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3D Liver Models
How does long-term molecular stress affect liver function, regeneration, and extracellular matrix organisation?
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Drugs and Xenobiotics
How do drugs and environmental chemicals induce protein oxidation, and how do liver cells respond to this molecular stress?
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Environmental Stress and Protein Oxidation (MARKOPOLO)
How do chronic environmental stressors, such as noise and airborne particles, drive protein oxidation across tissues?
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Muscle Ageing
How does accumulated protein damage affect muscle stem cell function and regenerative capacity over time?
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Oxidised Extracellular Matrix
How does oxidative modification of extracellular matrix proteins influence tissue structure and inflammation?
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Research Methods
How do we use proteomics and advanced cell models to study protein oxidation and molecular ageing processes?
Research Overview
Our research studies ageing as a long-term biological process driven by the accumulation of molecular changes, rather than by chronological time alone. We focus on protein oxidation as a key mechanism linking metabolism, inflammation, environmental exposure, and tissue dysfunction.
Proteins are continuously exposed to chemical and oxidative stress during normal metabolism and disease. Oxidative modifications can change protein structure, activity, interactions, and stability. Some modifications are reversible, while others persist and accumulate over time, especially in long-lived proteins and in the extracellular matrix. These changes can influence cellular behaviour, tissue organisation, and long-term biological function.
We do not view protein oxidation only as random damage. Instead, we study how oxidative modifications reflect past stress exposure and how they contribute to adaptation, tissue remodelling, or dysfunction under prolonged stress. From this perspective, ageing emerges as a gradual outcome of accumulated molecular alterations rather than as a direct result of chronological age.
To study these processes in relevant biological contexts, we combine advanced quantitative proteomics with biologically realistic cell and tissue models, including three-dimensional liver systems, muscle cell models, and extracellular matrix–focused approaches. We also use controlled exposure models to study metabolic, inflammatory, and environmental stress.
Key questions we address include:
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How do different forms of stress lead to protein oxidation in cells and tissues?
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How do oxidised proteins influence cellular function and tissue organisation?
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When does protein oxidation support adaptation, and when does it contribute to ageing-related disease?
By linking molecular analysis with tissue-level models, our research aims to improve understanding of how long-term molecular stress shapes biological function and disease risk.