Research Interests

• Law and development
• Corporate governance
• Company law
• Financial regulation
• New Institutional Economics

Areas of Research Supervision 

• Law and development
• Corporate governance
• Financial regulation

Member of Sheffield Institute of Corporate and Commercial Law.

Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Finance

Junhong welcomes PhD applications in the areas of his research interests including Corporate finance (e.g. ESG, Innovation and M&As), Financial Technology, Social Finance (e.g. Social Media), the Economics of Transition in China, Financial Inclusion, Financial Economics, Political Finance and Behavioral Finance and PhD applicants with strong backgrounds in Data Science, Text Analytics, Statistical Computing and Machine Learning.

Research Interests

My research focuses on four interconnected themes: (i) the rise of the private security and private military industries in the postwar era; (ii) corresponding issues of governance, regulation and legitimacy in the security and military sectors; (iii) the conceptual and empirical connections between war and crime; and (iv) the changing nature of state-market relations. These interests are multidisciplinary, lying at the intersection of criminology, politics, international relations and socio-legal studies.

Member of the Centre for Criminological Research Cluster

Areas of Research Supervision

• Policing
• Soldiering
• Privatisation
• Regulation
• War

Research interests

Alberto’s research interests lie in the area of financial markets and banking. A central theme of his work has been the interaction between financial markets, monetary policy and the real economy at both a national and regional level. Recently his work has focused on various areas of behavioural finance and macroeconomics.

Alberto is interested in supervising PhD students with topics that are in line with the research interests described above.

Chair in Accounting and Society

Adam's current research interests include:

• using social network analysis methods to map the social relationships that underlie certain complex securities markets
• developing a relational theory of the firm to understand the impact of financialization in the corporate sphere
• exploring the inter-temporal transfers and tensions that arise as a consequence of financialization
• theorising the relations between accounting and the built environment.

Daniel’s research interests include the area of subjective well-being with a particular focus on the role of the household’s financial position. In addition, he is currently interested in household financial portfolio allocation and the effects of education on financial decision making.

More generally he is interested in applied microeconometrics and, in future, he would like to further explore these areas in addition to developing new research interests.

Daniel is looking to supervise PhD students in the area of household finances and applied microeconometrics.

Research interests

Sarah's research interests lie in the area of applied microeconometrics focusing on labour economics, the economics of education and, more recently, household financial decision-making. Her research has focused on individual, household and firm-level data as well as matched workplace-employee data.

Examples of research projects include empirical analysis of the reservation wages of the unemployed (funded by the ESRC) and empirical analysis of wage growth, human capital and risk aversion (funded by the Leverhulme Trust). Her current research focuses on household financial decision-making and attitudes towards risk. Sarah is interested in supervising PhD students in applied microeconometrics.

Research interests

Andy's research interests are mainly applied, and are focussed on the operation and functioning of labour markets, the interaction between financial and product markets and the labour market, and the analysis of micro and longitudinal data, including matched datasets. Recent research has been funded by the Low Pay Commission, DfES, DEFRA, DCFS, Department for Food and Rural Affairs, and the Scottish Executive. His current research includes: examining variations in returns to qualifications of various kinds in the UK; the incidence and intensity of workplace training; on child poverty; and the measurement of subjective expectations using survey data.

Andy supervises PhD students across a broad range of applied labour economics topics. Currently, these include: wage inequality, work and life satisfaction, commuting behaviour, skills and employment outcomes, and international gender inequality.

Emily’s research focuses on time series and financial econometrics. Some of her current areas of interest are:

• Explosive autoregressive processes with applications to the detection and dating of asset price bubbles
• Real time monitoring of economic and financial time series
• Structural breaks in volatility
• Forecast evaluation
• Nonlinear unit root testing

Emily is interested in supervising graduate research in the areas of time series and financial econometrics (both theoretical and applied).

Research Interests

My research is focused on advanced breast and prostate cancer with particular emphasis on bone metastases. Primarily, this involves using a complement of in vitro and in vivo model systems to investigate the molecular alterations responsible for metastases to bone and response to treatment. Metastases are a result of a stepwise accumulation of genetic/epi-genetic mutations promoting distinct molecular alterations that drive different stages in the metastatic process; mutations involved in intravasation are not the same as those involved in tissue homing and colonisation. Importantly, molecular alterations acquired by tumour cells have profound effects on cytokine production and immune cell regulation. My research team hypothesise that cytokine driven changes to the tumour immune environment promotes metastatic spread and that pharmacological regulation of immunity may provide effective treatment methods for, currently incurable, bone metastasis. The aims of my research are to: (A) Identify specific molecular and immune cell regulatory determinants involved in tumour cell intravasation, homing to bone and colonisation of the metastatic site. (B) Decipher how these determinants impact on treatment efficacy in different cancer subtypes. (C) Establish more effective treatments for metastatic breast and prostate cancers.

