Contact information
Research groups
Magdalena Drozdz
DPhil student
Research interests
Cytosine methylation is the most common epigenetic change in human DNA and it is crucial for the correct regulation of gene expression. 5-methylcytosine (5mC) is mutated more frequently than its unmethylated counterpart, which is important in immune system development, evolution, but also in cancer formation and progression. In my DPhil, I am investigating the relationship between 5mC and transversion mutations in several human cancers.
Background
I completed my BSc in Human Genetics at the University of Nottingham and my MRes in Cancer Informatics at the Imperial College London. In my Masters’ thesis, I investigated the impact of PTEN loss on microRNA landscape in prostate cancer, and the proximal mutational effects of 5mC in various cancers. I also did two laboratory-based internships in the Institute of Human Genetics (Poznan, Poland) and in the Brook Lab (University of Nottingham), where I worked on gene knockouts to study Myotonic Dystrophy.
I am also a team member of the Polonium Foundation, where we connect the polish scientific diaspora around the world. When I am not at work, you can find me organising various events with the Polonium Foundation, or somewhere at a climbing wall.