Team
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Professor Chris Halsey: Group Leader
Professional: I am a clinical academic paediatric haematologist with a highly translational research programme. My particular focus is on central nervous system (CNS) involvement in acute leukaemia. Current treatments for CNS leukaemia are toxic and there is a lack of novel therapies in this area. This is a major unmet clinical need.
The mission of our research group is to improve outcomes for children with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) by 1) discovering novel drugs to treat CNS-leukaemia that are more effective and have less side-effects and 2) reducing the toxicity of current CNS-directed therapy regimens.
I am Head of the School of Cancer Sciences, University of Glasgow and I am involved in international Paediatric ALL initiatives such as the ALLTogether Consortium (Chair of Scientific committee 2019-2023, lead for ALLTogether4Research 2022-present), the Ponte di Legno Toxicity Group (Chair of the Neurotoxicity working party) and the International Guideline Harmonisation Group. I also have expertise in leading biological sub studies to clinical trials (CSF-FLOW, BioCAN, BRAIN), biomarker research (cfDNA, metabolomics and proteomics) and experience of bringing basic science observations to early phase clinical trials (e.g. SeluDex trial ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03705507). I am passionate about supporting early-career researchers, patient and public engagement in research and team science.
Personal: I love food, travel, the natural world, Munro bagging, and family time with my husband and three sons.
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Sharon Burns: Technician
Professional: I am a core technician in the School of Cancer Science, working within the Halsey group. I’ve worked at the University of Glasgow for almost 30 years and have learned a number of molecular biology techniques.
Personal: I spend my spare time with my family, I enjoy dancing and I love to cook.
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Dr Rhona Christie: Research Assistant
Professional: I am a research scientist with a background in cellular and molecular physiology. In 2023, I graduated with a PhD in Medical Sciences from the University of Aberdeen, where I researched the role of the androgen receptor in urothelial cell carcinoma. I am currently investigating the mechanisms underlying the adaptation of ALL to the CNS niche in the Halsey lab.
Personal: In my spare time I am a freelance photographer and choral singer. I also love baking, sewing, knitting, and climbing Munros.
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Dr Tania Christoforaki: Clinical Research Fellow
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Dr Katy Henry: Research Portfolio Manager
Professional: I am a research portfolio manager in the College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences. I support Chris with management of her research portfolio, including day-to-day management and longer-term strategic planning.
Personal: I enjoy crochet, yoga and spending time with my husband and two children.
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Dr Shirley Lam: Post-doctoral Research Associate
Professional: I’m a Cancer Biologist (PhD from National University of Singapore in 2022) with a keen interest in the metabolism of the tumor microenvironment. Currently I’m exploring metabolic adaptations that sustain B-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (B-ALL) and meningeal cells in the CNS niche. Using advanced metabolomic approaches, I collaborate closely with experts from Wolfson Wohl and Beatson institute. Together we strive to identify novel therapeutic targets for CNS-ALL.
Personal: I’m a big foodie (provided that they are 'healthy' in my definition) and I find rejuvenation in nature’s wonders – snowfall, rainbow and autumn hues. Not a fan of IT and bugs though.
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Dr Anand Manoharan: Post-doctoral Research Associate
Professional: I am a molecular biologist with a PhD in Cell Biology (Albert-Ludwigs-University of Freiburg, Germany). My project focusses on identifying drivers of central nervous system (CNS) involvement in T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (T-ALL). We are working in close collaboration with leading scientists in the field from UCL Cancer Institute, and utilise genome-wide CRISPR-Cas9 in conjunction with multi-omics approaches with an ultimate goal to unravel the underlying mechanisms and therapeutic targeting of CNS driven ALL.
Personal: I am a DIY enthusiast, video creator, and spend my free time aqua scaping, and embarking on culinary adventures. I'm yet to explore the Scottish Highlands.
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Victoria Assmann: PhD student
Professional: I am a PhD student supervised by Chris Halsey and Katrin Ottersbach. My project is focusing on removing non-essential nutrients from the diet of MLL to exploit metabolic vulnerabilities in the leukaemia cells. The target is to find a less toxic way of treatment for infant leukaemia.
Personal: I am quite versatile with my interests. I love creative activities like cooking, baking and painting but I am also a very outdoorsy person who loves to garden or just spend time out and about in the nature. On top of that I am an aspiring paragliding pilot.
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Xenia Bubnova: PhD student
Professional: I am a PhD student at the Paul O'Gorman Leukemia Research Centre. My project focuses on constructing a 3D in vitro model of CNS ALL.
Personal: In my spare time I enjoy travelling, cooking and reading.
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Ilaria Di Fazio: PhD student
Professional: I am a PhD student with a background in Neuroscience. My project involves using clinical data and metabolomics to investigate central nervous system acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (CNS ALL). The overarching aim is to try and improve the diagnosis and treatment of childhood CNS ALL by identifying potential inconsistencies in the clinical setting, as well as candidate diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers within the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).
Personal: I love music, reading and exploring new places. I also enjoy working out and playing the electric guitar.
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Nikolai Gajic: PhD student
Professional: I am an MB-PhD student. My project focusses on Ferroptosis and GPX4 in Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.
Personal: In my spare time I enjoy running, reading and teaching.
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Ekaterini Himonas: PhD student
Professional: I am a PhD student in Cancer Sciences at the Wolfson Wohl Cancer Research Centre. I work on two different projects; the one focuses on identifying and targeting metabolic dependencies in myeloid leukaemia and the other one focuses on targeting autophagy in CNS ALL. Both projects aim to identify novel therapeutic strategies.
Personal: I am a photography lover - I mostly capture sunsets and sky aesthetics - and I am music maniac.
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Past Group Members
- Alex Collings (PhD student)
- Dr Anthony Cousins (PhD completed August 2017) - next post: Consultant Paediatric Haematologist Sheffield Children's NHS Foundation Trust and Honorary Clinical Lecturer, ICS University of Glasgow
- Alasdair Duguid (Clinical Research Fellow)
- Dr Nagla M El Fakhari (PhD completed January 2016) - next post: Completing medical training
- Sheena McGowan - next post: Project manager, University of Glasgow
- Amy Muir (PhD Student) - next post: Post-doc at Paul O’Gorman Leukaemia Research Centre
- Dr Orianne Olivares - next post: Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, France
- Ainy Wahid (PhD Student)
- Dr Mark Williams - next post: Lecturer in Cell and Molecular Biology, Department of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Glasgow Caledonian University
- Dr Yasar Yousafzai (PhD completed December 2014) - next post: Assistant Professor, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Khyber Medical University, Peshawar, Pakistan
Location
Wolfson Wohl Cancer Research Centre
University of Glasgow
Garscube Estate
Switchback Road,
Bearsden, Glasgow
Scotland
G61 1BD
United Kingdom