Lecturer in Employment Relations

Edward Yates is a Lecturer in Employment Relations in the School of Management at the University of Sheffield.

Edward is a member of the Centre for Decent Work (CDW) located within the Management School.

Edward’s research explores the relationship between processes of political economy, state regulation, employment relations and labour market outcomes. He is particularly interested in the behaviour of local labour markets, in particular for young workers. Edward’s current research is organised into four main areas:

1. Local labour markets. Specifically how processes of capitalist accumulation manifest in and through local labour markets and how this is expressed in the behaviour of local state actors, local employers, and workers.
2. State regulation of work, employment, and labour markets. In particular how shifts in the global economy in the last 50 years have impacted upon state policy for labour market regulation and what this means for workers.
3. Young workers. Edward’s research examines central and local government policy regarding young workers, wage-rates for young workers, conditions of work and employment, skills and training provision, and the theoretical development of a ‘political economy of youth’.
4. Work, employment and labour markets in the NHS. This strand of research explores contemporary conditions of work and employment in the NHS for different staff groups and occupations.
   • The research examines: the intensification of working conditions in the NHS, processes of churn and attrition, pension changes, the role of trade unions and professional organisations in the NHS, and NHS financing.

In addition to these four research areas Edward is interested in the theoretical development of critical, global political economy, and in research methodologies.

Research interests

Karl's research interests lie in the area of applied microeconometrics focusing on labour economics, the economics of education and, household financial decision-making. His research has focused on individual, household and firm-level data including matched workplace-employee data. Examples of research projects include empirical analysis of the reservation wages of the unemployed (ESRC) and empirical analysis of wage growth, human capital and risk aversion (Leverhulme Trust). He has been involved in advisory reports for the Home Office and more recently the Department of Health looking at the minimum pricing of alcohol. Karl is interested in supervising PhD students in applied microeconometrics.

I am a lecturer at the School of Law, University of Sheffield. My research focuses mainly on English criminal law and comparative criminal law. I also have broad interests in philosophy of criminal law, Chinese criminal law and justice and criminal policy. My doctoral research focused on derivative complicity liability in English criminal law and a monograph based on this has been returned for REF2021.

Research Interests

• Theories of Criminalisation
• English Criminal Law
• Chinese Criminal Law and Justice
• Cyber Security and Criminal Law
• White Collar and Financial Crimes
• Gender and Law

Research interests

We are particularly interested in bacterial colonisation of the host, in relation to how bacteria perceive surfaces and their subsequent interactions. This had led to the research directions of investigating surface (swarming) motility and glycosylation of the bacterial flagellum with unusual sugars that can be potential targets for anti-microbial therapy.

Use of Aeromonas species as model systems for bacterial colonisation, environmental adaptation and protein glycosylation

Aeromonas spp. are an increasingly important cause of gastro-enteritis, with A. caviae being important in the causation of paediatric diarrhoea. However, there is little known about the pathogenicity determinants of this organism. Some strains of Aeromonas express two distinct flagella systems, a polar flagellum for swimming in liquid environments and many lateral flagella for swarming over surfaces, both are involved in colonisation. Possession of two types of flagella provides a natural reporter system for investigating how bacteria sense surfaces, or for dissecting the bacterial sense of touch. We are also interested in the genetic cross-talk between the flagellar systems and the type 3 secretion systems (T3SS).

Aeromonas glycosylates its flagellum with the sugar pseudaminic acid, this is essential for flagellar filament assembly and motility. This sugar is also found on the flagellin proteins of Campylobacter jejuni and Helicobacter pylori. We are elucidating the flagellar glycosylation process at the molecular level. We are interested in developing sugar analogues to inhibit the glycosylation process that could possibly be used as a novel form of anti-microbial therapy.

Studies into the virulence and physiology of  the pathogenic Neisseria

Neisseria meningitidis is a major cause of bacterial meningitis. Although quite a lot is known about the organism's virulence factors, there is very little information available about the organism's carbon metabolism. We are investigating the growth and metabolic characteristics of N. meningitidis through the use of 13C-NMR and enzyme assays, with the emphasis on growth on lactate. This will enable us to find out what metabolic pathways the organism uses in CSF (in vivo) and find out if any unique enzymes are present which can be rationally targeted for antimicrobial therapy. The role of these pathways in the organisms pathogenesis are also being considered. We are also investigating the role of the global regulator Lrp (leucine responsive regulatory protein) and the stringent response of N. meningitidis in pathogenesis.

