Dr Arutha Kulasinghe
Honorary Research Fellow
Institute for Molecular Bioscience
Researcher biography
Dr Arutha Kulasinghe is a Peter Doherty NHMRC Research Fellow, and leads the 'Clinical-oMx Lab' at the University of Queensland. Dr Kulasinghe has pioneered spatial transcriptomics using digital spatial profiling approaches in the Asia-Pacific region, contributing to world-first studies for lung cancer, head and neck cancer, and COVID-19. His research aims to understand the underlying pathobiology by using an integrative multi-omics approach. Dr Kulasinghe has published his research in 60 manuscripts and is supported by the NHMRC, Australian Academy of Sciences, Cancer Australia, Cure Cancer, MRFF and numerous philanthropic and hospital foundations.
Book Chapters
Azadi, Shohreh, Aboulkheyr Es, Hamidreza, Kulasinghe, Arutha, Bordhan, Pritam and Ebrahimi Warkiani, Majid (2020). Application of microfluidic technology in cancer research and therapy. Advances in Clinical Chemistry. (pp. 193-235) San Diego, CA, United States: Academic Press Inc.. doi: 10.1016/bs.acc.2020.02.012
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Warkiani, Majid Ebrahimi and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2019). The isolation and characterization of circulating tumor cells from head and neck cancer patient blood samples using spiral microfluidic technology. Methods in Molecular Biology. (pp. 129-136) New York, NY, United States: Humana Press. doi: 10.1007/978-1-4939-9769-5_8
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Schmidt, Henri and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2016). Circulating tumor cells: Isolation, expansion, characterization and translation to clinic. Circulating Tumor Cells (CTCs): Detection Methods, Health Impact and Emerging Clinical Challenges. (pp. 1-18) Nova Science Publishers, Inc..
Zhang, Xi, Kulasinghe, Arutha, Karim, Rafid Shahriyar and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2015). Saliva diagnostics for oral diseases. Advances in salivary diagnostics. (pp. 131-156) edited by Charles F. Streckfus. Berlin, Germany: Springer Berlin Heidelberg. doi: 10.1007/978-3-662-45399-5_7
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Lim, Yenkai, Perry, Chris F. L. and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2015). Current trends and management in head and neck cancers. Head and neck cancer: epidemiology, management, and treatment outcomes. (pp. 41-74) edited by Madison R. Hall. New York, NY United States: Nova Science Publishers.
Journal Articles
Sadeghirad, Habib, Monkman, James, Mehdi, Ahmed M., Ladwa, Rahul, O’Byrne, Ken, Hughes, Brett G. M. and Kulasinghe, Arutha (2022). Dissecting Tissue Compartment-Specific Protein Signatures in Primary and Metastatic Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinomas. Frontiers in Immunology, 13, 1-11. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.895513
Shiravand, Yavar, Khodadadi, Faezeh, Kashani, Seyyed Mohammad Amin, Hosseini-Fard, Seyed Reza, Hosseini, Shadi, Sadeghirad, Habib, Ladwa, Rahul, O’Byrne, Ken and Kulasinghe, Arutha (2022). Immune checkpoint inhibitors in cancer therapy. Current Oncology, 29 (5), 3044-3060. doi: 10.3390/curroncol29050247
Kapeleris, Joanna, Ebrahimi Warkiani, Majid, Kulasinghe, Arutha, Vela, Ian, Kenny, Liz, Ladwa, Rahul, O’Byrne, Kenneth and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2022). Clinical Applications of Circulating Tumour Cells and Circulating Tumour DNA in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer—An Update. Frontiers in Oncology, 12 859152, 859152. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2022.859152
Herath, Sayuri, Sadeghi Rad, Habib, Radfar, Payar, Ladwa, Rahul, Warkiani, Majid, O’Byrne, Ken and Kulasinghe, Arutha (2022). The role of circulating biomarkers in lung cancer. Frontiers in Oncology, 11 801269, 801269. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2021.801269
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Monkman, James, Shah, Esha T., Matigian, Nicholas, Adams, Mark N. and O’Byrne, Ken (2022). Spatial profiling identifies prognostic features of response to adjuvant therapy in Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC). Frontiers in Oncology, 11 798296, 798296. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2021.798296
