Barts and The London Skin Centre >> Research

Research

There is an active research programme into skin cancer and other skin conditions.

Clinicians from Barts and The London’s Skin Centre have produced 141 peer-reviewed publications in the last five years. We regularly publish in peer-reviewed scientific literature on clinical dermatology, clinical trials and research advances in skin diseases including skin cancer, genetic skin disease, psoriasis, eczema, hair biology, stem cells, and wound healing. Clinical trials regularly take place and patients are invited to participate where appropriate. At Barts and The London, Queen Mary School of Medicine and Dentistry, we have one of the largest groups of scientists and clinicians working on skin biology in the world - in the Centre for Cutaneous Research. Five of the Skin Centre academic dermatologists also work in the Centre for Cutaneous Research (CCR). Please click here for more information on the CCR.

There is a strong tradition of training both dermatologists and plastic surgeons in skin biology. There are currently three dermatology trainees funded by prestigious Medical Research Council fellowships in the centre.

Research laboratories are based in the Institute of Cell and Molecular Science on the Whitechapel campus behind The Royal London Hospital with state-of-the-art facilities. Close collaboration on various projects on all aspects of skin biology take place with biomedical scientists to generate better understanding of skin biology and new diagnostic and therapeutic modalities.

The Centre for Cutaneous Research comprises a large group of more than 80 non-clinical and clinical scientists studying keratinocyte biology with extensive shared expertise and facilities developed over the last 22 years. This has created a unique unit in the national environment with a critical mass of both clinical and non-clinical scientists. The Cancer Research UK Skin Tumour Laboratory (London) is based within the Centre for Cutaneous Research.

Skin cancer
Current skin cancer research is focused on investigating various aspects of the epidemiology, causes, treatment and prevention of the three major forms of skin cancer: melanoma, basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). Much of this research is undertaken in The Cancer Research UK Skin Tumour Laboratory.

Among the main skin cancer research projects are:

Epidemiological and clinicopathological studies of skin cancer in organ transplant recipients.
Prevention and treatment of transplant-related skin cancer.
Genome wide genetic and epigenetic changes in SCC and precursors.
Role of human papillomavirus in SCC.
Genetics and signalling pathways in BCC.
Apoptosis and p53 pathogenesis of melanoma.
The role of azathioprine in transplant skin tumours.
Studies on how skin cancer invades.

Our patients are also eligible to enter all National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) and European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) skin cancer trials researching new treatments and the numbers of our patients entered in recent years has increased markedly.

Skin genetics
Recent successes include finding the gene for anonynchia (no nails) and the severe skin disease, harlequin ichthyosis. The finding of the harlequin ichthyosis gene has paved the way for prenatal diagnosis for this disorder in collaboration with many clinical genetic laboratories in the UK. This work was featured in an ITV documentary, Real Families, in October 2005. Drs Edel O’Toole and David Paige are interested in the inherited keratodermas and ichthyoses. A large study is in progress on the genetics of atopic eczema in the Bangladeshi population in Tower Hamlets (Edel O’Toole, David Paige and David Kelsell).

Skin differentiation
The epithelial differentiation group is studying the role of AKT kinases in epidermal development, differentiation and cancer (Carolyn Byrne).

Hair biology
There is an active group studying hair biology, including the effect of hormones on hair and hair growth in the laboratory (Mike Philpott).

Skin infection
The human papilloma virus typing service in dermatology (Cancer Research UK Clinical Skin Cancer Programme) and Virology (QMUL) is unique nationally (Dr Catherine Harwood). This is useful in immunodeficiency states, extensive wart infection, extensive Bowenoid papulosis, vulval intraepithelial neoplasia etc. Initial studies are taking place on ‘shingles’ virus in skin in collaboration with Prof Judy Breuer (Virology).

Wound healing/tissue engineering/stem cell biology
Existing clinical research projects in wound healing and tissue engineering include: growth factor profiles, antimicrobial peptides, hypertrophic scarring and keloids, development and application of new dermal templates, improved cultured epidermal autografting, allogenic transplantation, ex-vivo gene therapy, bronchial epithelial cell culture. The Centre for Cutaneous Research is a provider unit for cultured keratinocytes to patients with large burn injuries at the Chelsea and Westminster burn service and Broomfield burn service, using a variety of delivery systems. This programme currently involves three clinical research fellows who are plastic surgeons. Ongoing research projects in this area include studies to improve graft structure, identify derived therapeutic agents, and investigate both somatic and embryonic stem cell grafts. However, more specifically Simon Myers and Harshad Navsaria have, through the Foreign Office, established important collaborations with burns units in Paraguay and the Dominican Republic, particularly following a devastating fire in Paraguay. Ian Mackenzie's group investigates various aspects of the normal and pathological behaviour of epithelial stem cells in relation to cell renewal, tissue engineering and cancer.