Investigation of the critical roles of platelets at the interface between thrombosis and inflammation in order to develop improved therapeutic strategies for the treatment and/or prevention of cardiovascular/inflammatory diseases

About the Project

Platelets (small circulating blood cells) are involved in blood clotting to prevent excessive bleeding, however, their inappropriate activation under pathological conditions leads to thrombosis resulting in major cardiovascular diseases such as heart attack and stroke. Due to their high number in the circulation, platelets also act as sentinels through controlling immune/inflammatory responses. Our recent achievements in platelet research include the discovery of a new phenomenon of intercellular communication between platelets through gap junctions and its importance for the synchronised functions of these cells within blood clots. Furthermore, we have investigated the significance of inflammatory receptors such as FPRs and TLRs, and inflammatory molecules including LL37, fMLF and Lipoxin A4 on the regulation of platelet activation and signalling during various pathophysiological settings. We are currently investigating the orchestrated functions of a range of inflammatory receptors present on the blood cells such as platelets, monocytes and neutrophils on the regulation of multicellular interactions and their significance in the progression of inflammatory/cardiovascular responses.

Furthermore, with the support of specialists in the field of pharmaceutical and medicinal chemistry, we are involved in the isolation and characterisation of therapeutically valuable constituents from herbal plants to modulate platelet reactivity under pathological conditions. Likewise, we also apply synthetic chemistry to generate cell-target specific molecules in order to control thrombosis and inflammatory responses.

Overall, a project is available within our laboratory either to determine the functions of a receptor and elucidate its signalling mechanisms within platelets, or to isolate/synthesise and functionally characterise therapeutically valuable components to control platelet function under various pathophysiological settings. The PhD student will have splendid opportunities to learn a broad spectrum of techniques in the field of cell and molecular biology, pharmacology, biochemistry, physiology, biophysics and pharmaceutical/medicinal chemistry.

Funding Notes

• Applicants should hold or expect to gain a first class (or minimum of a 2:1) bachelor’s degree in relevant disciplines in life sciences.
• Applicants must demonstrate excellent knowledge and some practical skills in cell biology.
• They should demonstrate good communication skills.
• Students with their own financial support are welcome to contact us at any time