The Chain Florey programme is named in celebration of one of the greatest collaborations between medicine and science: Howard Florey, a clinically trained pathologist, and Ernst Chain, a biochemist, who shared the 1945 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Alexander Fleming for their work in discovering, developing and producing the first antibiotic: penicillin.
The Chain Florey Programme has been designed to support the training and career development of early-career clinician scientists at the interface of discovery science and experimental medicine. The scheme provides unique opportunities to partner with LMS fundamental discovery science groups and buddy up with early-career non-clinical scientists.
The programme can offer support at multiple points on a clinical career pathway, allowing research skills and experience to be developed while continuing clinical training. We encourage clinicians to explore flexible options, and the programme can offer highly individualised solutions. The Chain Florey programme is supported by UKRI and NIHR Imperial BRC.
Current Chain Florey Fellows jointly supported by the NIHR Imperial BRC and UKRI.
2024 Cohort
Lars Hanssen, Chain Florey Predoctoral Fellow
I am a Predoctoral Fellow at the LMS, researching the mechanisms by which steroids act in Diamond-Blackfan Anaemia. My goal is to identify new therapeutic targets that enhance red blood cell production in individuals suffering from this disease.
Saleem Ansari, Chain Florey Clinical Research Training Fellow
I am a Metabolic Medicine and Chemical Pathology Registrar currently out of programme, as I pursue my PhD. My research focuses on developing strategies to optimise glucagon receptor agonism as a treatment for metabolic diseases.
Eka Melson, Chain Florey Clinical Research Training Fellow
I am an Academic Clinical Fellow in Diabetes and Endocrinology, currently out of the programme as a Chain Florey Clinical Research Training Fellow. My research focuses on Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) and its role in increasing the risk of metabolic dysfunction. Additionally, I lead the DAISy-PCOS study, a large multicentre international cohort study recruiting women with PCOS. My research involves using human in vivo methods to study the impact of various interventions on managing PCOS.
2023 Cohort
Paul Middleton, Chain Florey Clinical Lecturer
I am a gastroenterology trainee with a research interest in understanding how mitochondrial dysfunction affects immune cells in patients with alcoholic hepatitis. My aim is to understand how this may compromise the immune system and to identify novel potential treatments for the disease.
Omar El Tokhy, Chain Florey Clinical Research Training Fellow
I am an Academic Obstetrics and Gynaecology Trainee with research interests in Reproductive Medicine and understanding the genetic basis of human infertility. My research seeks to understand the regulation of sperm production to develop new therapies for men experiencing infertility. In addition, I aim to explore the links between male infertility and serious health problems later in life, such as cancer and chronic diseases.
Former Fellows and Lecturers
John Thomas, Chain Florey Clinical Research Training Fellow (2022)
I am a clinical gastroenterology trainee with a strong research interest in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). I am currently pursuing my PhD as a Chain Florey Clinical Research Fellow at the LMS, under the supervision of Prof Irene Miguel-Aliaga, Dr Nick Powell, and Dr Tamas Korcsmaros. My research aims to investigate sex differences in the pathogenesis of IBD, using computational analysis of genomic data alongside wet-lab approaches involving human intestinal organoids.
Sean Zheng, Chain Florey Clinical Lecturer (2021)
I am a cardiology registrar with an interest in the genomics of cardiomyopathy, in particular, I assess the polygenic contribution of common genetic variation on cardiomyopathy and try to identify novel disease-causing genes.
Mark Sweeney, Chain Florey Clinical Lecturer (2018)
I am an academic cardiologist who joined the LMS as an Academic Clinical Fellow in Professor Stuart Cook’s group in 2018. I subsequently undertook my PhD with Professor Cook and Professor Jesus Gil, investigating the effects of interleukin-11 on the myocardium.
Jocelyn Wallbridge, Chain Florey Early Postdoctoral Fellow (2016)
I am currently a trainee in obstetrics and gynaecology and I work in the Martinez-Perez lab, which research meiosis. My research focuses on how cohesin complexes contribute to the regulation of gene expression.