Katarzyna (Kasia) Piróg (Senior Lecturer)– Kasia completed her PhD at the University of Manchester, generating and characterising transgenic models of chondrodysplasias. She then broadened that research scope to include investigation of other musculoskeletal tissues such as tendon, ligament and skeletal muscle, looking at the cell’s reaction to the production of mutant protein as well as the changes in the extracellular matrix and their biomechanical implications. She is specifically interested in cell-matrix interactions in musculoskeletal tissues in development, disease and during ageing. She is a member of the Editorial Board for Matrix Biology and Matrix Biology Plus journals, and is passionate about disseminating science and engaging with the public. She led a WP9 (Dissemination, training and commercialisation) package of the EU-FP7 SYBIL project, a Genomic Medicine PPI Working Group at the Institute of Genetic Medicine (IGM) in Newcastle, and chaired the IGM Public Engagement committee (2013-2019). She is currently a public engagement WP lead in the MSCA CHANGE DN project and the Chair of the Bursary Committee and an ex-officio committee member of the British Society of Matrix Biology (BSMB) Organising Committee.

Francesca de Sousa Brito (Research Associate) is a post-doctoral researcher in the lab, kindly funded by the JGW Patterson Foundation. Francesca joined us in January 2020 on a Dunhill Medical Trust funded project to generate a panel of genetic models and investigate the role of an SLRP in in age and injury-related (DMM surgery) osteoarthritis. Francesca obtained her PhD in Liverpool looking at the role of syndecans in musculoskeletal ageing and has expertise and keen interest in investigating molecular pathways leading to cartilage and bone ageing and disease.

Marc Farcasanu (PhD student) – Marc joined us in April 2021 on an NC3Rs funded PhD project to further refine our tissue engineered models of articular and growth plate cartilage using various hydrogel formulations and bioprinting, and to look at how different compression regimes, age and disease affect mechanosensing in zonally stratified compressible models of cartilage. Marc’s project is co-supervised with with Dr Ana Ferreira-Duarte from the School of Agriculture and Engineering (SAgE) at Newcastle University.

Anna Porter (clinical PhD student) – Anna joined us in June 2023 on a project using molecular biology, tissue engineering and systems biology approaches to understand the rebound phenomenon and the mechanical responses experienced by the chondrocytes in growth plates of chondrodysplasia patients undergoing the hemiepiphysiodesis guided growth surgery, with an aim of refining the management and interventions in patients with rare skeletal diseases. Anna is co-supervised with Dr Kenneth Rankin from the Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. 

Roufaida Bouchenafa (PhD student) – Roufaida is passionate about academic research in biology and biomedical sciences, with interest in the interdisciplinary approach of biology, technology, and engineering, and nanotechnologies to target disease mechanisms. She joined us in July 2023 for a 3 year PhD project as part of the EU Horizon Europe CHANGE MSCA network, to investigate the age-related complications in rare skeletal dysplasia. Roufaida is co-supervised by Prof Michael Briggs from the Biosciences Institute (NUBI) at Newcastle University.

Maria Lazari (PhD student) – Maria is a PhD student funded by the Food and Environmental Research Agency (FERA) to study aggregation of muscle tissue in vitro, and assess its bioreactor compatibility and the nutritional profile. Maria is co-supervised by Dr Pirog and Prof Che Connon who leads on the project, and will perform her experiments at Newcastle University, UCL and FERA as part of her PhD.