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RESEARCH

Molecular epidemiology is a powerful branch of epidemiology and medical science that focuses on the contribution of omics and environmental factors to the etiology, distribution and prevention of disease within and across populations. Specifically, I have a long-standing interest in ethnic differences in disease risk and prognosis. My research focuses on combining population health with molecular phenotyping and laboratory-based approaches to advance knowledge and understanding in complex diseases, with the overarching aim is to improve health in Asian populations via new and effective strategies for risk stratification, disease prediction and prevention. In my research, I focus on DNA methylation, a mechanism that has been established to play a key role in the determination of genomic function and the coordination of gene expression. Disturbances in DNA methylation have also been implicated in the development of various complex diseases such as cancer and T2D. Indeed, epigenetic mechanisms such as methylation is a signature of environment and life course exposure, and not only about underlying genetics.

Selected Publications

• Yew YW, Loh M, Brown SJ. Understanding Atopic Dermatitis in Asian and European Population Cohorts Using Complementary Omics Techniques. J Invest Dermatol. 2024 Nov 5:S0022-202X(24)02171-7. IF: 6.5
• Yew YW*, Chang BRQ*, Mina T, Riboli E, Lee ES, Ngeow J, Elliott P, Chambers JC, Lee J*, Loh M*. Association of atopic dermatitis with depression and sleep quality in an Asian general population cohort of 8,887 participants. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. 2024 Feb 19. IF: 9.23
• Ng W, Loh M*, Yew YW*. Investigating causal relationships between genetically determined increased risk of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and atopic dermatitis (AD): A Mendelian randomization analysis. Exp Dermatol. 2023 Sep; 32(9):1468-1475. IF: 4.48
• Yew YW, Mina T, Ng HK, Lam BCC, Riboli E, Lee ES, Lee JCK, Ngeow J, Elliott P, Thng STG, Chambers JC, Loh M. Investigating causal relationships between skin barrier function and obesity in a multi-ethnic Asian general population cohort. Int J Obes (Lond). 2023 Oct;47(10):963-969. IF: 5.55
• Tan K, Foo R, Loh M. Cardiomyopathy in Asian cohorts - genetic and epigenetic insights. Circ Genom Precis Med. 2023 Oct;16(5):496-506. IF: 7.47
• Loh M, Chambers JC. Polygenic risk scores for complex diseases: Where are we now? �����Med J. 2023 Jan;64(1):88-89. IF: 3.33
• Muilwijk M*, Loh M*, Mahmood S, Palaniswamy S, Siddiqui S, Silva W, Frost GS, Gage HM, Jarvelin MR, Rannan-Eliya RP, Ahmad S, Jha S, Kasturiratne A, Katulanda P, Khawaja KI, Kooner JS, Wickremasinghe AR, van Valkengoed IGM, Chambers JC. The iHealth-T2D study: a cluster randomised trial for the prevention of type 2 diabetes amongst South Asians with central obesity and prediabetes-a statistical analysis plan. Trials. 2022 Sep 6;23(1):755. IF: 2.50
• Loh M*, Zhang W*, Ng HK, …, Kooner JS*, Saleheen D*, Chambers JC*. Identification of genetic effects underlying Type 2 Diabetes in South Asian and European populations. Commun Biol. 2022 Apr 7;5(1):329. IF: 6.27
• Hawe JS, Wilson R, Schmid K, …, Loh M*, Heinig M*, Gieger C*, Waldenberger M*, Chambers JC*. Genetic variation influencing DNA methylation provides insights into molecular mechanisms regulating genomic function. Nature Genetics, 54(1):18-29 2022 Jan. IF: 38.33
• Chen Y, Kassam I, Lau SH, Kooner JS, Wilson R, Peters A, Winkelmann J, Chambers JC, Chow VT, Khor CC, van Dam RM, Teo YY, Loh M*, Sim X*. Impact of BMI and waist circumference on epigenome-wide DNA methylation and identification of epigenetic biomarkers in blood: an EWAS in multi-ethnic Asian individuals. Clin Epigenetics. 2021 Oct 20;13(1):195. IF: 6.55
• Kassam I, Tan S, Gan FF, …, Loh M. Genome-wide identification of cis DNA methylation quantitative trait loci in three Southeast Asian populations. Human Molecular Genetics 2021 Feb 6:ddab038. IF: 4.48
• Loh M, Zhou L, Ng HK and Chambers JC. Epigenetic disturbances in obesity and diabetes: epidemiological and functional insights. Molecular Metabolism 2019 Sep; 27S:S33-S41. IF: 6.29
• Zhou L, Ng HK, Drautz-Moses DI, Schuster SC, Beck S, Kim C, Chambers JC, Loh M. Systematic evaluation of library preparation methods and sequencing platforms for high-throughput whole genome bisulfite sequencing. Scientific Reports 2019 Jul 17. IF: 4.53