Richard’s research interests lie in the interaction between finance, social reproduction and urban space, exploring how these combine to shape housing geographies. His PhD, submitted in 2017, analysed financialisation’s impact on social housing regulation. Richard’s other roles included the Urban Institute’s Housing Futures project, and exploring the interaction between housing, race and debt with colleagues at the Universities of Nottingham and Manchester.

Richard has an interdisciplinary background. His undergraduate and Masters degrees were based in Politics at the University of Manchester and his PhD was based in Sheffield’s School of Law. Before academia he volunteered with asylum and refugee charities and was a freelance journalist for publications including Red Pepper magazine.

Richard's current research interests include:

• Using “follow the money” techniques to analyse the connections between financial networks and urban space.
• Exploring the instabilities and frictions generated within the financialisation of housing and social care, and the implications for tenants and residents.
• Developing a relational comparative perspective for analysing state capitalist investment in real estate, and how these investments are materialised through urban geo-politics and geo-economics.
• Drawing on qualitative methodologies to explore gentrification, displacement and anti-racist approaches to housing.

Research Interests:

Raslan’s research interests lie in the field of household finance. His work focuses on linking households’ financial behaviour to the macroeconomic environment and on exploring the drivers of household financial decisions at the micro level. 

Raslan's current research explores the relationship between trust in the financial system and households' financial decision making.  More broadly he is interested in factors that influence household financial portfolio allocations.  

In addition, Raslan's work on households’ financial behaviour has developed to consider the implications of housing affordability and whether it should be extended beyond objective economic criteria and include households’ subjective dimensions.

Matt’s research is focused on the finance of climate change and biodiversity loss. His work studies how market participants respond to environmental risks, and how the financial system may suffer from rising temperatures and lost ecosystem services. Matt also maintains interests in broader financial and economic problems.

My academic interests concern administrative law and market regulation. In my research, I focus on government buying and selling. I have published on various aspects of UK and international public procurement regulation, and I am currently researching the legal side of major government auctions. My research uses empirical methods, qualitative and quantitative, and, related to this, I have a growing interest in the research field of empirical industrial organisation.

Research interests

• Administrative law
• Regulation
• Public Procurement Regulation
• Government contracts
• Competition regulation
• Law and economics
• Empirical legal research
• Socio-legal studies

Head of Accounting & Financial Management Subject Group

Research interests

Shuxing's research interests include corporate finance, corporate governance, market efficiency and anomalies. She has acted as referee for Journal of Corporate Finance, Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, British Accounting Review, European Journal of Finance.

She welcomes PhD applicants in the field of corporate finance, particularly focusing on Chinese (mainland and Hong Kong) markets, initial public offerings and market efficiency.

Research Interests

Replication and gene regulation in papillomavirus.
Structure and function of helicases and replication/transcription control proteins.
DNA helicases involved in the DNA damage response and their potential as therapeutic targets in cancer.

• Governance and public policy
• Democratic reform and engagement
• The analysis of delegation and autonomy, models and forms of accountability
• Comparative managerial change
• Legislative studies
• Risk and risk regulation regimes
• Depoliticisation
• Politics of public expectations

Research Interests

My group uses the zebrafish as a model organism to study the development of the inner ear in the embryo and the genetic causes of deafness. We are interested in early patterning and evolution of otic structures, disease modelling and fluid regulation in the ear.

Read more (link to the Centre for Developmental and Biomedical Genetics)

How do cells integrate information to make decisions about what genes should be expressed at a given time and in a given place? How do these processes malfunction to produce disease states? The correct regulation of gene expression is essential for the proper functioning of the cell, and incorrect regulation of genes is central to the mechanisms of many diseases. My interests rest in understanding how the many levels of eukaryotic gene regulation work together to perform these functions, using computational and functional genomics tools.

The role of microRNAs in regulatory networks

microRNAs (miRNAs) are short, single stranded RNAs that act to down regulate the expression of their targets by transcript destabilisation and translational inhibition. What roles to these molecules play in the information processing systems of the cell? How might these roles differ from that provided by transcriptional inhibitors? We know that miRNAs are found enriched in different topologies of network motifs than transcription factors. What might explain this?

