Dr Estée Török, Senior Research Associate, Department of Medicine, has been awarded the prestigious Clinician Scientist Fellowship by the Academy of Medical Sciences and the Health Foundation.
The Clinician Scientist Fellowship enables clinicians to conduct research within a clinical setting in order to improve the long-term quality of healthcare. Dr Török’s Fellowship was one of four awarded in the last round which saw 74 applicants.
Dr Török works in Professor Sharon Peacock’s group where her research focuses on translating microbial genomics in diagnostic and public health microbiology. She says, “This fellowship will enable me to look at the feasibility and benefits of using bacterial whole genome sequencing in the clinical setting at Addenbrooke’s Hospital”. In addition to five years’ funding, the scheme offers a leadership training programme, a mentoring scheme, and access to the Academy’s professional networks.
Dr James Nathan, Honorary Consultant Respiratory Medicine, CIMR, has been awarded a Wellcome Trust Senior Research Fellowship in Clinical Science.
The award is for study into how protein breakdown is regulated by the ubiquitin system. Any disruption in cellular protein levels can cause uncontrolled growth, leading to cancer, or the accumulation of misfolded proteins that occur in neurodegenerative conditions. Alternatively, increased protein degradation leads to muscle wasting, a debilitating problem prevalent in many chronic diseases. The major mechanism for controlling protein levels in cells relies on a small molecule, ubiquitin, which is attached to other proteins to signal their destruction. A key question forming the basis of Dr Nathan’s research is how ubiquitinated proteins are efficiently delivered to the cell’s degradation machinery. Using biochemical and genetic techniques he aims to understand how proteins are efficiently selected and targeted for degradation. These studies will not only provide a better understanding of ubiquitin-mediated degradation but also have the potential to identify new therapeutic pathways for common medical conditions.
Dr Anne-Laura van Harmelen, Department of Psychiatry, has been awarded a prestigious RUBICON postdoctoral fellowship from the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research.
The Fellowship, established to encourage talented researchers at Dutch universities to dedicate themselves to a career in postdoctoral research, saw Dr van Harmelen ranked as top student nationally. She received a Doctorate from the University of Leiden in December 2013 and now works within the Developmental Lifecourse Research Group, led by Professor Ian Goodyer, focusing on the neural consequences of childhood emotional maltreatment.
We warmly congratulate Dr van Harmelen, Dr Nathan and Dr Török.