Radfar, Payar, Aboulkheyr Es, Hamidreza, Salomon, Rob, Kulasinghe, Arutha, Ramalingam, Naveen, Sarafraz-Yazdi, Ehsan, Thiery, Jean Paul and Warkiani, Majid Ebrahimi (2022). Single-cell analysis of circulating tumour cells: enabling technologies and clinical applications. Trends in Biotechnology. doi: 10.1016/j.tibtech.2022.02.004
Rad, Habib Sadeghi, Shiravand, Yavar, Radfar, Payar, Ladwa, Rahul, Perry, Chris, Han, Xiaoyuan, Warkiani, Majid Ebrahimi, Adams, Mark N, Hughes, Brett GM, O'Byrne, Ken and Kulasinghe, Arutha (2022). Understanding the tumor microenvironment in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Clinical & Translational Immunology, 11 (6). doi: 10.1002/cti2.1397
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Tan, Chin Wee, dos Santos Miggiolaro, Anna Flavia Ribeiro, Monkman, James, SadeghiRad, Habib, Bhuva, Dharmesh D., da Silva Motta Junior, Jarbas, Vaz de Paula, Caroline Busatta, Nagashima, Seigo, Baena, Cristina Pellegrino, Souza-Fonseca-Guimaraes, Paulo, de Noronha, Lucia, McCulloch, Timothy, Rodrigues Rossi, Gustavo, Cooper, Caroline, Tang, Benjamin, Short, Kirsty R., Davis, Melissa J., Souza-Fonseca-Guimaraes, Fernando, Belz, Gabrielle T. and O'Byrne, Ken (2022). Profiling of lung SARS-CoV-2 and influenza virus infection dissects virus-specific host responses and gene signatures. European Respiratory Journal, 59 (6) 2101881, 1-19. doi: 10.1183/13993003.01881-2021
Schimmel, Lilian, Chew, Keng Yih, Stocks, Claudia J., Yordanov, Teodor E., Essebier, Patricia, Kulasinghe, Arutha, Monkman, James, Santos Miggiolaro, Anna Flavia Ribeiro, Cooper, Caroline, Noronha, Lucia, Schroder, Kate, Lagendijk, Anne Karine, Labzin, Larisa I., Short, Kirsty R. and Gordon, Emma J. (2021). Endothelial cells are not productively infected by SARS‐CoV‐2. Clinical and Translational Immunology, 10 (10) e1350, e1350. doi: 10.1002/cti2.1350
Karimi, Amirali, Shobeiri, Parnian, Kulasinghe, Arutha and Rezaei, Nima (2021). Novel systemic inflammation markers to predict COVID-19 prognosis. Frontiers in Immunology, 12 741061. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.741061
Yekelchyk, Michail, Madan, Esha, Wilhelm, Jochen, Short, Kirsty R, Palma, António M, Liao, Linbu, Camacho, Denise, Nkadori, Everlyne, Winters, Michael T, Rice, Emily S, Rolim, Inês, Cruz‐Duarte, Raquel, Pelham, Christopher J, Nagane, Masaki, Gupta, Kartik, Chaudhary, Sahil, Braun, Thomas, Pillappa, Raghavendra, Parker, Mark S, Menter, Thomas, Matter, Matthias, Haslbauer, Jasmin Dionne, Tolnay, Markus, Galior, Kornelia D, Matkwoskyj, Kristina A, McGregor, Stephanie M, Muller, Laura K, Rakha, Emad A, Lopez‐Beltran, Antonio ... Gogna, Rajan (2021). Flower lose, a cell fitness marker, predicts COVID‐19 prognosis. EMBO Molecular Medicine, 13 (11) e13714, e13714. doi: 10.15252/emmm.202013714
Kulasinghe, Arutha, O'Leary, Connor, Monkman, James, Bharti, Vandhana, Irwin, Darryl, Dutta, Sanjay, Richard, Derek J., Hughes, Brett, Ladwa, Rahul and O'Byrne, Ken (2021). The identification of circulating tumour DNA using MassARRAY technology in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Lung Cancer, 160, 73-77. doi: 10.1016/j.lungcan.2021.08.005
Rad, Habib Sadeghi, Röhl, Joan, Stylianou, Nataly, Allenby, Mark C., Bazaz, Sajad Razavi, Warkiani, Majid E., Guimaraes, Fernando S. F., Clifton, Vicki L. and Kulasinghe, Arutha (2021). The effects of COVID-19 on the placenta during pregnancy. Frontiers in Immunology, 12 743022. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.743022
Sato, Kei, Sinclair, Jane E., Sadeghirad, Habib, Fraser, John F., Short, Kirsty R. and Kulasinghe, Arutha (2021). Cardiovascular disease in SARS‐CoV‐2 infection. Clinical and Translational Immunology, 10 (9) e1343, e1343. doi: 10.1002/cti2.1343
Rad, Habib Sadeghi, Rad, Hamid Sadeghi, Shiravand, Yavar, Radfar, Payar, Arpon, David, Warkiani, Majid Ebrahimi, O'Byrne, Ken and Kulasinghe, Arutha (2021). The Pandora’s box of novel technologies that may revolutionize lung cancer. Lung Cancer, 159, 34-41. doi: 10.1016/j.lungcan.2021.06.022
Rzhevskiy, Alexey, Kapitannikova, Alina, Malinina, Polina, Volovetsky, Arthur, Aboulkheyr Es, Hamidreza, Kulasinghe, Arutha, Thiery, Jean Paul, Maslennikova, Anna, Zvyagin, Andrei V. and Ebrahimi Warkiani, Majid (2021). Emerging role of circulating tumor cells in immunotherapy. Theranostics, 11 (16), 8057-8075. doi: 10.7150/thno.59677