Mathematical modelling suggests that miRNAs might threshold the expression of their target genes, only allowing protein production once transcription exceeds a particular rate. However, thus far experimental tests of this model are lacking in realistic in vivo settings. We are studying evidence that might speak to the applicability of this model in real biology, and studying the consequences of this behaviour on regulatory networks and the identification of miRNA targets.

Misregulation of chromatin structure in disease

A cell’s DNA does not exist as a single extended string of nucleic acids in the way often imagined, but rather is packed and folded in a myriad of ways to form a complex three dimensional structure. At least some of this structure is thought to be important for the regulation of gene expression. Transcription of metazoan genes is regulated by sequences known as enhancers which integrate diverse signals to make decisions about expression, and then communicate these decisions through their interactions with promoters. This communication is thought to take place via physical interactions between promoters and enhancers.

Together with collaborators from the Imperial University we are investigating how this three dimensional structure might contribute to the miss-regulation of gene expression in both monogenic disease and cancer using high-throughput, next-generation sequencing based assays of chromatin conformation.

My research focuses on understanding how plant cell walls are assembled and maintained. Cell walls are incredibly complex polysaccharide networks that have crucial roles during plant development, including the regulation of cell expansion and plant growth. I am particularly interested in understanding how different components of the cell wall interact at a biochemical level and how these interactions impact plant growth and physiology.

I joined Sheffield University as a Lecturer in 2021. Previously I was a Leverhulme Early Career Fellow based at Glasgow University where I taught modules in Land Law and Legal Theory.

My research is on property and private law aspects of platform and digital economies, including issues relating to regulation and consumer rights. Currently I am working on the topic of risk in property and sharing economies.

Research interests

• Commercial Law
• Digital Economy
• Contract Law
• Property Law and Theory
• Law and Economics

Senior Lecturer in Accounting and Financial Management

Research Interests

Beat’s research interests revolve around firms transitioning from private to public ownership, including initial public offerings (IPOs), venture capital, private equity, and market risk. His work also involves artificial intelligence applications in the area of finance.

PhD Supervision

Beat would welcome proposals from potential doctoral students wishing to work in the field of initial public offerings (IPOs), venture capital, private equity, and market risk. He would also be very interested in supervising projects on applications in the area of finance.

I have been teaching and researching issues relating to health law and ethics, and family law (particularly relating to children) for over 20 years and I am passionate about these subjects. I have also taught Criminal Law, English Legal Systems/Legal Methods, and Gender and the Law.

Research interests

Health care law and ethics generally - specifically:

• Consent and Capacity
• Decision Making for the 'Vulnerable'
• Risk and Regulation
• Clinical Research Involving Human and Non-human Animals
• Developing and Emerging Biotechnologies (such as xenotransplantation)
• Reproduction and Reproductive Technologies
• Organ Donation and Transplantation
• Conscientious Objection

Family law:

• Parents, Parenthood and Reproductive Technologies
• Children and Health
• Children and Childhood

Professor of Organisational Studies

Damian's research focuses on issues of power, knowledge, identity and control in complex organisations and on the management of experts/professionals in these settings. He has developed these interests through research in a range of industries including financial services, creative industries, R&D and engineering. However, his primary research interest is on the transformation of health and care, with a particular focus on the organisational and policy dimensions of this transformation. He is committed to engaged research which is pragmatic but theory-driven, with a focus on supporting and informing real change in practice.

Damian is currently supervising several PhD students. He is interested in supervising doctoral research in the following areas:

• Organisation and policy change in health and care
• The devolution of health and care
• Workforce challenges in health and care
• Professional and managerial identity work in healthcare
• Critical analyses of project management and project organising
• Power and identity in the workplace

Dr Mengyu Zhang serves as a Lecturer in Finance at the Sheffield University Management School. Prior to joining the university, he worked as a lecturer at the University of Kent.

Mengyu graduated with a PhD in Finance from University of Essex. He holds a master’s degree in International Finance at University of Sussex and a bachelor’s degree in Business and Finance at De Montfort University.

Mengyu’s research interests lie on empirical market microstructure, with a focus on high-frequency trading, market liquidity, and information asymmetry. In addition, he also takes interest in firm innovation, behavioural finance, and sustainable finance.

Mengyu welcomes applications from PhD candidates interested in undertaking financial research in the following areas:

• High-frequency trading
• Firm innovation
• Sustainable finance

Research interests

My long-standing research interests have been focused on the role and regulation of epithelial secretory proteins. This work has principally involved the study of the airway epithelium, through the use of 3D in vitro model systems, but more recently has expanded to include the oral and nasal mucosa and the epithelium of the middle ear. My specific interests have focused on the fields of innate immunity, host defence and tumour biology.

