The University of Sheffield
Department of Human Metabolism

Dr Mark Fenwick BSc (Hons), PhDMark Fenwick

Lecturer

Academic Unit of Reproductive & Developmental Medicine
Level 4, The Jessop Wing
Sheffield
S10 2SF
UK

Office: JW4 57

Tel: +44 (0) 114 226 8277
Fax: +44 (0) 114 226 1074
email : m.a.fenwick@sheffield.ac.uk

Biography

I obtained my BSc (Hons) and PhD (2004) from the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand. After that I came to the UK, where I undertook two Postdoctoral positions in London - firstly at the Royal Veterinary College looking at the effect of negative energy balance on reproduction in dairy cows (2005-2007), and then Imperial College London working on projects relating to early follicle development in the ovary (2007-2012).

I joined the University of Sheffield in December 2012 as a lecturer in the Academic Unit of Reproductive and Developmental Medicine.

Research interests

My current research is focused on the regulation of follicle development in the mammalian ovary. In particular, I am interested in the early, gonadotrophin-independent stages and how various signalling pathways are used to establish gradients and communication networks in a three-dimensional context.

The aim of these projects is to understand how the ovary, with its limited supply of oocytes, is able to selectively encourage some follicles to develop in a timely manner, while others remain in a relatively quiescent state. We use molecular tools and 3D imaging to investigate these processes in ex vivo cultures and draw novel insight from mathematical models. I have also worked with clinicians and my research is motivated by its translational potential within the clinical context of disorders of follicle development such as Premature Ovarian Failure and Polycystic Ovary Syndrome.

Teaching interests

I am the Course Leader for the new MSc in Reproductive and Developmental Medicine starting in Autumn 2013 (see link). Within this course I lead and provide teaching on the Gonads to gametes: fundamentals of reproduction module. I also co-lead the Research project module on this course and provide ongoing training to several postgraduate MSc and PhD research students (see links).

Professional activities

I regularly review papers for international journals in reproductive biology.

Current projects

Key publications

Fenwick, M. A., Mora, J. M., Mansour, Y. T., Baithun, C., Franks, S., & Hardy, K. (2013) Investigations of transforming growth factor beta (TGFβ) signalling in preantral follicles of female mice reveal differential roles for bone morphogenetic protein 15 (BMP15). Submitted

Lavial, F., Bessonnard, S., Ohnishi, Y., Tsumura, A., Chandrashekran, A., Fenwick, M. A., Tomaz, R. A., Hosokawa, H., Nakayama, T., Chambers, I., Hiiragi, T., Chazaud, C., & Azuara, V. (2012) Bmi1 facilitates primitive endoderm formation by stabilizing Gata6 during early mouse development. Genes and Development 26(13): 1445-1458

Mora, J. M., Fenwick, M. A., Castle, L., Baithun, M., Ryder, T. A., Mobberley, M., Carzaniga, R., Franks, S., & Hardy, K. (2012) Characterization and significance of adhesion and junction-related proteins in mouse ovarian follicles. Biology of Reproduction 86(5), 153-14

Fenwick, M. A., Mansour, Y. T., Franks, S., & Hardy, K. (2011) Identification and regulation of bone morphogenetic protein antagonists associated with preantral follicle development in the ovary. Endocrinoloy 152(9): 3515-3526

Mani, A. M., Fenwick, M. A., Cheng, Z., Sharma, M. K., Singh, D., & Wathes, D. C. (2010) IGF1 induces up-regulation of steroidogenic and apoptotic regulatory genes via activation of phosphatidylinositol-dependent kinase/AKT in bovine granulosa cells. Reproduction 139(1): 139-151

Skodras, A., Fenwick, M., Franks, S., Hardy, K., Giannarou, S., & Stark, J. (2009) Object recognition in the ovary: Quantification of oocytes from microscopic images. DSP 2009: 16th International Conference on Digital Signal Processing, Proceedings

Fenwick, M. A., Llewellyn, S., Fitzpatrick, R., Kenny, D. A., Murphy, J. J., Patton, J., & Wathes, D. C. (2008) Negative energy balance in dairy cows is associated with specific changes in IGF-binding protein expression in the oviduct. Reproduction 135(1): 63-75

Fenwick, M. A., Fitzpatrick, R., Kenny, D. A., Diskin, M. G., Patton, J., Murphy, J. J., & Wathes, D. C. (2008) Interrelationships between negative energy balance (NEB) and IGF regulation in liver of lactating dairy cows. Domestic Animal Endocrinology 34(1): 31-44

Hurst, P. R., Mora, J. M., & Fenwick, M. A. (2006). Caspase-3, TUNEL and ultrastructural studies of small follicles in adult human ovarian biopsies. Human Reproduction 21 (8): 1974-80

Fenwick, M. A. & Hurst, P. R. (2002) Immunohistochemical localisation of active caspase-3 in the mouse ovary: growth and atresia of small follicles. Reproduction 124: 659-65