The group works at the interface between nanomaterials science, chemistry and chemical engineering within the Institute of Process Research and Development at the University of Leeds. We are focused on exploring the relationship between the synthesis of nanomaterials and the resultant structure and performance. Our interdisciplinary team combines the synthesis of molecular and nanomaterial building…
The Isaacson group uses biophysics techniques, including NMR spectroscopy, X-ray crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy, to probe macromolecular structure and interactions of molecules relevant to health and disease. Their research questions, largely BBSRC funded, focus on mechanisms for maintaining proteostasis within the crowded cell in both mammalian and bacterial systems.
Research throughout my career has focused on the regulation, biosynthesis, and genomics of microbial secondary metabolism, primarily that of Streptomyces species. As of Septembrer 2023, the team consists of 3 PDRAs and 3 PhD students. The lab is gateful for support received from BBSRC, InnovateUK, The Royal Society and Wellcome Trust.
he biosynthesis of natural products continues to be a vitally important area of research in the search for new antibiotics, anticancer and antimalarial agents and other biologically active compounds. About 80% of clinically used compounds are natural product derived. The biochemical catalysts which orchestrate the creation of these complex compounds are of immense interest as…
Engineered nucleic acids (xeno nucleic acids, XNAs) use chemical configurations not found in nature to extend their structural and functional scope, and are increasingly a source of novel nanostructures, -devices and drugs. In this project, you will study XNAs designed with specific enzymatic and high-affinity binding functionalities and elucidate structure-function relationships. You will develop and…
Diseases generate microenvironments with differing physical, chemical, and biological properties compared to healthy tissues. In cancer, the tumour microenvironment (TME) promotes progression and therapy resistance of the most advanced therapeutics including ‘smart’ nanomedicines and engineered cell-based therapies. While nanomedicines are limited in tunability of function, cell-based therapies can be engineered to modify their microenvironments (e.g….
Fibrosis is the pathological end-product of a tissue’s response to chronic damage/inflammation including cancer, thus can affect most organ systems and represents a major medical problem. It is defined by dramatic changes in tissue composition and organisation, often including local and global alignment of the extracellular matrix (ECM) that affects the tissue’s material properties and…
Understanding how human neurons transition from axonal elongation to synaptic establishment is critical for modelling neurodegenerative diseases like ALS. This project combines Biomolecular Engineering (synthetic membrane channels and synaptogenic proteins) with Biomaterial Engineering (micropatterned growth substrates) to address the Programmable Microenvironments challenge area. We will engineer Artificial Synaptic Cells (ASCs) incorporating synthetic membrane channels and…
This project is inspired by the pioneering technology developed by PartitionBio (an external partner of the project) for targeted gene delivery, dubbed ‘bubbles’. The bubbles are engineered peptide-based systems that are assembled using liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) and enter mammalian cells by fusing with their membranes via micropinocytosis. The bubbles are unconventional gene delivery systems…
Human health faces constant challenges from environmental insults like infections, cancer, and tissue damage, with the immune system playing a key role in responding to these threats. It has become evident that immune responses are not only shaped by ligand-receptor interactions but also by biomechanical cues from the tissue environment. For example, tumour tissues, can…