Dr Robert Pedley
Robert joined Catapult in 2023 following a PhD in molecular Cancer Studies at the University of Manchester, investigating spatiotemporal protein-protein interactions in response to cytotoxic chemotherapies, and postdoctoral research posts utilising spatial biology techniques (high-plex immuno-staining, laser-capture microdissection in conjunction with LC-MS/MS) to identify biomarker of cancer risk in at-risk patient cohorts. Robert’s current interests […]
Dr Nisha Ponnappan
Nisha joined as a scientist at MDC in 2021 after obtaining her PhD in Biological Sciences from Indian Institute of Technology Delhi. Her academic research focussed on identifying and characterising small peptide sequences from animal toxins that can act as drug delivery vectors in mammalian cells. The work led to an award of patent for […]
Dr Aadarash Zia
Aadarash is a scientist in drug delivery at MDC with 7 years of experience, specializing in the study, design, and exploration of bio-nanoparticles/formulations for therapeutic and diagnostic purposes. Following her graduation, she worked as a researcher at an Oncology & Radiotherapy institute, focusing on developing radiotracer-payload carriers for non-invasive in-vivo imaging. She furthered her expertise […]
Dr Martina Sykorova
Martina is a senior scientist with experience in cell biology techniques and genetic engineering approaches for adoptive therapy. Martina completed her master’s degree in medical genetics and molecular diagnostics at Masaryk University in Brno, Czech Republic, followed by a placement at the Molecular and Clinical Cancer Medicine department at the University of Liverpool. During this […]
Dr Andrzej Rutkowski
While in academia, Andrzej worked in different scientific fields, from oncofoetal antigens to herpes viruses. His projects revolved around changes in gene expression, which is where he developed an array of skills transferrable to biomarker research. While in AstraZeneca, he developed and multiplexed droplet digital PCR assays and used them to monitor cancer-related mutations in […]
Dr Phil Auckland
A chromosome biologist by training, Phil has spent 12 years utilising fluorescence microscopy to visualise molecular processes at the single-cell level. Phil completed his PhD and early postdoctoral studies at Warwick University, where he developed imaging methods to understand the force-generating mechanisms that move chromosomes during cell division. He then moved to Rice University as […]
Dr Rebecca Kelly
Rebecca joined MDC as a postdoctoral scientist in April 2021 following her PhD at the University of Liverpool. Her PhD focused on research into cancer cell migration and invasion using 3D spheroid culture and a range of microscopy modalities, including confocal, TIRF and light sheet. Within the microscopy team, Rebecca specialises in confocal and high-content […]
Dr Martin Main
An ion channel electrophysiologist by training, Martin has spent over 30 years working in the pharmaceutical industry in organisations including Merck, GlaxoSmithKline and AstraZeneca. An accomplished scientist with over 30 publications and 2 patents and a broad range of experience ranging from target validation and reagent generation, through assay development and mechanism-of-action studies, Martin brings […]
Dr Adam Rolt
Adam is a senior scientist within the complex medicines group at MDC. Following a PhD in Chemistry, he carried out postdoctoral positions at the NIH and the University of Oxford, where he was awarded a fellowship and transitioned into a molecular biology role. At MDC, Adam is responsible for the development of novel phenotypic assay […]