Stem Cell & Regenerative Medicine PhD

University of Liverpool

Regenerative Medicine is a multidisciplinary area of study covering stem cell biology, tissue engineering, bioengineering, chemical biology and gene therapy. This is a dynamic and growing area of research with the potential to advance diagnosis and treatment of disease, and improve the way patients are treated.

Overview

A leading international centre for research into the fundamental principles of human physiology. We have recognised expertise in all aspects of modern physiology ranging from the regulation of gene expression to cell, tissue and whole organism biology.

This area of physiology research, utilises state-of-art technologies that enable non-invasive assessment of anatomy and function (MRI), protein expression and reporter gene expression (optical imaging), measurement of blood flow and vascularity (ultrasound) and renal function (photo-acoustic imaging). All have widespread applications for diagnostics and therapeutic interventions in neurology, neurosurgery, oncology, physiology, musculoskeletal biology and other relevant fields.

Research is undertaken within the Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology, an integral part of the Institute for Translational Medicine.

This interdisciplinary research area is dedicated to harnessing the curative potential of stem cells to improve human health, with the central aim to bring life changing stem cell therapies closer to reality. Research is undertaken within the Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology, an integral part of the Institute for Translational Medicine. Research spans from stem cell biology to tissue engineering to chemical biology with a focus on translational research. There are strong links to The Centre for Preclinical Imaging also within the Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology, which provides expertise and infrastructure for non-invasive imaging in pre-clinical models.

Research themes

Research areas specifically focus on:

• Cellular and molecular based regenerative medicine therapies that can treat patients in the early stages of kidney disease, and help to prevent them from developing life threatening end stage kidney disease
• Developing more sensitive and specific methods to detect changes in chronic and acute liver disease earlier and to prevent irreversible liver failure
• Studying the intestinal epithelium to develop both cellular and molecular therapeutics that will stimulate the rapid regeneration of the intestinal epithelium, following intestinal barrier breakdown, as seen in inflammatory bowel disease
• Examining the enteric nervous system, for example researching potential treatments for Hirschsprung's disease, a condition resulting from the congenital absence of ENS ganglion cells in the gut.