Dr Richard Wheeler

Chancellors Fellow

  • Institute of Immunology and Infection Research
  • School of Biological Sciences
  • College of Science and Engineering

Contact details

Address

Street

Ashworth Laboratories
King's Buildings
Charlotte Auerbach Road

City
Edinburgh
Post code
EH9 3FL

Open to PhD supervision enquiries?

Yes

Past PhD students supervised

Sophie Gray

Hannah Asiki

Research summary

The Parasite

Leishmania cause a serious human disease, Leishmaniasis, in many tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world. They are single celled eukaryotic parasites which are carried in the gut of sandflies. When a sandfly bites a person the parasites are transmitted in the fly's saliva and can infect their macrophages. Leishmania are a tough and persistent parasite and, depending on the species, can cause symptoms from mild but disfiguring skin lesions to death.

The Research

The main research focus of the lab is the flagellum: The 'tail' of the parasite that they use to swim. However, we are also interested in wider questions of how the parasite generates and controls its shape, how this adapts the parasite cells to be effective pathogens and how they evolved from non-pathogenic species.

Wider research interests include the related parasites Trypanosoma which also cause human disease. General questions about how eukaryote cells organise their internal structure are also of particular interest.

Approaches

The main methods are classic cell biology, molecular biology and biochemistry techniques, supported by mathematical and computational simulation, biophysics, and automated image analysis. Advanced microscopy coupled with semi and fully automated image analysis are particular specialities of the lab.

Current project grants

"Defining the molecular determinants required for Leishmania life cycle progression and virulence" Collaborative Award, Wellcome Trust 221944/Z/20/Z

Past project grants

"Making it through the life cycle: Motility for pathogenicity in Leishmania parasites" Henry Dale Fellowship, Wellcome Trust 211075/Z/18/Z
"Genome scale genetic tagging and protein localisation in Trypanosoma brucei" Collaborative Award, Wellcome Trust 108445/Z/15/Z
"Generating parasite shape for pathogenicity" Henry Wellcome Postdoctoral Fellowship, Wellcome Trust 103261/Z/13/Z
"The molecular cell biology of the Leishmania parasite / host macrophage interface" PhD studentship, Wellcome Trust 086337/Z/08/Z

This article was published on