Cambridge Institute for Medical Research

Our strategy

CIMR is a unique partnership between basic and clinical research, aiming to understand the cellular basis of disease. Our goal is to create an inspiring environment in which outstanding scientists can excel. By providing state-of-the-art core facilities and support for our researchers, we foster new collaborations that spark discoveries about fundamental cellular processes and their relevance in disease.

Research Advance

Gareth Fearnley in the Sharpe lab (CIMR) has reported in eLife that the homophilic receptor PTPRK selectively dephosphorylates multiple junctional regulators to promote cell-cell adhesion

Research Advance

Claudia Rato & Yahui Yan from the Ron lab report on the discovery of an intracellular role for a protein long believed to be secreted neurotrophin. Surprisingly, they find that MANF regulates protein folding homeostasis by antagonising nucleotide exchange of the endoplasmic reticulum chaperone BiP.

Research advances

In Nature Communications, Alexandra Davies in the Robinson lab has uncovered a novel role for the adaptor protein AP-4 in regulating the cellular recycling process autophagy.

Research advances

Writing in Nature Cell Biology, Edward Avezov (Ron Lab and UK DRI), Joe Chambers (Marciniak Lab) and their collaborators at the Department of Chemical Engineering of Cambridge University and the École Normale Supérieure of Paris report on an active process that distributes the contents of the endoplasmic reticulum throughout mammalian cells

Research advances

Chris Gawden-Bone in the Griffiths lab has revealed in Immunity that PIP5 Kinases Regulate Membrane Phosphoinositide and Actin Composition for Targeted Granule Secretion by Cytotoxic Lymphocytes

Research Advances

Sung Min Son in the Rubinsztein group has reported in Cell Metabolism that in some cells, mTOR complex 1 can be activated by leucine via its metabolite acetyl-CoA.

Research advances

The Rubinsztein group report in Nature Communications that inhibition of cellular recycling through autophagy is an important consequence of contact inhibition.

Research advances

Arianne Richard in the Griffiths (CIMR) and Marioni (CRUK Cambridge institute) labs has reported in Nature Immunology that the killing capacity of cytotoxic T cells is independent of initial ligand stimulation strength.

Research advances

The Larrieu (CIMR) and Jackson groups (Gurdon Institute) reveal in Science Signalling that the transportin-1 nuclear import pathway is an essential target of NAT10 acetyltransferase in progeria and ageing.

Research advances

In Cell Host and Microbe, the Weekes lab have taken a multiplexed proteomics approach to determine which of >10,000 host proteins are degraded during infection by human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), and identify a DNA helicase as a novel anti-viral restriction factor.

The Keith Peters Building

At 6pm on Thursday 4th April, Professor Sir Keith Peters unveiled a plaque in reception to mark the formal re-naming of our building as The Keith Peters Building. Sixty guests, several of whom held senior positions in the Clinical School over 25 years ago, were invited by the School to be present and somehow, they easily fitted into Reception for the event. Sir Keith, as Regius Professor, was instrumental in convincing the Wellcome Trust and MRC to provide the funds for our building and was also successful in procuring the donation that allowed us to have a lounge/canteen on the top floor. Marking Sir Keith’s Welsh origin, the plaque in Reception is made of Welsh slate and the letter carving is by Kindersley.

Congratulations to David Rubinsztein who has been selected as one of Clarivate Analytics Highly Cited Researchers for 2018. This identifies 6078 scientists and social scientists who have authored multiple highly cited papers that rank in the top 1% by citations for field and year in Web of Science from 2006-2016. The number of researchers selected in each field is based on the square root of the population of authors listed on the field’s highly cited papers.

New Professorship

Many congratulations to Folma Buss on her well-deserved promotion to Professor, reflecting both her research advances and her commitment to graduate education.