Women in Pharmacology
The Women in Pharmacology initiative was created by Dr. Catherine Wilson, Dr. Sara Pensa and Dr. Camilla Ascaneli to highlight the amazing work and experiences of some of the inspirational past and present women from the University of Cambridge, Department of Pharmacology.
Dr Ioanna Mela
Dr Ioanna Mela is an Assistant Professor and Royal Society University Research Fellow within the Department of Pharmacology. Following her undergraduate degree at the National Technical University of Athens, Dr Mela moved to the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Cambridge to pursue her PhD. She completed her post-doctoral research at Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, before moving back to Pharmacology to set up her independent research group.
Dr Catherine Wilson
Dr Catherine Wilson is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmacology and a Fellow, at Wolfson College. Cathy completed her PhD at the Institute of Medical Genetics at Cardiff University and then moved to The Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute for her first post-doctoral stint. Next, Cathy moved to the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Cambridge before becoming a research group leader in the Department of Pharmacology in 2019.
Dr Sarah Holloway, Alumnus
Sarah Holloway, based in Chicago, IL, is an alumnus of our Department and a recent retiree. During our interview, we discussed her career that spans the breadth of Pharmacology and continents, which has also exceptionally bridged the gap between science and commercial thought.
Dr Vasiliki (Vasso) Mavridou
Dr Mavridou is a post-doc in the Miller lab. Her project focuses on the structure and function (modulation) of ion channels. The main target is a voltage-gated ion channel that is crucial for nociception, but she also works on ligand-gated ion channels and inhibitory neurotransmission.
Dr Maria Marti Solano
Dr Maria Marti Solano is a new Group Leader in the Department. Her lab is focused on applying computational pharmacology techniques to understand how GPCRs function in different cells, organisms or in individuals.
Dr Delphine Larrieu
Dr Delphine Larrieu was an Assistant Professor in the Department. Her lab was keenly focused on the nuclear envelope and how it is regulated. Originally from France, she moved to Cambridge for a postdoc opportunity and has been here ever since!
Dr Dewi Safitri
Dr Dewi Safitri was a postdoctoral researcher within the Ladds’ laboratory in the Department of Pharmacology and was an affiliated postdoctoral researcher at Trinity College, Cambridge. Originally from Indonesia, Dewi moved to Cambridge to study for a PhD.
Dr Janet Kumita
Janet Kumita is a Group Leader in the Department of Pharmacology who was recently awarded a highly prestigious MRC Career Development Fellowship. Originally from Canada, Janet started her research career studying for a PhD in chemistry at the University of Toronto. Janet then moved to the University of Cambridge, Department of Chemistry after being awarded a NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship.
Dr Sarah Millington
Dr Sarah Millingtonis the new Department of Pharmacology Senior Teaching Associate and a College Teaching Associate in Sidney Sussex College. Sarah has been in Cambridge for 10 years, completing her Natural Sciences undergraduate degree followed by a PhD studying platelet biology and thrombosis, funded by the British Heart Foundation. Sarah is an exceptionally passionate and gifted researcher and teacher; we interviewed Sarah and asked her about her experience working in Pharmacology.
Dr Catherine Lindon
Dr Cathrine Lindon is a molecular cell biologist. Research in her lab is focused on ubiquitin signalling: theystudy how it controls protein destruction (proteolysis) and how proteolysis regulates the cell cycle. Their newest projects aim to harness ubiquitin signalling to create new therapeutic strategies.
Dr Alecia-Jane Twigger
Alecia is the group leader for the Cambridge Lactation Lab, following a successful Postdoctoral role in the Khaled group in the Department of Pharmacology. Having only moved to Cambridge in 2019, she has been incredibly successful, already publishing an arsenal of manuscripts, including one analysing the transcriptional profiles of single cells purified from human breast milk.
Dr Giovanna Zinzalla
Dr Giovanna Zinzalla is a visiting researcher in the Department of Pharmacology, collaborating with Prof. Laura Itzhaki to target transcription factors for therapeutic intervention.
Professor Laura Itzhaki
Professor Laura Itzhaki is our Head of Department in Pharmacology, following a hugely successful academic career. After completing her undergraduate degree at the University of Oxford, Laura moved to the University of Cambridge, Department of Biochemistry for her PhD.
Dr Peace Atakpa
Dr Peace Atakpa held a highly prized Junior Research Fellowship at Emmanuel College, and was part of the Taylor laboratory in the Department of Pharmacology. Originally from Nigeria, Peace completed her undergraduate studies in the University of Liverpool, before moving to Cambridge University for her PhD, funded by the Cambridge European and International Trust.
Dr Sampurna Chakrabarti
Dr Sampurna Chakrabarti is an incredibly successful former member of the Pharmacology Department. Originally from Kolkata, India, Sam completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Buffalo, and was then awarded a Gates Cambridge PhD studentship.
Dr Lesley MacVinish
Dr Lesley MacVinish was an Affiliated Lecturer in the Department of Pharmacology and Fellow of Wolfson College. Lesley was been a longstanding member of the department, and left the Department at the end of 2020. We interviewed Lesley and asked her about her time working in Pharmacology.