I have also recently started to investigate the potential of using my tissue culture expertise to develop in vitro models of human salivary glands from fresh human tissue. We are now routinely isolating cells from human sublingual glands and are currently characterising cell phenotype under different culture conditions. The mid-term aim is to use these models to begin to elucidate the initial stages of salivary gland diseases such as Sjogren’s syndrome and salivary gland tumours.

My research interests are focused on identifying the common cellular mechanisms that derive chronic inflammation and tissue damage in musculoskeletal diseases and contribute to multi-morbidity in chronic diseases. Identifying the common cellular mechanisms regulating tissue damage is crucial for developing disease-modifying therapy for a number of musculoskeletal diseases including osteoarthritis.  My current research mainly focuses on investigating the ubiquitination machinery and signalling pathways mediating the inflammatory cellular responses caused by mechanical injury and their role in tissue damage. Our group employs the use of murine and zebrafish models as well as a number of cutting edge technologies including advanced transgenesis, in vivo live imaging using light-sheet and confocal microscopy, in vivo loss-of-function/gain-of-function screens using CRISPR/Cas9 methodology, mass spectrometric analysis and several biochemical approaches to study the function and regulation of ubiquitin system and other signalling pathways in vivo and in vitro

Available to supervise history topics

Julia's main research interests lie in the history of social problems and policy in Britain and Western Europe in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. She has published on five main strands of her research: the history of the welfare state, private law, and especially torts; transnational history; marriage and the family and, the history of ideas about 'risk'. She has recently completed a comparative study of conceptions of risk, workplace accidents and the welfare state in Britain, Germany and Italy, and her current research investigates the political history of marriage in Imperial Germany from transnational and global perspectives.

Julie supervises students in late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century European (including British) history, in particular on the history of the welfare state and social problems and policy more broadly, including questions related to national, international and transnational regulation; government and bureaucracy; legal history; marriage and the family; and the history of the social sciences.

Research Development Director for Entrepreneurship, Strategy and International Business

PhD Supervision

I am currently supervising six PhD students at Sheffield University Management School:

• Valentina Varbanova (2nd supervisor, start date May 2017)
• Dian Eka Mayasari (Joint 1st supervisor, start date February 2017)
• Zara Seini (Joint 1st supervisor, start date April 2017)
• Yiren Wu (2nd supervisor, start date October 2019)
• Muhamad Rizaldy (1st supervisor, start date October 2022)
• Yiqun Han (2nd supervisor, start date October 2023)

Recent completed PhD students:

• Irene Garnelo Gómez. ‘I Live Sustainably’: Exploring sustainable narratives through the lens of identity expression and motivational drives (Second supervisor). Henley Business School, University of Reading Scholarship.
• Bala Auwalu. Exploring the Financial Resources of Entrepreneurs in the Informal Economy: Insights from North West Nigeria. (Joint first supervisor)

I would be interested in supervising PhD or postgraduate taught students in the areas of:

• Social entrepreneurship, social innovation and hybrid organisation
• CSR in both the developed and developing country context
• The informal economy
• Business and society relationships, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa"

Lecturer in Work Psychology

Rose’s research focuses primarily on understanding and managing crowd events. In particular, she is interested in exploring how local event management practices are influenced by wider contextual factors, such as current financial or political constraints.

As part of her research, Rose established the 'Crowd Behaviour Network' - an international forum for researchers and professionals involved with managing crowd events to share knowledge and expertise, helping enhance crowd safety and event success.

She hosts a Crowd Behaviour Network discussion group on LinkedIn - please feel free to join if you are interested!

Rose also has research interests in organizational safety and disasters, socio-technical systems thinking, and technology in the workplace.

Rose has developed strong links with many leading public and private sector organizations, including the Cabinet Office, the Emergency Planning College, Arup, London Metropolitan Police Service, South Yorkshire Police, Liverpool City Council, Yorkshire Ambulance Service and York Racecourse. She is also a member of the Sheffield University Policing Research Group (SUPRG).

Research interests

My doctoral research developed a method of combining (Faircloughian) critical discourse analysis with corpus linguistic tools in the analysis of education policy. I drew also on regulation school state theory in order to critically examine the evolving relationship between policy agendas and wider developments in the UK economy, politics and society. I am particularly interested in the way policy discourse is used to construct and legitimate neoliberal identities, roles and power relations between citizen and state. Key themes explored in my recent publications are the historic emergence of an ‘enabler’ model of governance and the use of ‘personalisation’ as a legitimation strategy in policy.

