The role of P2X7R in lysyl oxidase mediated formation of pre-metastatic niche

Project Details: We are seeking an outstanding doctoral candidate to join the Gartland Bone & Cancer Research Group to work on the role of purinergic signalling and Lyslyl oxidase (LOX) in preparing the bone microenvironment for tumour cell colonisation. The project builds upon our recently published observations that LOX is highly expressed in metastatic breast cancer cells, associates with bone relapse in ER-ve patients and prepares the bone for subsequent colonisation ahead of tumour cell arrival by modulating bone cell activity (Cox et al., Nature 2015 https://doi.org/10.1038/nature14492 ).

This PhD project will fully integrate into the research that is currently ongoing in The Mellanby Centre for Bone Research. In addition to the state of the art equipment for bone and cancer research, the wealth of internationally recognised expertise available within Sheffield on bone and cancer will be of substantial added value to the project and the PhD candidate enabling them to become a leading bone cancer researcher of the future. The candidate will have an excellent opportunity to undertake high quality research within a stimulating multi-disciplinary context.