Research Interests

Hedgehog signalling, Systemic Sclerosis, Fibrosis, Cancer

I am interested in discovering the molecular details of the very complex Hedgehog signalling pathway in vertebrates. In the past decade, my group published a series of articles on newly discovered "non-canonical" signalling mechanisms and outputs of the Hedgehog pathway in normal cells and we are now interested in understanding this process in more detail and in assessing its relevance in Hedgehog-dependent cancers. Interestingly, some non-canonical outputs are independent of primary cilia, suggesting a competition of receptors for downstream effectors that is biased by cilia.

We have more recently focused on the role of primary cilia as a regulator of the fibrotic state in the autoimune disease Systemic Sclerosis. We are stuyding how changes in cilia morphology affect key signalling pathways, inlcuding Hedgehog, TGFb and Wnt, in cells and tissues isolated form patients.

I would like to present at group meetings organised by individual group leads – please contact me if you have an opportunity.