Biography:
Emma graduated from the University of Surrey in 2019 receiving a BSc in Biological Sciences. During her undergraduate studies, she undertook a work placement year in the molecular biology department at Stockholm University, working on novel treatments and drug compounds for Type II Diabetes as part of Barbara Cannon’s group. These roles ignited her passion for molecular biology research in disease treatment, an interest that she took into her final year of undergraduate study to complete a specialism in cancer and molecular science.
Emma is a PhD student in the Van de Pette Lab exploring the role of the epigenome in the maintenance of R-loops in both healthy and cancerous cells.
Research Interests:
R-loops are three strand nucleic structures that are known to have important roles in transcriptional regulation, DNA replication and DNA repair. However, so called pathological R-loops can also be a source of DNA damage and genome instability and are associated with many cancers. R-loops are also known to influence their epigenetic environment, although exact mechanisms are not yet well understood. Due to their dichotomous nature it is therefore important to better understand the epigenetic environment under which pathological R-loops form, with the hopes that this could further our understanding of cancer genetics.
