University Awarded 5M Pounds To Investigate How Cells Communicate

Main Category: Biology / Biochemistry
Article Date: 28 Nov 2007 - 8:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   view / write opinions   rate article

Scientists at the University of Liverpool have been awarded £5 million to investigate how cells respond to stimuli such as stress and UV radiation.

Biologists at Liverpool will investigate the role of the NF-kappaB signalling system to determine how cells decide when to die. NFkB governs responses within cells to stimuli such as stress and the immune system, but when this system goes wrong it is thought that it can lead to cancer, inflammatory problems and septic shock.

Professor Mike White, from the University's School of Biological Sciences, said: "Systems Biology involves the analysis of how biological processes work at all levels. This goes from the interactions between individual biological molecules, to the physiology and behaviour of animals and plants. With this grant we can develop models to understand more clearly how cells communicate with each other."

The project - in collaboration with the Universities of Manchester and Warwick - is a multidisciplinary collaboration involving scientists in Biological and Biomedical Sciences, veterinary scientists and mathematicians.

A second team from the School of Biological Sciences, headed by Dr Anthony Hall has been awarded a further £1 million as part of a £5 million project led by scientists at the University of Edinburgh to develop a model of how plants cope with temperature changes. The research could help to develop higher-yield crops that are better able to survive in harsh conditions, thus allowing scientists to develop plants capable of withstanding the possible effects of global warming.

----------------------------
Article adapted by Medical News Today from original press release.
----------------------------

Notes:

1. Both projects are funded as part of a £26 million UK-wide investment in Systems Biology, funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).

2. The University of Liverpool is one of the UK's leading research institutions. It attracts collaborative and contract research commissions from a wide range of national and international organisations valued at more than £100 million annually.

Source:
Samantha Martin
University of Liverpool