Cancer, Infection and Therapeutics (CIT)
The Cancer, Infection and Therapeutics (CIT) research group focuses on identifying molecular drivers and novel targeted therapeutics in cancer. Our work aims to advance understanding of cancer initiation, progression, metastasis, and drug resistance, as well as the complex interplay between infection and cancer.
We employ a multidisciplinary approach that integrates in silico analyses with experimental wet lab studies to address critical questions in cancer biology. Our team brings together expertise from molecular and cellular biology, pharmaceutical sciences, synthetic biology of microbes, and virology to tackle pressing health challenges and deliver research with real-world impact.
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Our team of highly skilled and diverse scientists brings together expertise across a broad spectrum of disciplines, including OMICS approaches, molecular targeting, drug screening, drug resistance mechanisms, epigenetics, proteomics, bioinformatics, molecular docking, gene editing, and 2D, 3D, and organ-on-a-chip technologies. We also have extensive experience in virology, microbial synthetic biology, and the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative diseases.
We actively seek collaborations and partnerships for research grant applications as well as industrial collaborations. Promoting health and well-being is at the core of our mission. We are always happy to connect—whether you have questions or are looking for collaborators in any of the areas mentioned above.
The Cancer, Infection and Therapeutics Research Group is established and led by Professor Eiman A. Aleem, Professor in Biomedical Sciences/Cancer Biology and Therapy, and it includes seven staff members and five PhD students.
- Professor Eiman A. Aleem, PhD in Molecular Cancer Biology, the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the University of Heidelberg, Germany
- Dr Valentina Caputo, PhD in Molecular Genetics and Biotechnology, Open University (joint with ICGEB, Italy)
- Dr Mohammed Mansour, PhD in Cancer Biology, Nagoya University, Japan
- Dr Claire Atkinson, PhD inInfection, and Immunity, UCL, UK
- Dr Julia Mantaj, Pharmacy PhD, King’s College London, UK
- Dr Ruth Gyereh, PhD in Cancer Biology/Haematology, Middlesex University, UK
- Dr Neha Tomar, PhD in Neuroscience, University of Salford, UK
- Dr Joachin Caro-Astorga, PhD in Molecular Biology, University of Malaga, Spain
Affiliated members
- Professor Pierluigi Cocco, Honorary Professor, Centre of Occupational Medicine at the Centre for Occupational and Environmental Health at Manchester, University of Manchester
- Professor James Adjaye, Heinrich Heine University, Dusseldorf, Germany
Current PhD students in the lab
- Christine Jenner Gaskell, MSc
Title: Lifestyle factors associated with cancer incidence and psychiatric disorders: Comparison between the UK and the Gulf Cooperation Council Countries.
This PhD is in collaboration with Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar (WCM-Q).
Doctor of Studies: Professor Eiman A. Aleem
Second supervisor: Dr Ghizlane Bendriss (WCM-Q) - Iman Hikmat Albu-Rghaif, MSc
Title: Novel pathways regulated by the IGF-1R in Cancer
Doctor of Studies: Professor Eiman A. Aleem
Second supervisors: Dr Valentina Caputo, Dr Mohammed Mansour - Stuart Lutimba, MSc
Title: Integrative protein predictive modelling and dynamic simulation for pan-cancer therapeutic targeting of multi-protein oncogenic networks
Doctor of Studies: Dr Mohammed Mansour
Second supervisor: Professor Eiman A. Aleem - Cecily Martin
Title: Piezoelectric Materials for Bio-engineering applications
Doctor of Studies: Professor Steven Dunn, School of Engineering, LSBU
Second supervisor: Claire Atkinson - Sean Paul Doidge, MSc
Title: Nanoparticle bioconjugates for early-stage cancer diagnosis through detection of miRNA
Doctor of Studies: Dr Suela Kellici, School of Engineering, LSBU
Second supervisors: Professor Eiman A. Aleem, Dr Philip Howes (University of Sussex)
Graduated postgraduate students
- Mavra Manzar, MRes
- Mavra Manzar, MPhil
- Baraya Saleem, MRes
- Regulation of Long non-coding RNAs in cancer (Prof. E Aleem)
- Novel pathways regulated by the insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1R) in cancer (Prof. E Aleem)
- The use of AI to predict cancer occurrence and/or progression? (Prof. E Aleem)
- Lifestyle, socioeconomic factors and cancer susceptibility (Prof. E Aleem)
- Protecting vulnerable individuals from infection (Dr C Atkinson)
- Pathogenesis of human cytomegalovirus in the immunocompromised host (Dr C Atkinson)
- Novel vaccine and therapeutics against viral infection (Dr C Atkinson)
- Metagenomics of bacterial populations (Dr C Atkinson)
- Non-coding genome, and epigenetic regulation of gene expression in cancer (Dr. V Caputo)
- Role of oncogenic transcription factors and protein-protein interactions as therapeutic targets (Dr. V Caputo)
- Characterizing the genomic/epigenomic architecture of hyper diploid multiple myeloma (Dr. V Caputo)
- Computational and experimental drug discovery for cancer and neurodegenerative diseases, integrating molecular docking with in vitro validation using 2D and 3D cancer cell spheroids (Dr M Mansour)
- Development of hydrogel-based systems for rectal delivery of cell therapy for the restitution of injured colonic mucosa in inflammatory bowel disease (Dr J Mantaj)
- Investigating the anti-leukemic effects of novel bioactive peptides and their underlying mechanisms using leukaemia or cancer cell lines (Dr R Gyereh)
- Molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying neurodegeneration, with a specific focus on Alzheimer’s disease (AD). (Dr N Tomar)
- Synthetic biology of microbes with a focus on genetic tools and bacterial spores for health, industrial, and environmental applications. (Dr Joachin Caro-Astorga)
- Dr Kristian Schafernak, Associate Professor of Child Health Pathology, University of Arizona, USA
- Dr Ghizlane Bendriss, Assistant Professor of Biology, Weill-Cornell Medicine, Qatar
- Professor Saurav Goel, Professor Mechanical Engineering and Design, London South Bank University
- Dr Matthew Reeves, Associate Professor of Infection and Immunity University College London
- Professor Steven Dunn, Director of the Energy, Materials and Environment Research Centre. London South Bank University
- Dr Suela Kellici, Associate Professor, Lead, Materials Analysis and Device Design (MADD), London South Bank University
- Dr Philip Howes, Assistant Professor in Engineering (Engineering and Design), University of Sussex, UK
- Dr Driton Vllasaliu, Reader in Biotherapeutics Delivery, King's College London
- Dr Monika Holubova, Head of Laboratory of Tumor Biology Biomedical Center, Pilsen, Czech Republic
- Dr Antonella Rotolo, Assistant Professor, Department of Clinical Sciences and Advanced Medicine, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States of America.
- Prof. Karen Liu, Professor of Genetics and Development, King’s College London, UK
- Dr. Amr El-Demerdash, Lecturer in Chemical Biology, University of East Anglia, UK
- Maria Laura Gonzalez Macia, Marie Sklodowska Curie Individual Fellow, Imperial College London
- Dr Paul James, Assistant Professor in Engineering Biology at Northumbria University
- Seung Jay Oh. Research Biologist at US Army Corps of Engineers- Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL)
- Ali Mohammad Banaei-Moghaddam, Assistant Professor at the University of Tehran.
- Juan Luis Paris. IBIMA Plataforma BIONAND, Spain