Rajcan-Separovich, Evica

Assistant Professor, Dept of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
BSc, University of Novi Sad, Yugoslavia
MSc, PhD, University of Belgrade, Yugoslavia

Postdoc Fellow, Molecular cytogenetics, Ottawa (1991-1995)
Postdoc Fellow, Clinical cytogenetics, Ottawa (1995-1997)
Clinical cytogeneticist , Children's and Women's Health Centre

of BC (1997- )

Fellow, Canadian College of Medical Genetics (Cytogenetics) (1998)

Research Interests

My interest is to use genomic microarray analysis for finding novel microdeletions and microduplications associated with human diseases. In the Fall of 2002 we started studying the prevalence of sub-microscopic changes in patients with intellectual disability using the 3 and 1 Mb resolution comparative genomic hybridization array (CGH array). Our hypothesis is that due to a low resolution of the routine cytogenetic analysis deletions or duplications of chromosomal regions less than 10 Mb remain undetected. The recently developed genomic microarray technology has opened new possibilities for identification of cryptic chromosomal abnormalities at a whole genome level in patients with developmental abnormalities. With the funding received from the Hospital for Sick Children Foundation and CIHR we will test the hypothesis that the 1Mb high resolution microarray can provide new insight into the chromosomal etiology of developmental delay (DD). We have two specific aims: 1) to determine the prevalence of sub-microscopic rearrangements at the whole genome level in patients with DD and with autism 2) to determine whether the detected imbalanaces are the consequence of a balanced, cryptic parental chromosomal rearrangement or are de novo in origin.

The recent award from the Children's and Women's research foundation will allow me to study sub-microscopic rearrangements in pediatric cancers as well.

Selected Publications

Tyson C, McGilivray, Chijiwa C, Rajcan-Separovic E (2004) Elucidation of a cryptic interstitial deletion in a patient with a language disorder and mental retardation by array CGH. American Journal of Medical Genetics, in press

Rajcan-Separovic E, Maguire J, Loukianova T, Nisha M, Kalousek D. (2003) Loss of 1p and 7p in radiation induced meningiomas identified by comparative genomic hybridization. Cancer Genetics and Cytogenetics, 144(1) 6-11.

Bruyere H, Rajcan-Separovic E, Doyle J, Pantzer T, Langlois S. (2003) Familial cryptic terminal translocation (2;17) ascertained through recurrent spontaneous abortions. American Journal of Medical Genetics 132A(3):285-289. Abrahams, B, Chong ACO, Nisha M, Milette D, Abrahams BS, Berry ML, Murathodjaev F, Mai S, Rajcan-Separovic E, and Simpson EM (2003). SKY-FISH reveals transgenes at Balanced Translocation Break Points. Genesis 36(3) 134-141. Lamant L, Gascoyne RD, Duplantier MM, Armstrong F, Raghab A, Chhanabhai M, Rajcan-Separovic E, Raghab J, Delsol G, Espinos E. (2003) Non-muscle myosin heavy chain (MYH9): a new partner fused to ALK in anaplastic large cell lymphoma. Genes Chromosomes Cancer. 37(4):427-32. Philipp T, Separovic ER, Philipp K, Reiner A, Kalousek DK. (2003) Transcervical fetoscopic diagnosis of structural defects in four first-trimester monochorionic twin intrauterine deaths. Prenat Diagn. 23(12):964-9. Ravinesh A. Kumar, Ka Ling Chan, Ambrose H.W. Wong, Ken Q. Little, Evica Rajcan-Separovic, Brett S. Abrahams & Elizabeth M. Simpson, (2004) Unexplained embryonic stem cell (ES) mutations represent a concern in gene targeting: lessons from "fierce" mice. The Journal of Genetics and Development, Genesis. 38(2):51-7. Li J., Jiang t, Bejjani B, Rajcan-Separovic E, and Cai WW (2004): High resolution genome scanning using whole genome BAC arrays. Cold Spring Harbor Symposia on Quantitative Biology The Genome of Homo sapiens, Volume 68, Meeting: May 28 - June 2, 2003, in press Tyson C, McGillivary, Chijiwa C, Rajcan-Separovic E (2004): Elucidation of a cryptic interstitial deletion in a patient with a language disorder and mental retardation by array CGH. American Journal of Medical Genetics, in press.