Through generous donations, CR@B has been able to offer funds to help cancer research. The
following activities show where your money has gone and how it has been spent.
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Travel Grants
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Hospital Placements
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Cancer Placements
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PhD Studentships
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Seedcorn Grants
Below scroll down to see the details of awards that have been funded.
Travel Grants – completed
Name: Laura Fish
Dept: Biology and Biochemistry
Activity: Molecular Mechanisms of Endocytosis and Exocytosis, 8th Junior Academics Meeting
Details: Laura’s Ph.D project is focused on determining the role of protein trafficking within the
establishment and maintenance of epithelial cell polarity. This has implications within cancer
research as a loss of cell polarity is a hallmark of tumorigenesis and is often a key step in the process
of metastasis. The project is funded by CRUK. The travel grant was used to part fund Laura to attend
the above conference in Edinburgh to present a poster. The conference gave a broad insight into the
trafficking field allowing Laura to expand her knowledge & gain new perspectives to further enhance
her research.
Name: Andy Chalmers
Dept: Biology and Biochemistry
Activity: 2nd International RASSF symposium (13th-16th of July 2011)
Details: Andy used the grant to part fund his travel costs to attend the above conference at the
University of Oxford. Many RASSF proteins are misregulated in cancer and this meeting brought
together active researchers from around the world who are working on understanding the function
of RASSF proteins in cancer. It was an excellent opportunity for Andy to present his work, hear about
the latest work of other groups and establish new collaborations to further his research.
Name: Lorenzo Caggiano
Dept: Pharmacy and Pharmacology
Activity: Mini lecture tour of Boston, US.
Details: Lorenzo used the travel grant from CR@B to fund part of his travel to Boston, US, where he
gave lectures on his research in the design, synthesis and biological evaluation of natural product
analogues which display potent anti-cancer activity. He established new contacts there and
publicised the Cancer Research at Bath (CR@B) network.
Name: Rory Arrowsmith
Dept: Chemistry
Activity: 19th International Symposium on Radiopharmaceutical Sciences (ISRS)
Details: The funding enabled Rory to attend and present at the 19th International Symposium on
Radiopharmaceutical Sciences (ISRS), of which radiopharmaceutical oncology and molecular imaging
of cancer are an important component. The funding made it possible to attend the presentations
given by experts in the field of molecular imaging, meet and have discussions and network with
other PhD students and high profile delegates and industrial partners. This consolidated his
understanding of the wider research field of radiopharmaceuticals for medical imaging.
Rory presented his results obtained over the 2.5 years of PhD, emerging both from synthetic
chemistry experiments and molecular imaging testing. Thus helping to promote his work and that of
the research group he has been working in at the University of Bath and CR@B in a highly prestigious
meeting with the possibility of forming new collaborations. The added benefit of also having the
opportunity to speak and present a poster at this symposium, aiding him to pursue a career in
nuclear imaging and medicine of cancer. Without this funding for his trip it would have been
impossible for him to cover the cost of the conference travel and registration fees.
Name: Zhiyuan Hu
Dept: Chemistry
Activity: NT11 International Conference on the Science and Application of Nanotubes
Details: The grant was used to fund a poster presentation about novel functionalized carbon
nanotubes cancer imaging agent at the NT11 International Conference on the Science and
Application of Nanotubes in Cambridge. Here he could exchange ideas and publicize his research
progress in carbon-nanotube cancer detecting with high profile delegates. He presented how he
designed and synthesized this new fluorescent probe molecule for tracing a range of cancer targets,
such as prostate and breast cancers which have showed major death risk in the world.
Name: Joseph Dukes
Dept: Biology and Biochemistry
Activity: EMBO conference: Endocytosis & Exocytosis
Details: The grant allowed Joseph to attend his first international conference. Being a very large
meeting he benefited hugely from networking with many others in his field, and the feedback he
received advanced his work. Additionally as he was at the end of his current contract it was
invaluable to his career in terms of future directions and opportunities that may arise from such
networking. Joseph presented a poster on a Cancer Research UK (CRUK) funded project which is
looking at the basic cellular mechanisms which lead to invasive tumour tissues (cancer) and
mechanisms that can govern and contribute to metastasis. This work has led to him being able to
identify a novel feature of epithelial cells, and has allowed him to explain for the first time a
mechanism for why the ESCRT proteins are considered tumour suppressors in mammals.