More generally I am interested in the strategic role of (national) policy discourse in recontextualising, disseminating and legitimating dominant political imaginaries in advanced liberal economies. My current research applies and elaborates this approach to critically explore the social construction of ageing in the UK. Focussing on policy and public discourse, this work aims to contribute a critical discourse perspective to academic debates on societal and political responses to population ageing.

Research Interests

Aberrant secretion of neurotransmitters, hormones or immune mediators contributes to the pathology of a wide variety of chronic neurological, endocrine and inflammatory diseases ranging from stress and hypertension through to asthma and irritable bowel syndrome. Research in our lab is focussed on identifying the signalling pathways and molecules controlling secretion from neurones and mast cells, with a special interest in voltage-gated (CaV), ligand-gated (P2X and nAChR), receptor-operated (TRPC) and store-operated (Orai) calcium channels, IgE and G protein coupled receptors (P2Y, Histamine), and SNARE regulatory proteins (synaptotagmins, Doc2 and Munc13).  Most of our work is performed at the level of isolated primary cells using high resolution techniques including patch-clamp electrophysiology, carbon fibre amperometry, calcium imaging and total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy with various fluorescence-based biosensors.

Recent highlights of our research include (1) the discovery of ATP-sensitive P2X receptors on human lung mast cells, activation of which may contribute to the pathophysiology of asthma, (2) the first demonstration of Munc13 as an essential effector of phospholipase C-coupled G protein coupled receptor regulation of neurotransmitter release in mammalian  cells, and (3) the modulatory action of synaptotagmin IV on the calcium-sensitivity of the neuronal fusion machinery.

Research interests

My long-standing research interests have been focused on cellular differentiation and regulation of gene expression within the developing and adult pulmonary epithelium. This work involves the isolation of pulmonary epithelial cell specific genes (principally the BPIF/PLUNC and WFDC families) as well as the transcription factors, which regulate their expression. This work also involves studies of epithelial cell specific differentiation and understanding the role of distinct stem/basal cells in this process. This work has allowed me to use disease models, human clinical material and our novel genes to study aspects of pulmonary cell plasticity in the lung and changes that occur in IPF and COPD

Over the past few years my interests have also expanded into the fields of the genetics of complex diseases, pulmonary immunology, innate immunity and host defence and now a major focus of my work is on pulmonary innate immunity, the control of pulmonary inflammation and the role of innate defence pathways in the development of chronic lung disease.

I also work extensively with primary human and mouse airway epithelial cells in differentiated air liquid interface cultures using them as tools to understand the regulation of airway epithelial cell specific genes. At a more clinical level we are also studying host/pathogen interactions using both viral (RSV, flu, MHV68) and bacterial (Pseudomonas, Staph, NTHi) infections. This work has allowed me to align myself with the work of the Florey Institute for Host/Pathogen Interactions. In addition to our airway studies we have also developed primary middle ear epithelial cell cultures for our work on infections in Otitis Media which complements my developing interest in middle ear biology.

This applied work has allowed me to continue to study the role of epithelial differentiation in the airways and to use disease models and our novel genes to study aspects of pulmonary cell plasticity in the lung. This is particular focused on epithelial changes in the lungs of patients with IPF and COPD. Our recent work has begun to uncover a role for BPIF proteins in the pathogenesis  of lung disease using both human material and murine models. It has also led to new avenues of work that focus on the epithelial responses in nasopharyngeal infections and in Otitis Media.

I have interests and expertise in self-regulation – how people direct their thoughts, feelings, and behaviours in order to achieve their goals – and in the design, application, and evaluation of interventions designed to promote positive and lasting changes in people’s behaviour. My research uses theoretical models of behaviour (e.g., control theory, COM-B model, theory of planned behaviour) in order to understand why people’s efforts to self-regulate are sometimes compromised and how this process can be promoted. I collaborate with a range of stakeholders in order to understand behaviour in different contexts and I am passionate about collaborating on interdisciplinary research projects, where global challenges are considered from multiple perspectives and solutions are informed by a wide range of expertise.

I am currently involved in three lines of research:

• I am working with scientists across the university on a project that seeks to reduce the impact that plastic waste is having on the environment. My research seeks to understand people’s attitudes and behaviours towards plastic, and we are testing strategies and interventions designed to promote the use of reusable packaging and containers. I am also collaborating with colleagues from the School of Dentistry exploring the publics’ attitudes towards sustainability in healthcare, and their willingness to make sacrifices for more sustainable healthcare services.

