Dr. Craig J Anderson
Postdoctoral Fellow
- MRC Human Genetics Unit
- Institute of Genetics and Cancer
Contact details
- Email: craig.anderson@ed.ac.uk
- Web: Github
Address
- Street
-
Crewe Road
- City
- Edinburgh
- Post code
- EH4 2XU
Background
Craig uses the principles of evolutionary biology to understand how exposure to chemicals contributes towards mutagenesis and adaptation. After attaining a PhD in ecotoxicology from Cardiff University, Craig was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship from the CSIRO in Canberra, working to understand pesticide resistance in insects.
To supercharge his research, he moved into cancer genomics, taking a postdoc in Martin Taylor’s lab at the MRC Human Genetics Unit, University of Edinburgh. As part of the Liver Cancer Evolution consortium, they discovered that DNA damage is inherited and can lead to a previously unrealised source of genetic variation in cancer, called multiallelism and have gone on to reveal the dynamism of a wide range of mutational processes that occur during tumourigenesis, following exposure to mutagens.
Craig’s ambition is to take his research forward as an independent scientist, profiling the heterogeneity from inherited DNA damage so that mutagen exposure can be better surveilled and controlled.
CV
118097.pdf
Qualifications
First (Hons) BSc Biological Sciences, Plymouth University, UK
PhD, Cardiff University and Centre of Ecology and Hydrology Wallingford, UK. Title: Mechanistic Bases of Metal Tolerance: Linking Phenotype to Genotype
Responsibilities & affiliations
Committee member of the Genetics Society (2022-2023)
Organiser Mutations in Time and Space conference (2024-2025)
Open to PhD supervision enquiries?
Yes
Current PhD students supervised
Zicheng Yu (PhD): DNA-embedded ribonucleotides in the genome: Locations, quantities and functions.
Research summary
I come from a deeply varied evolutionary biology background and most recently played a key role in a body of work titled “Pervasive lesion segregation shapes cancer genome evolution”. My co-authors and I discovered that DNA damage from mutagenic processes, such as UV irradiation and tobacco smoke, is heritable.
I designed and performed bioinformatic analyses able to demonstrate that repeated replication over unrepaired DNA adducts leads not only to allelic diversity, but also combinations of alleles. These patterns are consistent across a murine phylogeny and encouragingly, exploration of the molecular mechanisms underlying this previously unfounded source of cancer heterogeneity is providing a glut of fundamental insights into somatic evolutionary processes.
My current work within the MRC HGU is to understand the sources and effects of genetic diversity as I begin to unravel the effects of DNA damage retention in various contexts, including during development and tumouregensis. My work within Martin Taylor's lab and with our collaborators is already beginning to foster wide-reaching and impactful results on the role of exogenous exposure to mutagens.
Current research interests
Somatic evolution, mutagenesis, mutation signatures, collateral mutagenesis, DNA replication, DNA damage, multiallelism, mosaicism, DNA sequencing, exogenous mutagens, cancer, toxicology, selection, adaptation, chemotherapy, bioinformatics, genetics, computational genomics. Available as a reviewer to journals under these themes.Past research interests
For a complete list of my publications, check https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2832-9313Knowledge exchange
I founded and was lead organiser of the Mutations in Time and Space conference, held here in Edinburgh: www.mutationmeeting.com
The follow up is taking place in Boston 23-25 April 2025.