About me

I carried out my undergraduate degree in biology at the University of York, with a year abroad the Aarhus University in Denmark. During my undergrad I developed an interest in developmental signalling pathways and their role in cell fate determination in early animal development. This led to my PhD at the University of York, where I am investigating the genes and developmental pathways regulated by n1-Src kinase.

My project

In mammals, expression of two alternative spliced forms of the non-receptor tyrosine kinase C-Src (N1-Src and N2-Src) is enriched in neural tissue. High levels of N-Src expression are associated with favourable prognosis in neuroblastoma, leading to spontaneous differentiation and resolution of this childhood cancer. These observations suggest that N-Srcs regulate neuronal differentiation.

The overall objective of my project is to understand the role that N-Srcs play in regulating neuronal specification and differentiation, using a novel combination of approaches in cancer and stem cells in culture, and in vivo analyses in the developing Xenopus nervous system. This basic research will underpin efforts to understand the potential of N-Srcs as regulators of neuronal differentiation in neuroblastoma and stem cells in culture.

Connect

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alastair-pizzey-31481a144/