Dr. Nester's clinical interests center in both Adult and Pediatric Nephrology, and her research interests include a primary interest in the genetics and epigenetics of glomerular disease.

Active projects are in defining the epigenetics of antineutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibody (ANCA) vasculitis.  Elucidating a potential role for the transcription factor, RUNX3 in the regulation of the ANCA antigen, myeloperoxidase (MPO), is one current project.  Initial observations indicated that RUNX3 expression is abnormal in ANCA vasculitis patients and interestingly the level of expression appears to correlate with the level of MPO expression and disease severity.  As a result of further study using chromatin immunoprecipitation, the novel finding of RUNX3 protein binding to a silencer region of the MPO gene was made.  siRNA experiments are ongoing to document the functional significance of the association of the RUNX protein with MPO DNA.

A second project utilizes as a base, data obtained from studies using the mouse model of MPO ANCA vasculitis.  A predominant pulmonary phenotype of ANCA vasculitis can be created in this mouse model by knocking out the Fcgr2b gene.  In an attempt to find a human correlate, we have studied two polymorphisms in the promoter region of the FCGR2B gene that result in a relative decreased function of this gene.  Preliminary data have indicated that the ANCA pulmonary phenotype in humans is indeed associated with this set of polymorphisms.  This data would suggest a role for FCGR2B gene in the phenotypic expression of ANCA vasculitis.

Medical School:
Penn State University

Graduate School:
Central Michigan University
Health Care Administration

Residency:
University of North Carolina
Internal Medicine and Pediatrics

Fellowship:
University of North Carolina
Adult and Pediatric Nephrology