Zooming into life at the Jack Birch Unit
Here’s a glimpse into life at the Jack Birch Unit, where scientists have been holding team meetings via Zoom. Professor Jenny Southgate, the unit’s director, says there are several new starters at the JBU including Ryan Ellison, our York Against Cancer PhD student, and Ben Jarvis, a Masters by Research student.
Ryan writes:
I just started a three-year PhD at the JBU. I studied Biochemistry at the University of Oxford for my undergrad, specialising in cell biology and the cell cycle for my Masters. My research interests are in cancer and regenerative medicine, specifically on research that can generate therapeutic outcomes for patients, so I think the JBU will be a great fit for me!
My project will investigate the role played by a protein called PPAR-gamma in driving cell survival and proliferation in bladder cancer, and also look for the involvement of an enzyme, Src kinase, in bladder cancer and if it is implicated in invasion into the underlying muscle and further metastasis.
Ben writes:
I just started my MSc by Research at the JBU. I studied my Biology undergraduate degree at the University of York where, during my final year, I worked in the JBU on a project focusing on signalling pathways implicated in urothelial homeostasis (the balance between function and repair that enables urothelium to maintain a strong urinary barrier). As the research skills I gained during this time were invaluable to me and my interests lie with cancer cell biology, I thought there was nowhere better than the JBU to continue my research journey. Now that I am back for more, my project aims are to delve into the role of eicosanoid (fatty acid) signalling in the urothelium with implications in bladder cancer.