Biography

I was awarded a BSc (Hons) in Physiological Sciences and a Masters of Research in Neuroscience by Newcastle University, where I stayed to study my PhD under the supervision of Professor Sir Doug Turnbull and Dr Amy Vincent. Titled “Quantitative analysis of oxidative phosphorylation dysfunction in mitochondrial myopathy and ageing”, my PhD focussed on the development, optimisation and implementation of imaging mass cytometry for use with skeletal muscle.

I now work as a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Centre alongside Professor Grainne Gorman and Dr Oliver Russell where my research is focussed around clinical trials and developing potential treatments for patients with Mitochondrial Disease.

Research Focus

Treatments for mitochondrial disease are currently limited to managing the symptoms rather than directly treating the mitochondrial defect. One of my projects aims to discover a novel therapy for a specific group of mitochondrial patients harbouring the RRM2B mutation.

I am also involved in a number of clinical trials within the centre which aim to assess the effectiveness of potential therapies.