We Are recruiting ! (2024/2025)
The CRUK CoL Centre Clinical Research Training Fellowship PhD Programme
A hallmark of cancer is replicative immortality. In ~10% of cancers, this is achieved through the alternative lengthening telomeres pathway (ALT). A proportion of ALT tumours is driven by ATRX or DAXX mutations. We have shown that up to 60% of undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcomas demonstrate ALT and there are other sarcomas like osteosarcoma which also harbour high ALT levels. New therapeutic vulnerabilities to ALT are available necessitating further pre-clinical research to identify appropriate biomarkers, a characterisation of ALT across other sarcoma types and the generation of cell models with the aim of developing a clinical trial. This project involves:
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Investigating the heterogeneity of ALT using whole genome sequencing data and C-circle assays and associate this with clinical data.
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Development and functional characterisation of in vitro models of ALT using patient derived cell lines.
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Evaluating differences between ALT positive tumours driven by ATRX vs mutations in other genes.
Potential secondary supervisor: Prof. Simon Boulton, Francis Crick Institute
Details of the recruitment process: www.colcc.ac.uk/crtf-recruitment-process/
If you interested please email Dr Pillay: n.pillay@ucl.ac.uk