People

2012 – 2019 Postdoctoral researcher at the Gurdon Institute, University of Cambridge
2007 – 2012 PhD at the University of Dundee, Anton Gartner’s lab
2005 – 2007 MSc at the University of Amsterdam
2000 – 2005 BSc at the Middle East Technical University

Dr Roberta Skukan
Research Technician / Lab Manager

As a fresh graduate, I always wanted to participate in an international project combining genetics and an ecological approach. I got my opportunity and finished my doctoral thesis under the supervision of J. M. Rico and Y. J. Borrell as part of the AQUAINVAD-ed project, funded by H2020-EU.

March 2019 – present Research Technician, University of Norwich, UK
November 2015 – November 2018 PhD at University of Oviedo, Spain
September 2011 – December 2013 Master in Fisheries and Game Management, University of Zagreb, Croatia
October 2010 – July 2013 Master in Experimental Biology, module Zoology, University of Zagreb, Croatia
October 2006 – September 2010 Bachelor of Biology, University of Zagreb, Croatia

Publications
– Skukan, R., Rico, J. M., & Borrell, Y. J. (2021). DNA barcoding-based assessment of the invasive and native non-crustose Codium species in the central Cantabrian Sea, southern Bay of Biscay. Botanica Marina, 64(1), 49–54.
– R. Skukan, Y.Borrell Pichs, J. Rico and L. Miralles, “Find invasive seaweed: an outdoor game to engage children in science activities that detect marine biological invasion”, Journal of Environmental Education, doi: 10.1080/00958964.2019.1688226, 2020.
– T. P. Muha, R. Skukan, Y. Borrell Pichs, J. Rico, C. Garcia de Leaniz, E. Garcia-Vazquez and S.  Consuegra, “Contrasting seasonal and spatial distribution of native and invasive Codium seaweed revealed by targeting species-specific eDNA”, Ecology and Evolution, vol. 9, iss. 15, p .1-13, 2019. 
– Y.Borrell Pichs, M. Montes, R. Skukan, E. Garcia-Vazquez and J. Rico, “DNA Barcoding, a Master Key to Unravel the Past and Present of Exotic Seaweeds in the Cantabrian Sea”, Barcode Bulletin, vol. 8, iss. 1, p. 6-7, 2017.

Dr Aduragbemi Adesina
Senior Research Associate

I studied industrial chemistry at the Federal University of Technology Akure, graduating with BTech (Hon) degree. I also had six-month industrial training experience working as a food and drug quality control analyst at the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control in Nigeria. I undertook an MSc degree in Chemical Biology at Cardiff University and continued at the same university for my doctoral degree after a prestigious international scholarship award. My doctoral training was under the supervision of Prof R.K Allemann and Dr. L.Y.P Luk, investigating the physical basis of catalysis of dihydrofolate reductase from different organisms, including mesophilic, thermophilic and psychrophilic bacteria as well as in humans.

Publications
– Adesina, A. S., Świderek, K., Luk, L. Y. P., Moliner, V., & Allemann, R. K. (2020). Electric Field Measurements Reveal the Pivotal Role of Cofactor-Substrate Interaction in Dihydrofolate Reductase Catalysis. ACS Catalysis, 10(14), 7907–7914.
– Luk Y.P.L., Ruiz-Pernía J.J, Adesina A.S., Loveridge E.J., Tuñón I, Moliner V, and Allemann K.R (2015). Chemical Ligation and Isotope Labeling to Locate Dynamic Effects During Catalysis by Dihydrofolate Reductase. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed.,54, 9016–9020
– Olasehinde, E.F., Adesina, A.S., Fehintola, E.O., Badmus, B.M., Aderibigbe, A.D., (2012). Corrosion Inhibition Behaviour for Mild Steel by Extracts of Musa sapientum Peels in HCl Solution: Kinetics and Thermodynamics Study. IOSR J. A. Chem. 2 (6), 15–23

Dr Tim Pearson
Senior Research Associate

I studied physiology at Southampton University and neurobiology at Durham University. After that, my postdoc positions have related to research in areas of; CNS oxygen deprivation and adenosine (stroke model), obstetric research into pre-mature labour (and IUGR, pre-eclampsia) and skeletal muscle research studying sarcopenia/ageing and the role of ROS, amino acid transport and satellite cells.

