Dr Peter Keane MSc. PhD.

Dr Peter Keane

School of Biosciences
Assistant Professor in Bioinformatics

Contact details

Address
School of Biosciences
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT
UK

Dr Peter Keane is an Assistant Professor in Bioinformatics. In his research he uses multi-omic next-generation sequencing data to understand how gene expression is regulated in the cell, and how this process can go wrong in diseases such as cancer.

Qualifications

PhD. Bioinformatics, University of Galway, 2016

MSc. Bioinformatics, Dublin City University, 2011

BSc. Biotechnology, Maynooth University, 2010

Biography

Peter graduated with a BSc. (hons) degree in Biotechnology from the University of Maynooth, Ireland in 2010. It was here that he started to develop an interest in using ideas from statistics and computer science to learn more about biology, which led him to obtain an MSc. in Bioinformatics from Dublin City University in 2011. He then went on to do a PhD in the University of Galway (2011-2016) where he used NGS data to study how alternative mRNA splicing helps to shape the development of T-Lymphocytes in the thymus.

Peter moved to the University of Birmingham in 2017, where he worked as a postdoctoral researcher in the Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences. There he worked with different types of NGS data, using a multi-omics approach to understand how genes are regulated during the early stages of blood cell development, and how different classes of mutations can disrupt this process to cause Acute Myeloid Leukaemia. Peter later joined the School of Biosciences as an Assistant Professor in 2023.

Teaching

Peter teaches on the MSc. Bionformatics programmes (Distance Learning and in-person) where he covers topics related to computer programming, genetics, next-generation sequencing and the application of various omics technologies. 

He also contributes to several undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in the School of Biosciences, including biological sciences, human sciences and biochemistry. 

He regularly supervises MSc. bioinformatics projects in areas such as epigenomics, transcriptomics and cancer genomics.

Publications

Recent publications

Article

Almaghrabi, R, Alyahyawi, Y, Keane, P, Mian, SA, Habel, K, Atkinson, A, Ward, C, Bayley, R, Sargas, C, Menendez, P, Murphy, GJ, Sobahy, T, Baghdadi, MA, Flemban, AF, Kabrah, SM, Torres-Ruiz, R, Papapetrou, EP, Akerman, I, Raghavan, M, Barragan, E, Bonnet, D, Bonifer, C & Garcia, P 2025, 'A heterozygous CEBPA mutation disrupting the bZIP domain in a RUNX1 and SRSF2 mutational background causes MDS disease progression', Nature Communications, vol. 16, no. 1, 5489. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-60192-8

Maytum, A, Edginton-White, B, Keane, P, Cockerill, PN, Cazier, J-B & Bonifer, C 2024, 'Chromatin priming elements direct tissue-specific gene activity before hematopoietic specification', Life Science Alliance, vol. 7, no. 2, e202302363. https://doi.org/10.26508/lsa.202302363

Davies, N, Francis, T, Oldreive, C, Azam, M, Wilson, J, Byrd, PJ, Burley, M, Sharma-Oates, A, Keane, P, Alatawi, S, Higgs, MR, Rudzki, Z, Ibrahim, M, Perry, T, Agathanggelou, A, Hewitt, AM, Smith, E, Bonifer, C, O’Connor, M, Forment, JV, Murray, PG, Fennell, E, Kelly, G, Chang, C, Stewart, GS, Stankovic, T, Kwok, M & Taylor, AM 2024, 'Genome-scale clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats screen identifies nucleotide metabolism as an actionable therapeutic vulnerability in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma', Haematologica, vol. 109, no. 12, pp. 3989-4006. https://doi.org/10.3324/haematol.2023.284404

Kellaway, SG, Potluri, S, Keane, P, Blair, HJ, Ames, L, Worker, A, Chin, PS, Ptasinska, A, Derevyanko, PK, Adamo, A, Coleman, DJL, Khan, N, Assi, SA, Krippner-Heidenreich, A, Raghavan, M, Cockerill, PN, Heidenreich, O & Bonifer, C 2024, 'Leukemic stem cells activate lineage inappropriate signalling pathways to promote their growth', Nature Communications, vol. 15, no. 1, 1359. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-45691-4

