated B cells from vitreous biopsies aids vitreoretinal lymphoma diagnosis. Blood. 2019 Aug 22;134(8):709-712. doi: 10.1182/blood.2019000022. Epub 2019 Jul 10.
Wang MM, Tan WJ, Lim TS, Chan ASY. PreservCyt Is an Optimal Fixative that Permits Cytologic and Molecular Analyses of Vitreoretinal Lymphoma Biopsies. Ocul Immunol Inflamm. 2019 Aug 16:1-10. doi: 10.1080/09273948.2019.1636093.
de Groot-Mijnes JDF, Chan ASY, Chee SP, Verjans GMG. Immunopathology of virus-induced anterior uveitisOcular. Immunology & Inflammation. 26 (3), 338-346 2018
Tun SBB, Barathi VA, Luu CD, Lynn MN, Chan A. Effects of Exogenous Neuroglobin (Ngb) on retinal inflammatory chemokines and microglia in a rat model of transient hypoxia. Sci Rep. 2019 Dec 11;9(1):18799. doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-55315-3.
Wang XF; Teoh CKG; Chan AS et al. Biomechanical Properties of Bruch's Membrane-Choroid Complex and Their Influence on Optic Nerve Head Biomechanics. Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science June 2018. Vol.59, 2808-2817. doi:10.1167/iovs.17-22069
Khor CC, Chan AS, Aung T. Genetics of Exfoliation Syndrome. Journal of Glaucoma. 27, S12-S14 2018
Dick AD, Rosenbaum JT, Al-Dhibi HA Fundamentals of Care for Uveitis International Consensus Group.FOCUS International Consensus Group (member). Consensus on Non-Corticosteroid Systemic Immunomodulatory Therapy in Non-Infectious Uveitis: Fundamentals Of Care for UveitiS (FOCUS). Ophthalmology. 2018 May;125(5):757-773. doi: 10.1016/j.ophtha.2017.11.017.
Lee MC, Shei W, Chan AS et al. Primary angle closure glaucoma (PACG) susceptibility gene PLEKHA7 encodes a novel Rac1/Cdc42 GAP that modulates cell migration and blood-aqueous barrier function. Human Molecular Genetics. Published 24 July 2017. ddx 292. https://doi.org/10.1093/hmg/ddx292
Aung T, Ozaki M, Lee MC, Schlötzer-Schrehardt U, ….Chan ASY et al. Genetic association study of exfoliation syndrome identifies a protective rare variant at LOXL1 and five new susceptibility loci. Nat Genet. 2017. Jul; 49 (7):993-1004.
*Chan ASY, Mudhar H, Shen S et al. *Corresponding author. Serum IgG2 and tissue IgG2 plasma cell elevation in orbital IgG4-related disease (IgG4-RD): Potential use in IgG4-RD assessment. Br J Ophthalmol. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bjophthalmol-2017-310148
Khor CC, Do T, Jia HY, …. Chan AS et al. Genome-wide association study identifies five new susceptibility loci for primary angle closure glaucoma. Nature Genetics. 2016 May;48(5):556-62. doi: 10.1038/ng.3540. Epub 2016 Apr 4. JIF 29.352.
Chan AS, Mehta JS, Al Jajeh I , Iqbal J, Anshu A, Tan DT. Histological features of Cytomegalovirus-related corneal graft infections, its associated features. Br J Ophthalmol. 2016 May;100(5):601-6. doi: 10.1136/bjophthalmol-2015-307390. Epub 2015 Aug 20.
S Shen, D Paridaens, A Chan, GE Rose. Orbital Manifestations of Immunoglobulin G4–Related Disease: Current State of Knowledge. Advances in Ophthalmology and Optometry 1. (2016) 147-163. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016.J.yaoo.201603.017
Tin Aung,Mineo Ozaki,Takanori Mizoguchi,… Anita S Y Chan et al. A common variant mapping to CACNA1A is associated with susceptibility to exfoliation syndrome. Nature Genetics. 2015; 47, 387-392 (2015) doi: 10.1038/ng.3226. JIF 29.352
Chan ASY, Shen S, Geok ALL, Leng SL, Cheong LTH, et al. Orbital IgG4 Related Disease (IgG4RD): Incidence and Accompanying Histological Features Using the Latest Consensus Criteria. J Cytol Histol. (2014) 5:286. doi: 10.4172/2157-7099.1000286.
Lee MC, Chan AS*, Goh SR, Hilmy MH, Nongpiur ME, Hong WJ, Aung T, Hunziker W, Vithana EN. Expression of the primary angle closure glaucoma (PACG) susceptibility gene PLEKHA7 in endothelial and epithelial cell junctions in the eye (*co-first author). Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2014 May 6;55(6):3833-41. doi: 10.1167/iovs.14-14145.
Tun TA, Baskaran M, Perera SA, Chan AS, Cheng CY, Htoon HM, Sakata LM, Cheung CY, Aung T. Sectoral Variations of Iridocorneal Angle Width and Iris Volume in Chinese Singaporeans: A Swept Source Optical Coherence Tomography Study. Graefes Arch Clin Exp Ophthalmol. 2014 Jul;252(7):1127-32. doi: 10.1007/s00417-014-2636-0.
Chan AS, Saraswathy S, Rehak M, Ueki, M, Rao NA. Neuroglobin protection in retinal ischemia. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2012 Feb 13;53(2):704-11. JIF: 3.388