• I am working with psychologists and computer scientists to develop a set of tools to allow people (e.g., academics, practitioners) to explore the relationship between different behaviours. While the relationship between some behaviours may be intuitive (e.g., the relationship between different health behaviours), others may be less intuitive (e.g., whether health behaviours are associated with pro-environmental behaviours). Such tools will allow users to test a wide range of hypotheses about how (and when) different behaviours are related.

• I am interested in how individual differences (e.g., in people’s time perspective) influence people’s behaviour and goal outcomes.

Research interests

My research interests focus on gene regulation by the nuclear factor kappaB family of transcription factors. I am involved with the following projects:

• Developing the chromatin immunoprecipitation assay-Next Generation Sequencing methodology (ChIP-seq) genomic regions within the human myometrium influenced by NF-kappaB. This was Vicky Cookson's original Ph.D. project and has now evolved into a multi-centre study involving Dr. Paul Hurd, Queen Mary University of London and Profs. Magnus Rattray and Neil Lawrence, University of Sheffield.
• Defining cross-talk between NF-kappaB and Galphas signalling pathways in the human myometrium.
• Examining how inflammatory mediators regulate T-type calcium channel expression in the human decidua (in collaboration with Dr. Raheela Khan, University of Nottingham at Derby).
• Developing a system to test novel tocolytic compounds (drugs which can prevent pre-term labour; a multi-centre study with Prof. Nick Europe-Finner and Prof. Mike Taggart, University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Prof. Bryan Mitchell, University of Alberta at Edmonton).
• Developing the MeDIP assay to investigate epigenetic changes in human spermatozoa (with Sarah Waite and Dr. Allan Pacey).
• Studying the role of NF-kappaB in muscular dystrophy (collaboration with Dr. Gaynor Miller).
• Understanding the role of Toll-like receptors in the pregnant human cervix (with Dilly Anumba; Behnia Lashkari's Ph.D. project).

Tissue Repair and Immunity in Ageing (TRIA)

Why we age and whether we can therapeutically prevent associated diseases has been my continued research motivation. And this is because age is the greatest risk factor for chronic diseases such as cancer, frailty, muscle atrophy, arthritis and many others. This means we are living longer than ever before, but with a heavy burden of disease which impacts on our quality of life and poses serious socio-economical challenges we must meet.
Ageing is underlined by a progressive decline in tissues ability to repair and maintain themselves. This is what is called tissue homeostasis impairment and sets the ground for age-associated diseases. A key mechanism contributing to this is telomere shortening and dysfunction. In organisms with restricted telomerase activity, which is the case of humans and zebrafish, telomeres shorten and get damaged with ageing, causing cells to die or become senescent. Senescent cells no longer divide and secrete factors that somehow impair the repair capacity of our tissues and organs, thereby contributing to disease.

Tissue homeostasis requires a tight balance between the clearance of senescent and damaged cells by the immune system and the replenishing of new cells from the stem cell niche.

My research programme focuses on understanding the interplay between immune regulation and tissue homeostasis in health and with ageing, using zebrafish as a model. My ultimate aim is to identify therapeutic targets that can be used to incentivate tissue rejuvenation and ameliorate multiple co-morbidities of ageing

Our research group is focussed on understanding how cells divide in normal tissues and during cancer development and metastasis. To do this we take a multidisciplinary approach, combining imaging and cell biology with biophysical techniques to measure mechanical forces associated with cell division.

Cell shape and mechanics during cell division

Cells go through a series of dynamic shape changes when they divide. These include cell rounding and stiffening in early mitosis and separation into two daughter cells at cytokinesis. We want to understand how these changes are co-ordinated by dynamic regulation of the actin cytoskeleton throughout cell division. We are particularly interested in how cells divide within epithelial tissues where they must maintain attachment with neighbouring cells to preserve tissue integrity and organisation.

Cell division in cancer

Cancer is a disease of uncontrolled cell proliferation and division. We are investigating how genetic mutations in cancer cells affect the cell division process. In recent work, we found that Ras oncogenes change cell shape and mechanics during mitosis (Matthews et al. 2020). We are now exploring how changes to cell division induced by the oncogenic kRas promote the formation of tumours during the early stages of pancreatic cancer development.