Publications
−Enhanced small neutral but not branched chain amino acid transport after epigenetic sodium coupled neutral amino acid transporter-2 (SNAT2) cDNA expression in myoblasts. Pearson, T., Wendowski, O. & Powell, P. (2021). Jnl of Cachexia, Sarcopenia and Muscle. 12(3): 811-822.
−The WD and linker domains of ATG16L1 required for non canonical autophagy limit lethal influenza A virus infection at epithelial surfaces, Wang, Y., Sharma, P., Jefferson, M., Zhang, W., Bone, B., Kipar, A., Bitto, D., Coombes, J., Pearson, T., Man, A., Zhekova, A., Bao, Y., Tripp, R., Carding, S., Yamauchi, Y., Mayer, U., Powell, P., Stewart, J. & Wileman, T. EMBO (2021) 40(5):e105543.
−The ATG5-binding domain and coiled coil domains of ATG16L1 maintain autophagy and tissue homeostasis in mice independently of the WD domain required for LC3 associated phagocytosis. Rai, S., Arasteh, Jefferson, M., Pearson, T., Wang, Y., Zhang, W., Bicsak, B., Divekar, D., Powell, P., Nauman, R., Beraza, N., Carding, S., Florey, O., Mayer, U. & Wileman, T. Autophagy (2018) 15(4): 599-612.
−The role of eEif6 in skeletal muscle homeostasis. Revealed by endurance training co-expression networks. Clarke, K., Ricciardi, S., Pearson, T., Bharudin, I., Davidson, P., Bonomo, M., Brina, D., Scagliola, A., Simpson, D., Beynon, R., Khanim, F., Ankers, J., Sarzynski, M., Gosh, S., Pisconti, A., Rozman, J., Hrabe de Angelis, M., Bunce, C., Stewart, C., Egginton, S., Caddick, M., Jackson, M., Bouchard, C., Biffo, S. & Falciani, F. Cell Reports (2017) 21(6):1507-1520.
−Long-term administration of the mitochondria-targeted antioxidant mitoquinone mesylate fails to attenuate age-related oxidative damage or rescue the loss of muscle mass and function associated with aging of skeletal muscle. Sakellariou, G., Pearson, T., Lightfoot, A., Nye, G., Wells, N., Giakoumaki, I., Griffiths, R., McArdle, A. & Jackson, M. FASEB. (2016). fj.201600450R.

Katarzyna Hencel
PhD Student

I studied at the University of Dundee, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in microbiology. During my studies, I carried out several projects in Dr Sarah Coulthurst’s lab, whose group focuses on studying the type VI secretion system in Serratia marcescens. I will investigate how metabolism regulates RNA modifications in C. elegans during my PhD project. 

Aykut Shen
PhD Student

I completed my BSc at the University of Dundee, Scotland, in Biological Sciences, focusing on bioinformatics. Through the James Black student internship in the Holden Lab at the James Hutton Institute, I had an opportunity to contribute to a project which aimed to improve the new practice of producing foods and medicines, the vertical farms. I completed my honours project in the Simpson Lab in the division of gene regulation and expression, focusing on identifying and characterising non-coding RNAs in the plant model Arabidopsis thaliana. I will use RNA sequencing technologies during my PhD to study RNA modifications and splicing.

John Williams
PhD Student

I completed my undergraduate at the University of East Anglia. My final year project was at the Earlham Institute. I started my BBSRC-funded NRPDTP PhD project in October 2023. During my PhD, I will study how modified RNAs and RNA-modifying enzymes are deposited to oocytes.