Casillas-Espinosa Group

Multi-omics biomarkers and disease-modification in epilepsy

Get in touch | Our work | Our people | Our achievements | Publication Highlights

The Casillas-Espinosa Epilepsy group (cEEG) is dedicated to pioneering innovative epilepsy treatments and discovering biomarkers for disease progression. Our research harnesses a multidisciplinary approach, integrating advanced animal models, cutting-edge molecular biology techniques, stem cell biology, neuroimaging, and sophisticated bioinformatics. Together, we aim to revolutionise the understanding and management of epilepsy, driving forward new therapies and improving patient outcomes.

Get in touch

Whether you want to be involved in our research, you wish to study with us, you want to collaborate with us or donate to our work, we would be delighted to hear from you.

E: pablo.casillas-espinosa@monash.edu | @PabloCasillasE1 | ResearchGate | Google Scholar

Student Research Projects

Our work

Our research focuses on the following areas to address the significant challenges faced by individuals with epilepsy:

  • Development of repurposed or novel treatments to prevent or modify epilepsy progression following a stroke or traumatic brain injury.
  • Creation of a 'surgery in a pill' intervention to reverse treatment-resistant epilepsy, with fewer side effects.
  • Identification of molecular and neuroimaging biomarkers that can predict epilepsy development and progression.
  • Improvement of affective, cognitive, and neuromotor comorbidities associated with epilepsy.
  • Prevention of cardiac issues and sudden death in people with epilepsy.
  • Understanding of sleep and circadian dysfunction in epilepsy.
  • Epigenomics modification in epilepsy.
  • Deciphering the role of different brain oscillations in epilepsy.

Our work is translational, where we aim to return our laboratory findings to the hospital setting, enhancing treatments and advancing patient care through a true bench-to-bedside approach.

We employ a variety of advanced scientific technologies and biological methods, including cell and tissue culture, confocal imaging, immunocytochemistry, flow cytometry, and immunoassay experiments (e.g. ELISA, Simoa), molecular biology techniques (e.g. qPCR), and multi-omics (genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and lipidomics). We utilise the Monash Technology Research Platforms including FlowCore, Monash Histology Platform, Monash Micro Imaging (MMI), Monash Genomics Platform, Monash Proteomics and Metabolomics Facility, and MASSIVE high-performance data processing facility.

Our people

Group Leader

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Our achievements

Awards

  • Dr Zining Liu - 2022 American Epilepsy Society Suzanne and Peter Berry International Travel Award
  • Dr Pablo Casillas-Espinosa – The Inaugural International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) Raman Sankar Fellowship, 2018.
  • Dr Pablo Casillas-Espinosa - The American Epilepsy Society Peter Baldwin Award, 2018

Grants

  • 2024 - Monash University Future Leader Fellowship (PI Pablo Casillas-Espinosa)
  • 2024 - NHMRC Equipment Grant (CIs Leung, Lin and Pablo Casillas-Espinosa)
  • 2023 - MRFF Clinical Trials Grant (CI Pablo Casillas-Espinosa)
  • 2023 - CDMRP USA DoD Epilepsy Research Program Research Partnership Award (PI Pablo Casillas-Espinosa)
  • 2022 – MRFF Stem Cell Grant (CI Pablo Casillas-Espinosa)
  • 2022 - CDMRP USA DoD Epilepsy Research Program Idea Development Award (PI Pablo Casillas-Espinosa)
  • 2022 - National Institutes of Health R01 Multicentre grant (CI Pablo Casillas- Espinosa)
  • 2022 - NHMRC Ideas Grant (CI Pablo Casillas-Espinosa)
  • 2021 - CDMRP USA DoD Epilepsy Research Program Idea Development Award (CI Pablo Casillas-Espinosa)

Publication Highlights

Below are a selection of some of published studies reflecting our high impact work. For a full list of our publications, please visit PubMed