Hospital Placements - completed
Name: Dr Julie Turner-Cobb
Dept: Psychology
Activity: Hospital placement within the Oncology Department, Royal United Hospital (RUH), Bath
Details: The student who received the award was Li Chuin Chan, an MSc Health Psychology student
in the Psychology department. She worked at the RUH alongside Dr Mike Osborn (Consultant Clinical
Psychologist) in the Pain Unit on a 4 month placement from May to Sept 2011. The project was to
assist in developing and to evaluate a leaflet designed to help cancer survivors adapt to life after
treatment. This initial pilot evaluation was a service development project conducted with staff to
assess the appropriateness of the leaflet and to gain insight from their evaluation of the material.
The next step will be to trial the leaflet with patients once the findings from this pilot are fully
integrated into the material. They also used the project to develop ideas for the illustrations on the
leaflet. One conclusion of the project is that the use of a graphic artist to empathetically convey
useful images would be very beneficial and we have used some of the funds to cover this cost.
Li Chuin did a very good project and the placement was excellent.
Name: Alexandar Pool
Dept: Biology and Biochemistry
Activity: Five month placement in the Department of Medical Oncology at St Bartholomew’s Hospital
and the Centre for Molecular Oncology at Barts Cancer Research UK Centre (BCC).
Details: During this placement, Alex worked on the validation of biomarkers of response to oncolytic
adenovirus therapy in primary ovarian cancer cells. Malignant cells are abundant in most ascites
samples in women with advanced or recurrent ovarian cancer. The host lab developed methods to
culture these cells, which can be maintained in vitro for 2 – 3 passages prior to senescence. During
his placement, he worked with the BCC Tissue Collection Officer to collect ascites from women being
treated by my supervisor within the Department of Medical Oncology at St Bartholomew’s Hospital.
After collections, cells were centrifuged and plated in 25% autologous ascites for 72 hours. The
epithelial nature of the malignant cells is verified using immunofluorescence (EpCAM+/Calretinin-),
after which DNA, RNA and protein are harvested.
The host lab had identified three biomarkers of response of oncolytic adenovirus gene therapy using
established cell lines – p21, cyclin D and CEACAM6. Alex’s project involved validation of these
biomarkers in primary cancer tissue. Cell sensitivity to viruses will be quantified by MTT assay and
expression of the three biomarkers will be assessed by immunoblot. He also used qPCR to measure
cell infectivity with adenovirus vectors.
This placement allowed Alex to learn a wide variety of research techniques in a world class research
environment undertaking translational research. After graduating from Bath, Alex is looking to do a
PhD in cancer research in this particular field. The placement gave him the relevant information and
training in both the area and techniques needed. The funding helped go towards the resources used
on the placement as well as helping to achieve a sense of co-ownership on the project.
Cancer Placements – completed
Name: Alex Ciupa
Dept: Pharmacy and Pharmacology
Activity: Placement to work with Dr Andy Chalmers in Department of Biology and Biochemistry
Details: As part of his PhD in the design, synthesis and biological evaluation of novel anti-cancer
drugs, Alex has identified a new class of compounds which display potent anti-cancer activity. These
have been assessed by the National Cancer Institute in the US across 60 different cancer cell lines
and display very potent nanomolar growth inhibition, down to Gl50 25nM (MDA-MB-435). Alex has
identified the disruption of tubulin as the likely mode of action by data analysis and tubulin –assays.
He would now like to collaborate with Dr Andy Chalmers as his research group has expertise and
experience of tubulin. Through this collaboration they will perform cell cycle analysis and gain access
to antibodies specific to tubulin which will further elucidate the mode of action. The funding will be
used exclusively to pay for biological reagents and time in the bioimaging suite exploring the mode
of action in more detail. This proposed work will add depth to the current results, is vital for
publication and will impact on the further development of the project. This placement will generate
preliminary results and potentially lead to future inter-departmental collaborative grant applications
between the research groups of Dr Lorenzo Caggiano and Dr Andy Chalmers and between Pharmacy
and Pharmacology and Biology and Biochemistry in general.
