Dr David Wilkinson
BSc MRes PhD FHEA
David has over 14 years research experience in the field of cartilage and proteinase biology. His research focuses on understanding how tissue degrades, with a particular focus on cartilage biology and osteoarthritis. His research uses various protein, cellular and tissue models to understand proteolysis in both in health and disease.
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Having studied Molecular Biology and Biochemistry at Durham University, David moved to Newcastle to undertake a masters and PhD as part of the Oliver Bird Rheumatism Programme (Nuffield Foundation) in 2009. David completed his PhD in proteinase biochemistry in 2014, and conducted postdoctoral research in the lab of Professor Drew Rowan. In 2019, David moved to the University of Liverpool to establish his own research group focusing on the regulation of proteinases in cartilage and osteoarthritis, with a current focus on serine proteinase inhibitors (serpins). David's research programme is currently funded by a Versus Arthritis Career Development Fellowship.
Mary Hines
MRC DiMEN PhD student
Mary obtained a BSc in Biology from Georgetown College in the United States. She went on to receive a Masters of Research at University College Dublin, working with Dr. Emmeline Hill and equine genomics company, PlusVital, to investigate gene selection signatures in Irish and French Thoroughbred populations.
Her PhD aims to characterize serine proteinases and their role in osteoarthritic cartilage destruction. Her project uses novel activity-based probes (ABPs) to visualize active serine proteinases in OA. This will be achieved using mass spectrometry and in-vivo imaging using commercially available ABPs, with the possibility of creating novel activity-based probes through chemical engineering. Her project seeks use ABPs to understand which proteinases are active (and when) with implications for the stratification of disease in humans and animals.