Professor Craig Murdoch
BSc (Hons), PhD
School of Clinical Dentistry
Professor in Oral Bioscience
+44 114 215 9367
Full contact details
School of Clinical Dentistry
19 Claremont Crescent
葫芦影业
S10 2TA
- Profile
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After graduating with a BSc dual honours in Biochemistry/Microbiology I gained a PhD at the Institute of Child Health, University of 葫芦影业 investigating the role of chemokine receptors on endothelial and epithelial cells within the research group of Prof Adam Finn. Following a brief spell researching the pathogenesis of pneumococcal pneumonia, I spent five years working as a post-doctoral researcher in Prof Claire Lewis鈥檚 group on tumour-associated macrophages in the Department of Oncology at the University of 葫芦影业 Medical School.
I was appointed Lecturer at the School of Clinical Dentistry in 2006, Senior Lecturer in 2012, Reader in 2015 and then to Personal Chair in 2019 where my research encompasses understanding the molecular mechanism of oral disease.
- Research interests
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My main interests are centred on oral epithelial biology and the molecular mechanisms of oral diseases and their systemic sequalae. I am particularly interested in how immune cells are recruited to diseased oral sites and how they interact with other cells/microbes within the local microenvironment. As part of this research my group has developed novel tissue engineered in vitro models of both healthy and diseased oral mucosa to investigate pathogenic mechanisms. I have a long-standing track record of developing and utilising in vitro 3D tissue constructs and zebrafish larvae as direct replacements for animal models and have used these experimental models to study the role of oral microorganisms in mucosal and systemic disease. I am also involved with projects aimed at developing novel oral patches for mucosal drug delivery (with AFYX Therapeutics) and how mathematical modelling of oral tissue can aid the development of drug delivery systems (with University of Liverpool) and non-invasive diagnostics for the detection and management of oral pre-malignant lesions (with Zilico).
Current projects include:
- Role of innate immune cells in head and neck cancer.
- Development of tissue engineered immunocompetent oral mucosal and skin models.
- Host-pathogen interactions at the mucosal surface.
- Use of zebrafish to examine the role of oral microbes in systemic disease.
- Novel forms of oral mucosal drug delivery and the role of xenobiotic metabolising enzymes in the oral mucosa.
Research group
- Amy Harding (PDRA): Development and validation of tissue-engineered skin equivalents to detect skin irritation. (Rohto Pharmaceutical Company Limited) with Dr Helen Colley & Dr Simon Danby.
- Bethany Ollington: Use of immune-competent tissue engineered oral mucosal equivalents to model oral infection. (with Dr Helen Colley, MRC DiMeN Studentship)
- Inmaculada Barragan Vazquez: Tissue engineered modelling of atopic dermatitis (with Dr Helen Colley & Dr Simon Danby, Almirall S.A.-funded PhD Studentship)
- Asma El-Howati: Development of tissue engineered oral inflammatory lesions (with Dr Helen Colley, Funded by Libyan Government Scholarship)
- Antonia Cutts: Use of in vitro and in vivo zebrafish embryo infection models to investigate the role of oral microorganisms in cardiovascular disease. (with Prof Graham Stafford, University Faculty Studentship)
- Klaudia Slowik: The role of xenobiotic metabolising enzymes in drug delivery for prevention of alveolar osteitis. (with Dr Helen Colley, EPSRC-Funded Studentship)
- Jake Edmans: Peptide delivery using electrospun mucoadhesive patches (with Dr Helen Colley, Dr Seb Spain and Prof Paul Hatton, EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Polymers and Soft Matter/ AFYX Therapeutics studentship)
- Asmaa Zanki: Fabrication of dentures with anti-fungal properties by additive manufacturing. (with Prof Paul Hatton - Funded by Kuwait Government Scholarship)
- Publications
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Journal articles
Chapters
Conference proceedings papers
- Research group
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PhD students:
- Cher Farrugia: Use of in vitro and in vivo zebrafish embryo infection models to investigate the role of oral microorganisms in cardiovascular disease. (co-supervisor: Dr Graham Stafford, University Faculty Studentship)
- Bethany Ollington: Immune-competent tissue engineered oral mucosal models to investigate xenobiotic metabolism. (co-supervisor: Dr Helen Colley, DiMeN MRC Studentship)
- Inmaculada Barragan Vazquez: Tissue engineered modelling of atopic dermatitis (co-supervisors: Dr Helen Colley & Dr Simon Danby, Almirall S.A. funded PhD Studentship)
- Asma El-Howati: Tissue engineered oral inflammatory lesions (lead supervisor: Dr Helen Colley, Funded by Libyan Government Scholarship)
- Klaudia Slowik: The role of metabolising enzymes in drug delivery for prevention of alveolar osteitis. (lead supervisor: Dr Helen Colley, EPSRC Funded Studentship)
- Jake Edmans: Peptide delivery using electrospun mucoadhesive patches (lead supervisor: Dr Helen Colley, EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Polymers and Soft Matter)
- Asmaa Zanki: Fabrication of dentures with anti-fungal properties by additive manufacturing. (lead supervisor: Prof. Paul Hatton - Funded by Kuwait Government Scholarship)
- Teaching activities
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Undergraduate:
Bachelor of Dental Surgery:
- DEN11001 - The Human Body
- DEN11002 - The Oral Cavity in Health and Disease
- DEN21004 鈥 Nutrition, Disease and Materials
- DEN31002 - Integrated Human Disease
- DEN41004 - Oral Disease
BSc Bio-Dental Science and Technology:
MbChB Medicine:
- MEDU01 鈥 Immunology
Post-Graduate Taught:
- DEN616 鈥 Tissue Engineering & Regenerative Dentistry (module lead) taught to both MSc in Dental Materials Science and MMedSci in Diagnostic Oral Pathology
- OCP604 鈥 MSc(Res) Translational Oncology (Chemokines in Cancer)
- PGT research projects regularly supervised for MSc Dental Materials Science, MMedSci in Diagnostic Oral Pathology, MSc Molecular Medicine and MSc(Res) Translational Oncology.
- Professional activities and memberships
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- British Association for Cancer Research National Executive Committee Member (2017 - 2021).
- National Centre for the Replacement Refinement and Reduction of Animals (NC3R) Studentship Grant Review Board Member (2015 - 2020).
- PlosOne Academic Editor.
- Associate Editor Frontiers in Oral Health
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