Course summary

This programme is under review and closed for applications. Our role in the development of stem cell research began in the early 1990s, with researchers at the former Centre for Genome Research producing the subject’s early publications. We grew into the first stem cell research institute in the UK, and this formed the basis of what is now a world-leading centre for multidisciplinary research in mammalian stem cell biology and regenerative medicine. As a PhD student, you will be located within the Centre for Regenerative Medicine (CRM), a world leading research centre based at the University of Edinburgh’s Institute for Regeneration and Repair. Our Scientists and clinicians study stem cells, disease and tissue repair to advance human health. By better understanding how stem cells are controlled and how diseases develop in a lab environment, we hope to find new ways to treat patients. Research groups within CRM cover a diverse range of areas, exploring the possibilities offered by embryonic, fetal and adult tissue stem cells. Each group focuses on a highly specific aspect of research. The themes we address include:

• the properties of stem cells and their niches

• control of stem cell self-renewal and differentiation in vitro and in vivo

• the role of stem cells in the ageing process

• the mechanisms underlying tissue degeneration and repair.