果冻影院

What is your role and what does it involve?

I am a Professor of Molecular Neuroscience at 果冻影院 Queen Square Institute of Neurology. I lead a group of super talented researchers who are interested in understanding the molecular mechanisms of Alzheimer鈥檚 disease (AD) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). To do this, we generate stem cells from people with genetic causes of dementia and use these to generate neurons (the cell type that is affected in different forms of dementia) 鈥� allowing us to have personalised 'dementia in a dish'听models which we can study in the lab.

By using cells directly from patients, we can investigate the very earliest signs of cellular dysfunction and develop strategies to prevent this, which could ultimately become new therapies. This is crucial, as there are currently no treatments for AD or FTD that can slow down or prevent the disease. I鈥檓 really lucky to work alongside geneticists, pathologists, clinicians as well as other cell biologists 鈥� we are really embedded in a translational environment that is determined to work for patient benefit.

How long have you been at 果冻影院 and what was your previous role?

I joined 果冻影院 as a junior research fellow in 2009. I was previously a PhD student at KCL, and the end of my PhD coincided with Professor John Hardy moving to 果冻影院 after working in the US for several decades. So, it was a perfect opportunity to join his group and I was a part of a team who set up patient-derived stem cell models for dementia. This went on to form the basis of my junior and senior fellowships from Alzheimer鈥檚 Research UK and became the foundations for my own lab 鈥� I鈥檝e been really fortunate to go from post-doc to professor in my 12 years here and it鈥檚 something I don鈥檛 take for granted.

What working achievement or initiative are you most proud of?

I鈥檝e always enjoyed being involved in public engagement and in 2016 I co-led a takeover of the Science Museum Lates called Lost in Thought, together with Alzheimer鈥檚 Research UK, where we showcased 果冻影院 Dementia Research. There were around 5000 attendees and it was so exciting to engage with such a diverse crowd and see how interested they were in this important area!

I鈥檓 also really proud that we have acted as host lab for In2Science, a scheme which facilitates lab work experience for students from under-privileged backgrounds. As someone who came from a low-income background myself, I really want to hold the door open for others.

Tell us about a project you are working on now which is top of your to-do list?

One of the challenges of our work is that stem cells are a model of development, and we are trying to use them to model disease that appear later in life. Recently, we have started to reframe our thinking about this to see it as an opportunity rather than a challenge: why are young neurons protected? So, we are trying to understand how protein quality control changes during development, and this might give us insights into protective strategies.听In a similar theme, we have been trying to understand whether there are developmental alterations in neurodevelopment that don鈥檛 manifest until later in life.听We鈥檝e also been working a lot with organoids 鈥� or 3D 'minibrains'听as they are sometimes referred to 鈥� which is at the forefront of cell culture technology and super exciting!

What is your favourite album, film and novel?

Album: If You鈥檙e Feeling Sinister by Belle & Sebastian;
Film: I recently saw Moxie, by Amy Poehler 鈥� a good film to watch in the #MeToo era;
Novel: Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe.

What is your favourite joke (pre-watershed)?

Big fan of cheese themed jokes:
What did the cheese say when it looked in the mirror? Hallou-mi!
What cheese do you use to hide a horse? Mask-a-pony.
What cheese do you use to coax a bear out of a cave? Camembert.

Who would be your dream dinner guests?

David Attenborough (I鈥檓 sure everyone picks him!), Grayson and Philippa Perry (Art Club has got me through lockdown!) and Marina Hyde (likewise her columns, which never fail to make me laugh!) 鈥� I bet it would be a fun dinner conversation!

What advice would you give your younger self?

Focus on one step at a time 鈥撎齱e too often see things as stepping-stones on the way to an ultimate goal, but it鈥檚 important to be fully immersed in the present and acknowledge/celebrate the small wins along the way! It also helps to find people who can help you focus on the big picture when things are tough 鈥� setbacks are inevitable, but it鈥檚 important to put things in context and ask, 鈥渨ill this matter five听years from now?鈥�

What would it surprise people to know about you?

I have five听tattoos, on my feet, back and thigh!

What is your favourite place?

I spent 18 months as a visiting researcher in Edinburgh and totally fell in love with Scotland 鈥� I loved exploring the country and spent an Easter weekend on Lewis & Harris which is just breath-taking 鈥� the most beautiful place I have ever been to.

In London my favourite place to de-stress is Barry鈥檚 Bootcamp in Olly T鈥檚 5.30pm class 鈥� I鈥檓 a sucker for punishment!