Research output per year
Research output per year
My research group is interested in pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer. Both these diseases affect the epithelial cells of the pancreas involved in the secretion of a fluid containing all the enzymes required to digest food in the gut. Pancreatitis is a serious and sometimes fatal inflammatory disease where this process goes wrong and the pancreas digest itself. Growing evidence from research suggests that impairment of metabolism, which generates cellular energy, and the control of cellular calcium, which stimulates secretion, both trigger pancreatitis. This leads to catastrophic cell death causing the digestive enzymes to spill out of the pancreas causing autodigestion. Pancreatic cancer is one of the most aggressive and deadly cancers, where the vast majority of patients present with symptoms after the tumour has spread to other organs, making it very difficult to treat. Recent research suggests that genetic changes in pancreatic cancer cells that control metabolism and cellular calcium render these cells highly resistant to cell death. Therefore, our research focuses on understanding the metabolic changes and the mechanisms that control cellular calcium that make pancreatic cancer cells resistant to cell death and how this might be exploited to protect normal cells from catastrophic cell death during pancreatitis.
There are two major overlapping projects currently ongoing in my lab:
1) Insulin protection of pancreatic acinar cells during pancreatitis. Funded by the Medical Research Council (MRC; http://www.mrc.ac.uk/)
2) Metabolic regulation of the PMCA in pancreatic cancer cells: Strategy for cell survival or “Achiles heel”. Funded by Pancreatic Cancer Research Fund http://www.pcrf.org.uk
These projects overlap in the context of the metabolic regulation of the PMCA in conferring a survival advantage during pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer. Consequently these projects involve collaborations with Prof Kaye Williams and Prof Ian Stratford (School of Pharmacy), Prof Michael Lisanti and Dr Cathy Tournier (Division of Molecular and Clinical Cancer), Prof Ajith Siriwardena (HPB Surgery, MRI) and Prof Roy Goodacre (School of Chemistry, Manchester Interdisciplinary Biocentre).
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Bruce, J. (Speaker)
Activity: Talk or presentation › Invited talk › Research
Bruce, J. (Speaker)
Activity: Talk or presentation › Invited talk › Research
Bruce, J. (Discussant)
Activity: Talk or presentation › Invited talk › Research
Bruce, J. (Discussant)
Activity: Talk or presentation › Invited talk › Research
Bruce, J. (Discussant)
Activity: Talk or presentation › Invited talk › Research