Müller Bark, Juliana, Kulasinghe, Arutha, Hartel, Gunter, Leo, Paul, Warkiani, Majid Ebrahimi, Jeffree, Rosalind L., Chua, Benjamin, Day, Bryan W. and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2021). Isolation of circulating tumour cells in patients with glioblastoma using spiral microfluidic technology – a pilot study. Frontiers in Oncology, 11 681130, 681130. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2021.681130
Sadeghi Rad, Habib, Monkman, James, Warkiani, Majid E., Ladwa, Rahul, O'Byrne, Ken, Rezaei, Nima and Kulasinghe, Arutha (2021). Understanding the tumor microenvironment for effective immunotherapy. Medicinal Research Reviews, 41 (3), 1474-1498. doi: 10.1002/med.21765
Kalita-de Croft, Priyakshi, Rad, Habib Sadeghi, Gasper, Harry, O'Byrne, Ken, Lakhani, Sunil R. and Kulasinghe, Arutha (2021). Spatial profiling technologies and applications for brain cancers. Expert Review of Molecular Diagnostics, 21 (3), 323-332. doi: 10.1080/14737159.2021.1900735
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Taheri, Touraj, O'Byrne, Ken, Hughes, Brett G. M., Kenny, Liz and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2021). Highly multiplexed digital spatial profiling of the tumor microenvironment of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma patients. Frontiers in Oncology, 10 607349, 607349. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2020.607349
Monkman, James, Taheri, Touraj, Warkiani, Majid Ebrahimi, O’leary, Connor, Ladwa, Rahul, Richard, Derek, O’ Byrne, Ken and Kulasinghe, Arutha (2020). High-plex and high-throughput digital spatial profiling of non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Cancers, 12 (12) 3551, 1-16. doi: 10.3390/cancers12123551
Rasheduzzaman, Mohammad, Kulasinghe, Arutha, Dolcetti, Riccardo, Kenny, Liz, Johnson, Newell W., Kolarich, Daniel and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2020). Protein glycosylation in head and neck cancers: From diagnosis to treatment. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta - Reviews on Cancer, 1874 (2) 188422. doi: 10.1016/j.bbcan.2020.188422
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Monkman, James, Nalder, Mark, O’Leary, Connor, Ladwa, Rahul and O’Byrne, Ken (2020). Transformation or progression from adenocarcinoma to small cell lung cancer detected by serially tracking mutations in the blood. Reports, 3 (4) 33. doi: 10.3390/reports3040033
Herath, Sayuri, Razavi Bazaz, Sajad, Monkman, James, Ebrahimi Warkiani, Majid, Richard, Derek, O’Byrne, Ken and Kulasinghe, Arutha (2020). Circulating tumor cell clusters: insights into tumour dissemination and metastasis. Expert Review of Molecular Diagnostics, 20 (11), 1139-1147. doi: 10.1080/14737159.2020.1846523
Hanaei, Sara, Takian, Amirhossein, Majdzadeh, Reza, Maboloc, Christopher Ryan, Grossmann, Igor, Gomes, Orlando, Milosevic, Milos, Gupta, Manoj, Shamshirsaz, Alireza A., Harbi, Amine, Burhan, Amer M., Uddin, Lucina Q., Kulasinghe, Arutha, Lam, Chi-Ming, Ramakrishna, Seeram, Alavi, Abass, Nouwen, Jan L., Dorigo, Tommaso, Schreiber, Michael, Abraham, Ajith, Shelkovaya, Natalya, Krysztofiak, Wojtek, Ebrahimi Warkiani, Majid, Sellke, Frank, Ogino, Shuji, Barba, Francisco J., Brand, Serge, Vasconcelos, Clara, Salunke, Deepak B. and Rezaei, Nima (2020). Emerging standards and the hybrid model for organizing scientific events during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness, 1-6. doi: 10.1017/dmp.2020.406
Kapeleris, Joanna, Kulasinghe, Arutha, Warkiani, Majid Ebrahimi, Oleary, Connor, Vela, Ian, Leo, Paul, Sternes, Peter, O'Byrne, Kenneth and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2020). Ex vivo culture of circulating tumour cells derived from non-small cell lung cancer. Translational Lung Cancer Research, 9 (5), 1795-1809. doi: 10.21037/tlcr-20-521
O’Leary, Connor, Gasper, Harry, Sahin, Katherine B., Tang, Ming, Kulasinghe, Arutha, Adams, Mark N., Richard, Derek J. and O’Byrne, Ken J. (2020). Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-mutated non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Pharmaceuticals, 13 (10) 273, 1-16. doi: 10.3390/ph13100273
