About Us

Our Gene Regulation lab is located in the University of Essex in a historic town Colchester. We are interested in quantitative aspects of gene regulation in chromatin using approaches of biophysics, bioinformatics and next generation sequencing. We work on biomedical systems ranging from mouse embryonic stem cell differentiation to human cell lines to actual cancer patients (chronic lymphocytic leukemia, glioblastoma, breast cancer).

Publications |  Software  | Lab members | Teaching materials | Contacts

Current lab members

Lab head, interested in chromatin and gene regulation; teaching enthusiast and open science addict.

  Dr Vlad Teif

Epigenomics enthusiast, developing cell-free DNA-based assays for liquid biopsy diagnostics 

–  Mariya Shtumpf

CTCF fan, working on CTCF’s role in gene expression changes in normal and cancer cells

Dr Hulkar Mamayusupova

MSD student looking at cfDNA and epigenetic biomarkers in breast cancer, working towards less invasive, more accessible diagnostics.

 

MSD student passionate about molecular biology and genomics, working on nucleosomics of cell-free DNA in breast cancer

Divya Rose Jacob

MSD student working on nucleosome repositioning in brain tumours. Interested in bioinformatics and sports enthusiast

–  Clark Correa

Medical doctor and MSc student, working on diagnostics of lung cancer. Also interested in oral and maxillofacial cancer and athletics aficionado

Ankita Gurjar, MD

MSc student working in nucleosome positioning in chronic lymphocytic leukaemia

Jesmi Pullely Poulose

Previous lab members

Dr Christopher Clarkson, PhD student (2017-2020). Currently in University College London  

Dr Graeme Thorn, postdoctoral fellow (2017-2018). Currently in Queen Mary University of London

Dr Svetlana Gretton, postdoctoral fellow (2017). Currently in University of Suffolk

Dr Ioanna Pavlaki, postdoctoral fellow (2016). Currently in Institute of Molecular Biology, Mainz

Joshua Burton, MSc student (2016). Currently in Oslo Metropolitan University

 Dr Tanvi Sharma, MSc student (2016). Currently in German Cancer Research Center, Heidelberg

Navid Shafiei, MSc student (2017). Currently teaches in William De Ferrers School, Chelmsford

Christopher Armstrong, MSc student (2018)

Ralph Samarista, Wellcome Trust Summer Student (2018). Currently in Queen’s University Belfast

Graduated from U of Essex, currently MPhil in the University of Cambridge, working on chromatin changes in chronic lymphocytic leukaemia 

Kristan Piroeva

Enthusiastic postgraduate student, project on the computational analysis of nucleosome repositioning in breast cancer

– Anastasija Drobysevskaja

PhD student passionate about chromatin topology and machine learning; Lacrosse player, Pint of Science co-organiser.

Christopher Clarkson

Genomics aficionado, working on a masters dissertation devoted to nucleosome positioning in glioblastoma

Varvara Koraki Folli

Passionate about machine learning and data science, especially applications to (epi)genomics of ageing”

– Ashkan Mohseni Hosseini

Curiosity-driven individual interested in bioinformatics, genetics and environmental science

– Emma Deeks

An aspiring stem cell researcher interested in bioinformatics and regenerative medicine. Also a music lover and film aficionado

–   Ralph Samarista 

Interested in cancer biology in general and nucleosome repositioning in cancer specifically. 

Christopher Armstrong

Cancer researcher working on a masters dissertation on nucleosome positioning in chronic lymphocytic leukaemia 

Chelsea Fox

UoE graduate and visiting scientist, working on cfDNA to develop liquid-biopsy biomarkers for diagnosis.