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School of Biosciences

Biomedicine

Biomedicine lies at the interface of basic and preclinical research and investigates the fundamental mechanisms of the normal and disease processes that influence life-long health - spanning from conception into old age, and from the single cell to the whole organism in its environment.

Research areas

Our biomedical research encompasses three main areas of focus:

  • Developmental origins of disease - elucidating the prenatal and epigenetic influences that impact on later-life risk of disease
  • Mechanisms of health and disease - understanding the physiological, connective tissue, neurological and cancer-based mechanisms of disease including metastasis
  • Disease intervention - the development of therapeutic strategies to prevent and treat disease

Research institutes

PPR
This division has direct links with the Neuroscience and Mental Health Research Institute.

This division has direct links with the Neuroscience and Mental Health Research Institute. Our Biomedicine division also plays a central role in the Arthritis Research UK Centre and Wales Gene Park Genome Editing Facility.

Fellowship and PhD applications

We welcome approaches by potential fellowship applicants whose interests map onto the divisional research areas.

We also welcome applications from PhD students with  research interests that fit our strategic research areas.

Please contact biosi-pg@cardiff.ac.uk for more information.

Staff members

NameArea of interest
Professor Karl Swann - Head of DivisionThe physiology of eggs at fertilisation and embryos during early development
Prof Richard Clarkson - Deputy Head of DivisionApoptosis in normal mammary tissues and in models of breast cancer.
Dr Emma BlainConnective tissue mechanobiology.
Professor Vladimir BuchmanFunctional significance of synuclein proteins in the normal and degenerating nervous system.
Dr Vikesh Chhabria (Teaching and Scholarship)Synthesis of biomimetic nanomaterial formulations for biomedical purposes and development of novel screening technologies for protein aggregation screening of advanced therapeutic medicinal products.
Dr Fernando Dos Anjos-AfonsoBiology of Haematopoietic stem/progenitor cells and their niche
Professor Vic Duance (Emeritus)Structure and function of the minor collagens of cartilage, cell signalling pathways associated with mechanical and cytokine mediated cartilage degeneration.
Dr Ewan Fowler 
Dr Nigel Francis (Teaching and Scholarship)Immunometabolism and immunology education
Dr Julia GerasimenkoMolecular mechanisms of pathological processes in exocrine pancreas.
Dr Oleg GerasimenkoInvestigation of cell death mechanisms.
Dr Sarah Hall (Teaching and Scholarship)Design, development and evaluation of physiology-related teaching and learning activities; authentic learning opportunities in the undergraduate curriculum.
Dr Neil Hardingham (Teaching and Scholarship)Synaptic transmission in the cerebral cortex and mechanisms by which it can be altered; development, plasticity and disease.
Dr Tim Higgins (Teaching and Scholarship) 
Dr Catherine HoganEpithelial cell-cell communication and pancreatic cancer.
Professor Clare HughesCartilage proteoglycan metabolism in osteoarthritis.
Professor Rosalind John -  Deputy Director of ResearchHow Epigenetic Marks direct Mammalian Development and drive Human Disease
Dr Helen Jones (Teaching and Scholarship)Signalling mechanisms involved in cancer biology.
Dr Renata JurkowskaEpigenetic regulation of cell renewal and differentiation in the healthy and diseased human lung
Dr Branko Latinkic Cardiac differentiation
Professor Stan Marée 
Prof Deborah MasonSignalling mechanisms regulating bone and cartilage turnover, in osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis.
Dr Helen McCarthy (Teaching and Scholarship)Biology of both the articular cartilage progenitor cell and a meniscus-specific progenitor cell in human and equine tissue and their potential role in tissue repair and osteoarthritis.
Dr Jittima Muensoongnoen (Teaching and Scholarship) 
Dr Isaac Myers (Teaching and Scholarship)Biological research into the molecular mechanisms of metastasis and angiogenesis. Educational research into anatomical education, professionalism in education, peer learning, and student mental health and wellbeing
Dr Larissa Nelson (Teaching and Scholarship) 
Dr Lee ParryUnderstanding the interaction between diet, microbiota, immunity and cancer.
Dr Girish Patel (Honorary)Skin cancer stem cells.
Dr Helen PearsonProstate cancer translational research, preclinical trials, and PI3K/DNA damage repair signalling
MRC Professor Ole Petersen CBE FRSCalcium signalling: physiology & pathophysiology.
Dr David PetrikAdult neurogenesis and adult neural stem cells in hippocampus and hypothalamus
Dr Toby Phesse Cell signalling and stem cell function during homeostasis, regeneration and cancer in the gastrointestinal tract.
Dr Zoe Prytherch (Teaching and Scholarship) 
Dr Jim RalphsThe synthesis, deposition and organisation of collagenous matrices in highly ordered connective tissues.
Professor Dipak Ramji - Deputy Head of SchoolInflammation, atherosclerosis and regulation of gene expression
Professor Daniela Riccardi (Emeritus)Molecular mechanisms of nutrient sensing.
Dr Kirsty Richardson (Teaching and Scholarship) 
Dr Neil Rodrigues (Postgraduate Divisional Tutor)Haematopoietic stem/progenitor cell biology and its dysregulation in myelodysplasia and myeloid leukaemia.
Dr Hannah Shaw (Teaching and Scholarship) 
Dr Paul Shaw (Honorary)Clinician with basic-science translational research interests in lung and GI cancers.
Dr Florian SiebzehnrublRegulation of tumour progression and therapy resistance in brain cancer.
Professor Matt SmalleyThe role of normal mammary stem and progenitor cells in the generation of breast cancer phenotypic heterogeneity and cancer stem cells.
Dr Katherine Smith 
Dr Shiby Stephens (Teaching and Scholarship)Clinical anatomist with research interest in human musculoskeletal pathologies.
Dr Ye Dee Tay (Teaching and Scholarship)