Name: Rory Arrowsmith
Dept: Chemistry
Activity: Placement at the Research Complex at Harwell, Didcot,
Details: This project in cancer research will be held at the Research Complex at Harwell, Didcot,
under the supervision of Dr Stan Botchway, a specialist in cancer cell imaging. This study will improve
understanding of mTOR and its inhibitors, which will enhance the prospects of such drugs in clinical
trials and thus accelerate the advent of personalised medicine. Importantly, in addition to the
publication in a high impact journal, the knowledge obtained from this investigation will facilitate
the development of novel, superior anticancer drugs. It will allow Rory to focus on cancer research
for 1-3 months which will advance his understanding of the cancer metabolism involved and open
the possibility of future career for him working in cancer research.
Name: Eleni Athanasiou
Dept: Psychology
Activity: A four-month placement (May-Sept. 2012) forming part of the 1-year MSc Health
Psychology.
Details: The placement aims to provide supervised practical experience of a healthcare setting,
working together with healthcare practitioners and conducting a relevant research project. The
conducted research project, which aims to develop previous projects, will examine cancer patient
and staff perceptions of the use of a booklet, designed to provide an understanding of the
psychological impact of cancer treatment. Providing information, support and a more human insight
of what cancer patients go through during their treatment, a booklet was developed and evaluated
in previous projects. The evaluation of the booklet based on both patient and staff views suggested
that it contains sufficient information and support and that if it is given on the right time it can be
very helpful. During this placement, Eleni will interview cancer patients and staff-members on their
views of the booklet. The project will attempt to a) provide information on the right delivery-timing
of the booklet, b) suggest the appropriate use of similar booklets by other hospitals and c) examine
whether the booklet can be helpful for cancer patients of all types of cancer and who may even
receive different kinds of treatment. Funding this bursary application is expected to be beneficial
firstly and most importantly for the patients, the Cancer Research at Bath (CR@B), the Royal United
Hospital (RUH) and the RUH staff members, as well as the placement student.
PhD Studentships
In addition, the CR@B meetings have established collaborations and led to publications and funding
for projects. An example is the following PhD studentship:
Title
Prostate Cancer Stem Cells: Potential New Biomarkers
With the following multi-disciplinary team of supervisors:
Dr Mark Beresford (Consultant Clinical Oncologist, Royal United Hospital, Bath).
Dr Rebecca Bowen (Consultant Medical Oncologist, Royal United Hospital, Bath).
Dr Andrew Chalmers (Lecturer, University of Bath).
Dr John Mitchard (Consultant in Cellular Pathology, Royal United Hospital, Bath).
Seedcorn Grants
From generous funding, CR@B was able to fund several seedcorn grants for projects or other
activities relating to cancer research. We were able to fund up to £2500 specific to prostate cancer
research and £2500 in other cancers. Awards were made on a competitive basis and the following
research groups were successful:
Dr Julie Turner-Cobb, Department of
Psychology, University of Bath and
Dr Mark Beresford, Department of Oncology,
Royal United Hospital, Bath
Project: “Facilitating patient decision making
about treatment options for prostate cancer
using visual representation.”
Dr Stefan Bagby (in picture), Department of
Biology and Biochemistry, University of Bath and
Dr Andrew Chalmers, Department of Biology and
Biochemistry, University of Bath
Project: “Structure and function of RASSF7, both
tumour suppressor and oncogene?”
Dr Makoto Furutani‐Seiki (right), Department
of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Bath
and
Dr Chris Meehan (left), Department of
Histopathology/Royal United Hospital, Bath
Project: ”Analysis of YAP/TAZ expression
during the progression of cancer.”
Prof. Tony James, Department of Chemistry, University of Bath and
Dr Matthew Lloyd, Department of Pharmacy and Pharmacology, University of Bath
Project: “A fluorescent high-throughput assay for a-methylacyl-CoA racemase, a novel prostate
cancer drug target.”