Michael Sewell (BSc, MSc)
Thesis title: Investigating the impact of an NRROS mutation in a novel neurodevelopmental microgliopathy.
Four Year PhD Programme in Translational Neuroscience
Year of study: 3
Contact details
- Email: michael.sewell@ed.ac.uk
PhD supervisor:
Address
- Street
-
Chancellor's Building
49 Little France Crescent
Bioquarter - City
- Edinburgh
- Post code
- EH164FU
Background
I am a Year 3 student on the Translational Neuroscience programme, which I commenced in September 2019 after completing a BSc in Biomedical Sciences and MSc in Neuroscience at University College London, where I spent two years in the laboratory of Professor Michael Duchen and Gyorgy Szabadkai investigating mitochondrial dysfunction in various diseases. Following this, I undertook a research assistant position at the Universidade do Porto in Professor Jorge Oliveira's group, investing mitochondrial and proteostasis dysfunction in Huntington's disease. Alongside my research, I am passionate about public engagement, mentoring, and widening participation, and have been involved in several schemes aiming to inspire young people from disavantaged backgrounds to pursue a career in science.
Qualifications
BSc Biomedical Sciences
MSc Neuroscience
Research summary
I am primarily interested in conditions known as microgliopathies, which are diseases caused by genetic defects in microglial-associated proteins, leading to microglial dysfunction. Recently our group and others in Edinburgh have identified a novel microgliopathy in a patient caused by a loss-of-function mutation in a protein known as negative regulator of reactive oxygen species (NRROS). However, the full of impact of this mutation, and the role of NRROS in microglial biology, are both not currently fully understood. I aim to investigate these using a mouse model of the NRROS-associated microgliopathy, post-mortem tissue and cutting-edge technology, including transcriptomics. Our hope is that this will improve our understanding of basic microglial biology that may ultimately lead to the discovery of disease-altering treatments for this microgliopathy.