Dr Julia Steinberg

Senior Research Fellow
E: julia.steinberg@nswcc.org.au

Research

Dr Julia Steinberg’s research leverages large-scale genetic, genomic, and epidemiological data to gain insights into human health and reduce the burden of disease.

Her past work at the University of Oxford and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute used genetic and genomic data to identify disease subtypes of autism spectrum disorder and, separately, of osteoarthritisand to shed light on the underlying biology. Julia’s research has also revealed novel investigational avenues for therapy development, highlighting potential high-value osteoarthritis drug targets and drug repurposing opportunities. 

Julia’s current focus is on the opportunities and challenges of “precision public health” – an emerging field that integrates genetic, genomic, lifestyle and medical data to target the right health intervention to the right people at the right time.  

To help bring genomics to the clinic, Julia is involved in a clinical implementation trial to improve testing for Lynch syndrome, an inherited predisposition to cancer. 

In addition, Julia uses statistical models to forecast the future burden of cancer to inform health system planning and prioritisation of interventions. 

Qualifications

  • DPhil (PhD equivalent), University of Oxford
  • MMath, University of Oxford

Academic affiliations

  • Honorary Senior Research Fellow, The University of Sydney 
  • Honorary Senior Research Fellow, Institute of Translational Genomics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Germany

Current student supervision 

  • Elvin Cheng (University of Sydney) — Epidemiologic risk factors for lung cancer in never-smokers in Australia and China. 
  • David Goldsbury (University of Sydney) — The costs of cancer in New South Wales, Australia. 

Julia Steinberg is available to supervise Masters and PhD students enrolled at The University of Sydney. 

Key publications

Simms K, Steinberg J, Caruana M, Smith M, Lew JB, Soerjomataram I, Castle P, Bray F, Canfell KTimeline to eliminating of cervical cancer: projections of the impact of HPV vaccination and cervical screening in 181 countries: 2020-2099. Lancet Oncology 20 (3), 394-407.

Morrow A, Hogden E, Kang YJ, Steinberg J et al. (2019). Comparing theory and non-theory based implementation approaches to improving referral practices in cancer genetics: a cluster randomised trial protocol. Trials 20 (1), 373. 

Luo Q, Steinberg J, O’Connell D, Yu XQ, Caruana M et al. (2019). Lung cancer mortality in Australia in the twenty-first century: how many lives can be saved with effective tobacco control?  Lung Cancer 130, 208-215. 

Zengini E*, Hatzikotoulas K*, Tachmazidou I*, Steinberg J et al. (2018).  Genome-wide analyses using UK Biobank data provide insights into the genetic architecture of osteoarthritis. Nature Genetics 50, 549–558.

Steinberg J, Ritschie GRS, Roumeliotis T, Jayasuriya R, Clark M et al.(2017). Integrative epigenomics, transcriptomics and proteomics of patient chondrocytes reveal genes and pathways involved in osteoarthritis. Scientific Reports, 7, 8935.

Steinberg J, Honti F, Meader S, Webber C (2015). Haploinsufficiency Predictions Without Study Bias. Nucleic Acids Research 43 (15), e101.

Steinberg J and Webber C (2013). FMRP targets in ASD: single- and multiple-hit genetic etiologies. American Journal of Human Genetics, 93 (5), 825-839.

More publications by Dr Julia Steinberg