The Aberystwyth team
Our team of researchers are making important discoveries in our area of focus. While everyone is working in their particular field, our collaborative Medical Research Lab means that we are all working towards a common goal. Read on to find out more.
Dr. Chuan Lu
Lecturer in Bioinformatics
Department of computer science
Dr. Otar Akanyeti
Lecturer in Computer Science
Department of computer science
Dr Federico Villagra Povina
Lecturer in Exercise and Physiology
Federico completed his PhD thesis in the area of Motor Control of human tremors in health & disease and undertook his first Post-doctoral Fellowship with Dr William C. Koller in the area of controlling tremor in Parkinson's Disease. His research interests are in the area of Motor control in health and disease and in the application of Exercise as a form of Medicine to prevent and treat chronic diseases.
Mr. Keiron O'Shea
Doctoral student
IBERS
Mr. Dan Bloor
Doctoral student
Department of computer science
Mr. Rob Bolton
Doctoral student
Department of computer science
Prof. Luis A. J. Mur
Principal investigator
Prof. Mur is Director of Reseach for Biology and Health at Aberystwyth University. He uses the latest 'omic' approaches to develop our knowledge of a range of pathologies. He is visiting Professor of UNESP (Sao Paulo) in Brazil, the University of Silesia in Poland, and Northwest University in China. He has "recognised foreign expert" status at Shangdong University, China.
Miss Katie Love
Doctoral student
Katie is currently a 3rd year PhD student at Aberystwyth University, Wales, UK. Her research is focused on using flow-infusion mass spectrometry to discover biomarkers in respiratory disease, with a focus on pleural effusions. Prior to her PhD, Katie earned her BSc Hons in Genetics and Human Health, going on to gain experience in researching host/pathogen interactions in malaria, along with working in the medical device industry and diagnostics services in autoimmune disorders.
Miss Sarah Thomas
Doctoral Student
Sarah has a BSc (Hons) in Genetics, and is in year 2 of her PhD at Aberystwyth University, where she researches microbial and metabolite markers of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. She has interests in antimicrobial resistance and microbiomes, of both humans and in the environments we interact with.
Miss Tracy C. Knight
Doctoral Student
Tracy went to university as a mature student gaining a BSc in Biochemistry at Aberystwyth University. She is now studying for a PhD at Aberystwyth investigating new approaches to screening for prostate cancer, employing novel genetic, metabolomic and proteomic approaches. Outside of research Tracy enjoys reading and movies, alongside spending time with family and friends.
Miss Sumana Bhowmick
Research Assistant
Sumana is a biotechnologist, received a doctoral degree from Aberystwyth University focusing on the natural product chemistry of traditional Chinese herbs. The goal of her research is to develop and apply powerful new multi-omics and computational approaches to gain insights into the chemical and molecular machinery of the multidrug-resistant bacterium and natural antimicrobials against them. Other research activities include validation of protein biomarkers in COPD patient samples and biorefining of plant feedstocks to fine and bulk chemicals including biofuels.
More about Sumana: https://tinyurl.com/jc89hkt6
Miss Aimi Zainurin
Doctoral Student
Aimi graduated with Biochemical-Biotechnology Engineering (Hons) and Masters of Science in Biotechnology Engineering in 2017 and 2019 respectively from International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), studied metabolites and the biological activities of natural products. Currently, she is pursuing her PhD at Aberystwyth University, investigating the novel biomarkers for early detection of breast cancer (BC) & capsular contracture (CC) employing OMICs & artificial intelligence (AI)-based approaches. She is also involved with a chronic stroke management project and an idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) project.
Clinical, local and international collaborators
Researchers with different backgrounds supporting our research from all around the world
Professor Keir Lewis
COPD, Lung Cancer and smart database development
Keir Lewis is Professor at Swansea University, Medical Director of Respiratory Innovation Wales and Consultant in Respiratory Medicine at Hywel Dda University Health Board. He is the Clinical Lead for the Novel Technologies Project and helps to frame new questions on biomarkers and helps identify and recruit patients with various lung conditions into the various studies.
Sarah Bowen
Respiratory Research Assisstant
Sarah Bowen Respiratory Research Assistant at Prince Philip Hospital Hywel Dda University Health Board. She provides day to day admin support for the Novel Technologies project, site file maintenance and co-ordinating sample transfers.
Dr. Scott O'rourke
Research Adviser
Dr O'Rourke graduated from Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry in 2011 and is currently a senior registrar in respiratory and general internal medicine in Wales. He has a special interest in sleep medicine, and is currently undertaking a MD in metabolomics and sleep-disordered breathing at Swansea University.
Company partners
We work with a series of companies that help translate our research into meaningful improvements to patient care.