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Lim, Yenkai, Kapeleris, Joanna, Warkiani, Majid, O'Byrne, Ken and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2020). The use of three-dimensional DNA fluorescent in situ hybridization (3D DNA FISH) for the detection of Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase (ALK) in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) circulating tumor cells. Cells, 9 (6) 1465. doi: 10.3390/cells9061465
Müller Bark, Juliana, Kulasinghe, Arutha, Chua, Benjamin, Day, Bryan W. and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2020). Circulating biomarkers in patients with glioblastoma. British Journal of Cancer, 122 (3), 295-305. doi: 10.1038/s41416-019-0603-6
Sadeghi Rad, Habib, Bazaz, Sajad Razavi, Monkman, James, Ebrahimi Warkiani, Majid, Rezaei, Nima, O'Byrne, Ken and Kulasinghe, Arutha (2020). The evolving landscape of predictive biomarkers in immuno-oncology with a focus on spatial technologies. Clinical and Translational Immunology, 9 (11) e1215, 1-12. doi: 10.1002/cti2.1215
Zhou, Jian, Kulasinghe, Arutha, Bogseth, Amanda, O’Byrne, Ken, Punyadeera, Chamindie and Papautsky, Ian (2019). Isolation of circulating tumor cells in non-small-cell-lung-cancer patients using a multi-flow microfluidic channel. Microsystems and Nanoengineering, 5 (1) 8, 8. doi: 10.1038/s41378-019-0045-6
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Hughes, Brett G. M., Kenny, Liz and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2019). An update: circulating tumor cells in head and neck cancer. Expert Review of Molecular Diagnostics, 19 (12), 1109-1115. doi: 10.1080/14737159.2020.1688145
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Kapeleris, Joanna, Cooper, Carolina, Warkiani, Majid Ebrahimi, O’Byrne, Kenneth and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2019). Phenotypic characterization of circulating lung cancer cells for clinically actionable targets. Cancers, 11 (3) 380, 380. doi: 10.3390/cancers11030380
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Zhou, Jian, Kenny, Liz, Papautsky, Ian and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2019). Capture of circulating tumour cell clusters using straight microfluidic chips. Cancers, 11 (1) 89. doi: 10.3390/cancers11010089
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Schmidt, Henri, Perry, Chris, Whitfield, Bernard, Kenny, Liz, Nelson, Colleen, Warkiani, Majid E. and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2018). A collective route to head and neck cancer metastasis. Scientific Reports, 8 (1) 746, 1-8. doi: 10.1038/s41598-017-19117-9
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Kapeleris, Joanna, Kimberley, Rebecca, Mattarollo, Stephen R., Thompson, Erik W., Thiery, Jean-Paul, Kenny, Liz, O’Byrne, Ken and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2018). The prognostic significance of circulating tumor cells in head and neck and non-small-cell lung cancer. Cancer Medicine, 7 (12), 5910-5919. doi: 10.1002/cam4.1832
Schmidt, Henri, Kulasinghe, Arutha, Allcock, Richard J. N., Tan, Lit Yeen, Mokany, Elisa, Kenny, Liz and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2018). A pilot study to non-invasively track PIK3CA mutation in head and neck cancer. Diagnostics, 8 (4). doi: 10.3390/diagnostics8040079
Kapeleris, Joanna, Kulasinghe, Arutha, Warkiani, Majid E., Vela, Ian, Kenny, Liz, O' Byrne, Kenneth and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2018). The prognostic role of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in lung cancer. Frontiers in Oncology, 8 (AUG) 311, 311. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2018.00311
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Wu, Hanjie, Punyadeera, Chamindie and Warkiani, Majid Ebrahimi (2018). The use of microfluidic technology for cancer applications and liquid biopsy. Micromachines, 9 (8) 397, 1-22. doi: 10.3390/mi9080397
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Kenny, Liz and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2017). Circulating tumour cell PD-L1 test for head and neck cancers. Oral Oncology, 75, 6-7. doi: 10.1016/j.oraloncology.2017.10.011
