Customising cytokines to improve bone marrow transplantation

Haematopoietic stem cells are used in a huge range of cell and gene therapies, including the most successful and longstanding cellular therapy in humans, bone marrow transplantation. The success of transplantation protocols in combination with the complexities and costs of delivering them has inspired decades of research into developing ex vivo HSC expansion methods to increase availability of cells to meet the demands for immunologically matched cellular products, and, more recently, to facilitate corrective gene therapy protocols. The Hitchcock lab, part of the Centre for Blood Research, focuses on improving cells for transplantation by customising cytokines – key regulators of ex vivo HSC expansion, which create homogenous cell products of functional HSCs in the absence of large numbers of differentiated progeny. This project will focus on generating and testing thrombopoietin modifications (TPO^mods) that expand HSCs in a highly preferential manner to minimise, and perhaps even fully prevent, cell differentiation. The student will develop key skills in cell culture, protein production and purification, and functional characterisation of cytokines. Students will need to find their own accommodation and be expected to present their findings orally at a research day in York on 08th September 2026.