We are also interested in how the modified micro-environment within a tumour affects cancer cell division. Tumours are usually far stiffer than healthy tissue due to cell crowding and the deposition of extra-cellular matrix. We use micro-fabrication techniques to mimic some of the mechanical stresses (eg. compression, stretch) found in tumours to study how these conditions impact cell division.

Journalism, Media and Communication

Bina’s research interests include media representation, the relationship between the media and democracy, critical incidents in journalism, race equality in journalism, media policy, and media self-coverage. Bina’s research and publications have contributed to knowledge relating to key debates about press regulation, the public interest, public trust, media ownership, political economy of the media, paradigm repair, boundary work, and the public sphere concept. Her research into how the British press covered the press standards debate that followed The News of the World phone hacking scandal and the Leveson Inquiry employed content and critical discourse analyses and was interdisciplinary in content drawing from law, politics and psychology in addition to journalism. 

Bina’s research entitled, A meta-analysis of key concerns and developments on media standards informed the 2020-2022 Impress Code Review. The research findings were used by the press regulator, Impress to modernise the Standards Code and make it fit for purpose in the digital age. Her research on the WhatsApp, Black People and COVID-19 Infodemic explored the WhatsApp Communications of Nigerians in the UK and Nigeria, using the methods of interviews and content analysis. This work made contributions to knowledge about effective health communications in times of Public Health Emergencies. Bina’s current research investigates race-based student activism in journalism, media, and communication schools in the UK using the methods of content analysis, interviews, and surveys. 

PhD Supervision 

• Bina is interested in supervising students in the following areas:
• The relationship between the media and democracy
• Race equality involving Black Asian and Minority Ethnic groups
• Media representation on diverse platforms
• Media self-coverage 
• Political economy of the media

Work in my lab focuses on molecular mechanisms governing bacterial cell growth and division within the host environment. We study the ellipsoid-shaped model organism and human pathogen Streptococcus pneumoniae.

Pneumonia and meningitis are leading causes of death in the world. These diseases are caused by a variety of bacteria but are commonly caused by invasive S. pneumoniae. How these bacteria grow and divide inside their hosts is fundamental to our understanding of these conditions. My lab focuses on S. pneumoniae growth and division processes. Specifically, how the process of cell wall biosynthesis is governed and coordinated to maintain the cell shape and integrity as the cells grow and divide.

As S. pneumoniae cell growth takes place exclusively within the human host, we study the cell host-cell interactions to provide context of cell growth processes. We study how S. pneumoniae cells adapt to environmental changes within hosts, resist clearance by the immune system and cope with antibiotic challenges.

We use genetic screens, biochemical assays and epifluorescence microscopy to advance our understanding of the molecular mechanisms behind these processes.

Identification of a new cell wall biogenesis factor CozE using Tn-seq

Our recent work has utilised a genetic screening technique called Tn-seq ^1-3 to identify a new cell wall assembly factor: CozE. Broadly, the Tn-seq technique starts out with large populations of bacteria, each containing an individual gene inactivation. A selective pressure is applied to this population killing some of the more sensitised members. Next, all surviving members are sequenced and their individual gene inactivation is identified (Figure 1A). In this study, we exploited a known genetic relationship between two cell wall biosynthetic factors, PBP1a and PBP2a, to screen for new genes involved in the regulation of these enzymes. Examples of Tn-seq insertion profiles generated from this work are shown in Figure 1B. These insertion profiles revealed a novel cell wall biogenesis regulator in bacteria, which we named CozE for Coordinator Of Zonal Elongation.

CozE is essential for coordinated cell wall synthesis

Most bacterial cells are surrounded by a cellular exoskeleton called the cell wall. This structure gives the cells their shape and protects them from osmotic lysis. Our Tn-seq study identified the membrane protein CozE, which is essential for coordinated cell wall synthesis in S. pneumoniae (Figure 2A). The cell wall of S. pneumoniae is synthesised in a highly regulated manner involving the action of many enzymes. Removing CozE from S. pneumoniae cells effectively shatters this machinery into its composite pieces, dispersing them throughout the cell surface. Surprisingly, the PBP1a component of the machine appears to keep on working. Like an assembly line out of control, PBP1a synthesises new cell wall seemingly all over the place, inserting new material in inappropriate places. The cells are unable to cope with the aberrant synthesis, which makes them swell and eventually lyse (Figure 2B). Our current work focuses on understanding this rogue cell wall synthesis activity further to see if we can ultimately exploit it for future therapies.

For more information on CozE, please read our paper CozE is a member of the MreCD complex that directs cell elongation in Streptococcus pneumoniae.