Translational Medicine

Dr Bee Wee tells us about Palliative Care in Oxford and her research on end of life care and fatigue. Dr Bee Wee is the Head of Palliative Care Research and Development, based at Sir Michael Sobell House in Oxford. Her current lines of research include End of life care for people with incurable cancer and advanced non-malignant disease, Symptom management and Rehabilitation.

Professor Kevin Marsh tells us about his research on Tropical Medicine in Kenya. Prof. Kevin Marsh has a broad research interest in child health in the tropics, with a particular focus in the immune epidemiology of malaria. Prof. Marsh is director of the KEMRI Wellcome Programme in Kenya; he also coordinates the malaria immunology group within the programme.

Professor Yvonne Jones talks about cell-cell communication and how this can help us develop new drugs. Prof. Yvonne Jones is director of the Cancer Research UK Receptor Structure Research Group. Her research focuses on the structural biology of cell surface recognition and signalling complexes. Receptors embedded in the surface are potential targets for therapeutic intervention in many diseases including cancer.

Professor Fredrik Karpe explores the links between obesity and diabetes. Prof. Fredrik Karpe initiated the Oxford Biobank for prospective genetic epidemiological research. Integrative physiological and genomic approaches are used to study lipid and carbohydrate metabolism. Prof. Karpe also studies the links between obesity, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Dr Benedikt Kessler tells us how proteomics helps find biomarkers. In most living organisms, the ubiquitin-proteasome system is responsible for the degradation of proteins, either because they're damaged or they reach the end of their life span. Ubiquitin marks a protein for elimination. Alterations in this process are responsible for many human diseases. Dr Benedikt Kessler studies the role of deubiquitylating enzymes that remove ubiquitin from substrate proteins.

Professor Tim Key tells us about the role of life style and diet in the development of cancer. Prof. Tim Key is interested in the role of diet and hormones in the development of cancer, particularly cancers of the breast, prostate and bowel. Prof. Key is the principal investigator of the EPIC-Oxford cohort of sixty thousand participants, for various studies on cancer, hormones and nutrition.

Dr Katja Simon tells us about her research on autophagy in red blood cells. Autophagy is the cellular process in which cells degrade their toxic waste and damaged organelles. Dr Katja Simon studies how the lack of autophagy seems to trigger DNA mutations and the development of leukemic cells. This might help us make better use of current therapies and develop new ones.

Dr Paul Bowness tells us about his work on spondyloarthritis. Dr Paul Bownessis works on Ankylosing Spondylitis, the commonest form of spondyloarthritis. This rheumatic disease seems to be caused by an overacting immune system. It has a major genetic component: at least 5-10 genes are known to contribute the disease, with HLA-B27 being by far the most important. Dr Bowness studies how these genes work in the immune systems of both healthy people and patients with arthritis.

Dr Cecilia Lindgren explores the links between obesity and genetics. Obesity and its consequences are major and growing challenges for health care worldwide. Over 30 genes associated with body mass index have now been identified. Dr Cecilia Lindgren uses genetic and genomic approaches to better understand the underlying mechanisms and pathways involved in the regulation of overall energy balance.

Dr Hal Drakesmith tells us how his work on iron availability can help us fight infections. Iron plays essential biochemical roles in oxygen binding, ATP synthesis and DNA metabolism. The level of iron available in different tissues is controlled by the small peptide hormone hepcidin. Dr Hal Drakesmith studies how hepcidin is modulated during infections, since iron availability plays an important role in the course of major infectious diseases such as HIV, malaria and Hepatitis C. Genetic variation plays an important role in individual susceptibility to many common diseases. New insights into genetic variants which modulate gene expression allow us to better understand why people develop these diseases. We can then target treatments much more effectively. Ultimately, we will be able to identify patients at risk of developing disease.