Coleman, DJL, Keane, P, Chin, PS, Ames, L, Kellaway, S, Blair, H, Khan, N, Griffin, J, Holmes, E, Maytum, A, Potluri, S, Strate, L, Koscielniak, K, Raghavan, M, Bushweller, J, Heidenreich, O, Rabbitts, T, Cockerill, PN & Bonifer, C 2024, 'Pharmacological inhibition of RAS overcomes FLT3 inhibitor resistance in FLT3-ITD+ AML through AP-1 and RUNX1', iScience, vol. 27, no. 4, 109576. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2024.109576

Edginton-White, B, Maytum, A, Kellaway, SG, Goode, DK, Keane, P, Pagnuco, I, Assi, SA, Ames, L, Clarke, M, Cockerill, PN, Göttgens, B, Cazier, JB & Bonifer, C 2023, 'A genome-wide relay of signalling-responsive enhancers drives hematopoietic specification', Nature Communications, vol. 14, no. 1, 267. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-35910-9

Coleman, DJL, Keane, P, Luque-Martin, R, Chin, PS, Blair, H, Ames, L, Kellaway, SG, Griffin, J, Holmes, E, Potluri, S, Assi, SA, Bushweller, J, Heidenreich, O, Cockerill, PN & Bonifer, C 2023, 'Gene regulatory network analysis predicts cooperating transcription factor regulons required for FLT3-ITD+ AML growth', Cell Reports, vol. 42, no. 12, 113568. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2023.113568

Adamo, A, Chin, P, Keane, P, Assi, SA, Potluri, S, Kellaway, SG, Coleman, D, Ames, L, Ptasinska, A, Delwel, HR, Cockerill, PN & Bonifer, C 2023, 'Identification and interrogation of the gene regulatory network of CEBPA-double mutant acute myeloid leukemia', Leukemia, vol. 37, no. 1, pp. 102-112. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41375-022-01744-5

Tirtakusuma, R, Bonifer, C, Ptasinska, A, Chin, PS, Cauchy, P, Keane, P, Assi, S, Kellaway, S, Imperato, M, Cockerill, P, Heidenreich, O & Bomken, S 2022, 'Epigenetic regulator genes direct lineage switching in MLL/AF4 leukaemia', Blood. https://doi.org/10.1182/blood.2021015036

Kellaway, S, Keane, P, Edginton-White, B, Regha, K, Kennett, E & Bonifer, C 2021, 'Different mutant RUNX1 oncoproteins program alternate haematopoietic differentiation trajectories', Life Science Alliance, vol. 4, no. 2, e202000864. https://doi.org/10.26508/lsa.202000864

Bevington, S, Fiancette, R, Gajdasik, D, Keane, P, Soley, J, Willis, C, Coleman, D, Withers, D & Cockerill, P 2021, 'Stable epigenetic programming of effector and central memory CD4 T cells occurs within 7 days of antigen exposure in vivo', Frontiers in immunology, vol. 12, 642807. https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2021.642807

Bevington, SL, Ng, STH, Britton, GJ, Keane, P, Wraith, DC & Cockerill, PN 2020, 'Chromatin priming renders T cell tolerance-associated genes sensitive to activation below the signaling threshold for immune response genes', Cell Reports, vol. 31, no. 10, 107748. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2020.107748

Nafria, M, Keane, P, Ng, ES, Stanley, EG, Elefanty, AG & Bonifer, C 2020, 'Expression of RUNX1-ETO Rapidly Alters the Chromatin Landscape and Growth of Early Human Myeloid Precursor Cells', Cell Reports, vol. 31, no. 8, 107691. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2020.107691

Bevington, SL, Keane, P, Soley, JK, Tauch, S, Gajdasik, DW, Fiancette, R, Matei-Rascu, V, Willis, CM, Withers, DR & Cockerill, PN 2020, 'IL-2/IL-7-inducible factors pioneer the path to T cell differentiation in advance of lineage-defining factors', The EMBO journal, vol. 39, no. 22, e105220. https://doi.org/10.15252/embj.2020105220

Letter

Potluri, S, Kellaway, SG, Coleman, DJL, Keane, P, Imperato, MR, Assi, SA, Cockerill, PN & Bonifer, C 2024, 'Gene regulation in t(6;9) DEK::NUP214 Acute Myeloid Leukemia resembles that of FLT3-ITD/NPM1 Acute Myeloid Leukemia but with an altered HOX/MEIS axis', Leukemia, vol. 38, no. 2, pp. 403-407. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41375-023-02118-1

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