Student project:
Understanding the effects of immunomodulatory therapies on radiation response

Dying cancer cells are thought to be a rich source of tumour antigens and danger signals into the tumour microenvironment. Work from the Olcina lab has found that targeting complement can increase tumour cell death following radiotherapy which may in turn modulate anti-tumour immune responses. However, how to productively harness these responses to maximise productive inflammation while limiting normal tissue toxicity is still unclear. To uncover these mechanisms, we will explore modes of cell death following complement inhibition.

Our group works in a collaborative and multidisciplinary manner. We are interested in a basic to translational approach to science, so we collaborate with clinicians and use patient samples or clinical data whenever possible. We also have experience working with in a range of model systems ranging from cell lines to in vivo mouse models. Students can also expect to receive training in bioinformatics and cell and molecular biology techniques.

My group works to understanding how tumours thrive in the tumour microenvironment and aim to identify druggable tumour-specific vulnerabilities that can improve tumour response and reduce treatment-induced toxicity.

Specific projects currently being undertaken in the lab include:

1. Investigating mechanisms underlying normal tissue recovery following treatment-induced injury

- This work includes identifying key players in restoring homeostasis following injury.

2. Understanding the causes and consequences of complement system dysregulation in the tumour microenvironment

- We work to understand how and why this dysregulation occurs, including the impact of hypoxia on regulating complement protein expression and function within the tumour microenvironment. We are also interested in the effects of complement inhibition on cell death and immune cell recruitment and function in the tumour microenvironment.

3. Understanding and targeting glioma-immune cell interactions in paediatric high-grade glioma (pHGG) to improve immune- and radiotherapy responses

- This work is being undertaken as part of the EU-HORIZON HIT-GLIO consortium (more information here), where the Olcina and Hammond groups are leading efforts to understand mechanisms of radiotherapy resistance that may be therapeutically targeted in pHGG.

Dr Lolita Lolita Singh - Postdoctoral Scientist

Kelly Lee - DPhil student (joint student with Prof Hammond)

Qingyang Zhang - DPhil Student (joint student with Dr Bashford-Rogers)

Heather Clark - DPhil Student (joint student with Dr Progatzky and Prof. Buczacki)

Dominika Majorova -DPhil Student

Isabel Barnfather - DPhil Student

Dr Fränze Progatzky, The Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology, University of Oxford

Prof. Bozena Kaminska, Laboratory of Molecular Neurobiology, Nencki, Poland

Prof. Chris Jones, The Institute of Cancer Research, London

Dr Silvia Guglietta, Medical University of South Carolina

Prof. Trent Woodruff, School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Queensland

Prof. Adel Samson and Dr Robert Samuel, St. James’s University Hospital, Leeds

Dr Eleanor Cheadle, Uniersity of Manchester

Prof. Simon Buczacki, Nuffield Department of Surgical Sciences, University of Oxford

Tatsuya Suwa (2022 - 2025), Postdotoral Scientist - now Assistant Professor, Department of Radiation Oncology and Image-applied Therapy, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Japan 

Ian Chai (2023-2025),  MSc Student in Radiobiology and Research Assistant - now PhD student, ICR, Lonodn

David MacLean (2021-2023), Research Assistant – now PhD student, Cancer Research UK Beatson Institute, Glasgow

Shivanki Sahay (Apr- Aug. 2022), MSc Student in Radiobiology – now Scientific Officer, ICR, London

Hongyu Man (Apr- Aug. 2021), MSc Student in Radiobiology – now PhD student, King’s College, London