  1. Disease-modifying effects of sodium selenate in a model of drug-resistant, temporal lobe epilepsy. eLife, 2023. Casillas-Espinosa, P.M., Anderson A., Harutyunyan A., Li C., Lee J., Braine E.L., Brady R.D., Sun M., Huang C., Barlow C.K., Shah A.D., Schittenhelm R.B., Mychasiuk R., Jones N.C., Shultz S.R., O’Brien T.J.
  2. Disease-modifying effects of a novel T-type calcium channel antagonist, Z944, in a model of temporal lobe epilepsy. Prog Neurobiol. 2019 Nov. Casillas-Espinosa, P.M., Shultz, S.R., Braine, E.L., Jones, N.C., Snutch, T.P., Powell, K.L., O'Brien, T.J.
  3. Graph Signal Processing, Graph Neural Network and Graph Learning on Biological Data: A Systematic Review. IEEE Rev Biomed Eng. 2023. Li, R., Yuan, X., Radfar, M., Marendy, P., Ni, W., O'Brien, T.J., Casillas-Espinosa, P.M.
  4. Multi-omics integration and epilepsy: Towards a better understanding of biological mechanisms. Prog Neurobiol. 2023 Aug. Chong D, Jones NC, Schittenhelm RB, Anderson A, Casillas-Espinosa P.M.
  5. An Integrated Multi-Omic Network Analysis Identifies Seizure-Associated Dysregulated Pathways in the GAERS Model of Absence Epilepsy. Int J Mol Sci. 2022 May. Harutyunyan, A. , Chong, D. , Li, R. , Shah, A.D., Ali, Z., Huang, C., Barlow, C.K., Perucca, P., O’Brien, T.J., Schittenhelm, R.B., Anderson, A., Casillas-Espinosa, P.M.
  6. A universal automated tool for reliable detection of seizures in rodent models of acquired and genetic epilepsy. Epilepsia, 2019 Apr. Casillas-Espinosa, P.M., Sargsyan, A., Melkonian, D., O’Brien TJ.
  7. Targeting high-mobility group box protein 1 (HMGB1) in pediatric traumatic brain injury: Chronic neuroinflammatory, behavioral, and epileptogenic consequences. Exp Neurol. 2019 Oct. Webster, K.M., Shultz, S.R., Ozturk, E., Dill, L.K.,Sun, M., Casillas-Espinosa, P.M., Jones, N.C., Crack, P.J., O'Brien, T.J., Semple, B.D.
  8. Harmonization of lateral fluid-percussion injury model production and post-injury monitoring in a preclinical multicenter biomarker discovery study on post-traumatic epileptogenesis. Epilepsy Research, 2019 Mar. Ndode-Ekane, X.E.*, Santana-Gomez, C.*,Casillas-Espinosa, P.M.*, Ali, I., Brady, R.D., Smith, G., Andrade, P., Immonen, R., Puhakka, N., Hudson, M.R., Braine, E.L., Shultz, S.R., Staba, R.J., O'Brien, T.J., A.Pitkänen, A.
  9. Harmonization of the pipeline for seizure detection to phenotype post- traumatic epilepsy in a preclinical multicenter study on post-traumatic epileptogenesis. Epilepsy Research 2019 Oct. Casillas-Espinosa, P.M., Andrade, P.,Santana-Gomez, C., Paananen, T., Smith, G., Ali, I., Ciszek, R., Ndode-Ekane, X.E., Brady, R.D., Tohka, J., Hudson, M.R., Perucca, P., Braine, E.L., Immonen, R., Puhakka, N., Shultz, S.R., Jones, N.C., Staba, R.J., Pitkänen, A., O'Brien, T.J.
  10. Cardiac structural and functional abnormalities in epilepsy. Epilepsia Open. 2023 Mar. Liu Z, Thergarajan P, Antonic-Baker A, Chen Z, Sparks PB, Lannin NA, Kwan P, Jones NC, Casillas-Espinosa PM, Perucca P, O'Brien TJ, Sivathamboo S.