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Perry, Chris, Kenny, Liz, Warkiani, Majid E., Nelson, Colleen and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2017). PD-L1 expressing circulating tumour cells in head and neck cancers. BMC Cancer, 17 (1) 333, 333. doi: 10.1186/s12885-017-3316-3
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Tran, Thao Huynh Phuoc, Blick, Tony, O'Byrne, Ken, Thompson, Erik W., Warkiani, Majid E., Nelson, Colleen, Kenny, Liz and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2017). Enrichment of circulating head and neck tumour cells using spiral microfluidic technology. Scientific Reports, 7 (1) 42517, 42517. doi: 10.1038/srep42517
Schmidt, Henri, Kulasinghe, Arutha, Kenny, Liz and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2016). The development of a liquid biopsy for head and neck cancers. Oral Oncology, 61, 8-11. doi: 10.1016/j.oraloncology.2016.07.014
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Kenny, Liz, Perry, Chris, Thiery, Jean-Paul, Jovanovic, Lidija, Vela, Ian, Nelson, Colleen and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2016). Impact of label-free technologies in head and neck cancer circulating tumour cells. Oncotarget, 7 (44), 71223-71234. doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.12086
Schmidt, Henri, Kulasinghe, Arutha, Perry, Chris, Nelson, Colleen and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2016). A liquid biopsy for head and neck cancers. Expert Review of Molecular Diagnostics, 16 (2), 165-172. doi: 10.1586/14737159.2016.1127758
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Perry, Chris, Boyle, Glen M., O'Byrne, Ken, Davies, Anthony, Jovanovic, Lidija, Nelson, Colleen and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2016). Epithelial-mesenchymal axis in head and neck cancer cell lines. Journal of Solid Tumors, 6 (1). doi: 10.5430/jst.v6n1p28
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Perry, Chris, Warkiani, Majid E., Blick, Tony, Davies, Anthony, O'Byrne, Ken, Thompson, Erik W., Nelson, Colleen C., Vela, Ian and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2016). Short term ex-vivo expansion of circulating head and neck tumour cells. Oncotarget, 7 (37), 60101-60109. doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.11159
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Perry, Chris, Jovanovic, Lidija, Nelson, Colleen and Chamindie Punyadeera, (2015). Circulating tumour cells in metastatic head and neck cancers. International Journal of Cancer, 136 (11), 2515-2523. doi: 10.1002/ijc.29108
Conference Papers
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Kapeleris, Joanna, Kenny, Liz, Hughes, Brett, Warkiani, Majid, Vela, Ian, Thiery, Jean-Paul, O'Byrne, Ken and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2020). Abstract 3384: characterization of the tumor microenvironment and liquid biopsy in head and neck and non-small cell lung cancer. AACR Annual Meeting 2020, Philadelphia, PA USA, 27-28 April 2020 and 22-24 June 2020. Philadelphia, PA USA: American Association for Cancer Research. doi: 10.1158/1538-7445.am2020-3384
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Kapeleris, Joanna, Kenny, Liz, Warkiani, Majid, Vela, Ian, Thiery, Jean Paul, O’Byrne, Ken and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2020). Abstract A03: isolation, characterization, and expansion of circulating tumor cells in head and neck cancers. AACR-AHNS Head and Neck Cancer Conference: Optimizing Survival and Quality of Life through Basic, Clinical, and Translational Research, Austin, TX USA, 29-30 April 2019. Philadelphia, PA USA: American Association for Cancer Research. doi: 10.1158/1557-3265.aacrahns19-a03
Kulasinghe, Arutha, Perry, Chris, Kenny, Liz, Blick, Tony, Warkiani, Majid, Vela, Ian, O'Byrne, Ken, Thiery, Jean-Paul, Thompson, Erik, Nelson, Colleen and Punyadeera, Chamindie (2018). Abstract 5572: Circulating tumor cells: The tumor trail left in the blood. Annual Meeting of the American-Association-for-Cancer-Research (AACR), Chicago Il, Apr 14-18, 2018. PHILADELPHIA: American Association for Cancer Research. doi: 10.1158/1538-7445.am2018-5572
Thesis
Kulasinghe, Arutha Jeevana (2021). Circulating tumour cells in head and neck cancers. PhD Thesis, Faculty of Health, Queensland University of Technology. doi: 10.5204/thesis.eprints.110534