LOCATION

Botnar Research Centre, Old Road, Headington, Oxford OX3 7LD

We are funded by a Prostate Cancer UK Research Innovation Award (with Prof. Verrill as co-lead) that aims to identify specific mutations (copy number alterations or single nucleotide variants) that are associated with cribriform prostate cancer. Cribriform prostate cancer is a histopathological subtype known to be associated with worse outcomes. Identifying specific mutations that are associated with the emergence of cribriform prostate cancer can help to identify this aggressive subtype early, and may eventually help tailor therapies (precision medicine). A broader goal of the group is to establish molecular (genomic and transcriptomic) correlates of histological transformation in prostate cancer.

We are interested in developing and applying novel wet lab methods and bioinformatic analysis workflows to establish a genotype-phenotype link. We are currently developing a spatial genomics method to characterise mutations in prostate tissue at sub-millimetre resolution. We aim to integrate these spatial genomics methods with other spatial -omics data and morphological quantitation (in collaboration with Prof. Jens Rittscher). 

We are interested in taking DPhil, Master's and undergraduate students for a combination of wet lab and data analysis projects. Please get in touch with me if interested!

I graduated with a degree in clinical medicine at the Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, India. Following this, I obtained a Master of Science (by research) degree at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras; my research during this period focused on the role of microRNAs in the regulation of the Wnt signalling pathway. I studied for DPhil at the University of Oxford (2010-2014), in the Bone Oncology group headed by Dr. Claire Edwards. My DPhil project involved research into the process of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in prostate cancer cells. We identified a novel regulator of EMT, demonstrating the functional importance of osteomimicry (prostate cancer cells exhibiting features of bone cells) in prostate cancer signalling pathways. 

I also developed novel high-throughput screening methods, in collaboration with the Daniel Ebner group at the Target Discovery Institute, University of Oxford, to quantify migration and cell morphology. Using these techniques I established a large dataset with thousands of data points describing how prostate cancer cell phenotype is altered by microRNAs. From this dataset, we identified several novel microRNA regulators of EMT.

My recent work with Prof. Freddie Hamdy applied DNA and RNA sequencing techniques to identify the evolutionary routes taken by prostate cancer cells during their intra-prostatic spread. In this process, I have developed library preparation techniques to interrogate difficult samples like formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissues and/or limited tissue.

• Bioinformatics - DNA and RNA sequencing analysis, data mining and analysis of large datasets
• Image analysis - image and video analysis
• Cell and molecular biology - Next-Generation Sequencing (WGS, WES, targeted DNA sequencing)

I supervise DPhil, Master's and undergraduate students on wet lab and data analysis projects.

I co-lead the "Intro to R for biologists" and "Data analysis and visualisation in R for biologists" courses for MSD Skills Training, along with Irina and Bea. 

I co-lead the "Bioinformatics – Algorithms, analysis and workflows" elective module for the MSc Genomic Medicine course along with Matthieu.