Research Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology
Molecular Cell Biology Group
The Molecular Cell Biology (MCB) Research Group within the Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology (http://www.fbs.leeds.ac.uk/institutes/imcb/imcb.htm) is a grouping of 30 academics working in a broad area covering virus:cell interactions; infection and immunity; vascular cell biology, protease function and protein trafficking, particularly in relation to cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases; epigenetic gene regulation, oncogenes and cancer biology; tissue replacement and engineering. Increasingly, understanding the molecular and cellular basis for different biological phenomena has substantial implications for diagnosis and treatment of many human diseases. Indeed a major aim of the MCB group is to bridge the interface between molecular cell biology and clinical medicine and to this end several members of the group are located within the Leeds Institute for Genetics, Health and Therapeutics (LIGHT) and the Leeds Institute for Molecular Medicine (LIMM).
Our research is funded by grants from the UK Research Councils (MRC, BBSRC, EPSRC), research charities (e.g. Wellcome Trust, Yorkshire Cancer Research, British Heart Foundation, Alzheimer’s Research Trust), the NHS and industrial sources, including Yorkshire Forward. A wide range of technical approaches and facilities used in such projects includes the Leeds Bioimaging Facility that contains advanced light and confocal microscopes, live cell imaging, high throughput drug screening and single cell microinjection systems. The Flow Cytometry and Phosphorimager Facility has state-of-the-art instrumentation to also support these and other activities. Such facilities are run by experienced managers and increase our ability to carry out cutting edge research and maximises our data collection and analysis.
The MCB group has extensive interactions with other research groups in the Faculty of Biological Sciences, notably the Astbury Centre for Structural Molecular Biology, the Institute of Membrane and Systems Biology and the Institute of Integrative and Comparative Biology. In addition there are strong interactions with the Faculty of Medicine through interactions with clinical research groups in the Leeds Institute for Genetics, Health and Therapeutics (LIGHT), Leeds Institute for Molecular Medicine (LIMM) and other units within the Leeds General Infirmary and St. James’ University Hospital.
There are also strong regional interactions with universities and institutes in Yorkshire (Bradford, Sheffield and York) and Lancashire (Manchester, Liverpool) in molecular cell biology, vascular biology, cancer and immunology. In addition, the MCB group has extensive collaborations both nationally and worldwide.
Professor Mark Harris
Head of Group