News

A sad goodbye and a warm welcome - New CTR Director

1 October 2020

Prof Graham Burton has officially retired and although we are sad to see him go, we know he will savour the joys of retirement! Graham was Director of the Loke CTR for the last 14 years, leading the focus of excellence to promote scientific study of the placenta and maternal-fetal interactions during pregnancy. It goes...

Abnormal placental CD8+ T‐cell infiltration is a feature of fetal growth restriction and pre‐eclampsia - just published in the Journal of Physiology

23 September 2020

Susanne Lager, Ulla Sovio, Elizabeth Eddershaw, Margaretha W. van der Linden, Cansu Yazar, Emma Cook, Lisa Happerfield, Flora A. Jessop, Neil J. Sebire, D. Stephen Charnock‐Jones, Gordon C. S. Smith Abstract Key points Placental pathological abnormalities are more frequently observed in complicated pregnancies than in...

Protocol on "Establishment and differentiation of long-term trophoblast organoid cultures from the human placenta" Just published in Nature Protocols

11 September 2020

Establishment and differentiation of long-termtrophoblast organoid cultures from the human placenta. Megan A. Sheridan1,2, Ridma C. Fernando1,2, Lucy Gardner1,2, Michael S. Hollinshead1,Graham J. Burton2,3, Ashley Moffett1,2and Margherita Y. Turco1,2 The human placenta is essential for successful reproduction. There is...

Prevention of heart disease can start before birth

7 September 2020

Mitochondrial therapy in complicated pregnancies lowers the chance of cardiovascular problems in the offspring

Developmental potential of aneuploid human embryos cultured beyond implantation

12 August 2020

The first detailed analysis of post-implantation development of aneuploid human embryos have been published in Nature Communications by the Zernicka-Goetz lab Abstract : Aneuploidy, the presence of an abnormal number of chromosomes, is a major cause of early pregnancy loss in humans. Yet, the developmental consequences of...

Origin and function of the yolk sac in primate embryogenesis

4 August 2020

Why do human embryos need a yolk sac and how does it form? This Perspective by Thorsten Boroviak and Connor Ross explores the development and function of the yolk sac in primate embryogenesis. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-020-17575-w

Dr Judith Bulmer, renowned placental pathologist, has passed away

22 July 2020

It is with great sadness that we hear of the passing of Dr Judith Bulmer on July 21st. Judith was a highly esteemed placental pathologist who contributed enormously to placental research through her work on uterine Natural Killer cells and spiral artery remodelling. She regularly attended IFPA meetings and was also a great...

Dr Kathy Niakan announced as next Director of the CTR

13 July 2020

We are delighted that Dr Kathy Niakan will be the next Director of the Loke CTR from October 2020. Kathy was one of the first Next Generation Fellows in the Loke CTR, and went on to become a group leader at the CRICK Institute in London. There, Kathy’s research has focussed on studying the mechanisms determining cell fate...

CTR Director Prof Graham Burton is awarded the IFPA Joan Hunt Senior Award in Placentology

6 July 2020

Congratulations to Loke CTR Director, Prof Graham Burton, who has received the IFPA Joan Hunt Senior Award. The Award recognizes the work of established senior scientists who have led placental research groups and have made a significant contribution to the understanding of placental and reproductive functions. In this...

Kristian Franze receives Senior Academic Promotion to Professor

2 July 2020

We would like to congratulate our PDN colleague, and member of the Loke CTR, Kristian Franze for his promotion to Professor of Neuronal Mechanics. The General Board has awarded Kristian the Professorship which will take effect from 1st October 2020. Kristian's research takes interdisciplinary approaches to investigate how...