Dr Peter Arthur-Farraj University positionWellcome Clinical Research Career Development Fellow DepartmentsDepartment of Clinical Neurosciences InstitutesCambridge Centre for Brain Repair Research ThemeInterestsI am a neurology registrar with an interest in neuromuscular disorders and nerve repair. I have recently been awarded a Wellcome Trust Clinical Career Development Fellowship, to work with Professor Michael Coleman’s group at the John Van Geest Centre for Brain Repair. My research is focused on how the nerve supporting cells, Schwann cells, transform after injury into a specialized cell type called Repair Schwann cells, to help promote both nerve cell (neuron) survival and regrowth. I am using a variety of techniques, including live imaging of Schwann cells-neuronal interactions in zebrafish, mammalian Schwann cells/neuron co-cultures in microfluidic chambers, genetic mouse models and viral vectors. My long-term career aim is to translate my research to help generate new treatments, particularly using gene therapy for traumatic nerve injury and neuromuscular disease. Research Focus
EquipmentCalcium imaging Cell culture Confocal microscopy CRISPR/Cas gene editing Immunohistochemistry Live imaging Microfluidic chambers Transcriptomics Transgenic mice Viral vectors (lentivirus and AAV) Zebrafish Collaborators
Associated News ItemsKey publicationsArthur-Farraj P, Morgan CC, Adamowicz M, Gomez-Sanchez JA, Fazal SV, Beucher A, Razzaghi B, Mirsky R, Jessen K.R, Aitman TJ (2017), “Changes in the Coding and Non-coding Transcriptome and DNA Methylome that Define the Schwann cell Repair Phenotype after Nerve Injury” Cell Reports 20:1-16 Jessen KR, Mirsky R, Arthur-Farraj P (2015), “The Role of Cell Plasticity in Tissue Repair: Adaptive Cellular Reprogramming” Developmental Cell 34:613-620 Arthur-Farraj P, Latouche-Hartman, M, Wilton DK, Quintes S, Chabrol E, Banerjee A, Woodhoo A, Jenkins B, Rahman M, Turmaine M, Wicher GK, Mitter R, Greensmith L, Behrens A, Raivich G, Mirsky R, Jessen KR. (2012), “c-Jun reprograms Schwann cells of injured nerves to generate a repair cell essential for regeneration” Neuron 75:633-647 Publications2022Peter Arthur-Farraj (2022), “Trick or treat? Does cancer fool Schwann cells by mimicking axons to promote metastasis into nerves?” Neural Regeneration Research Sergio Velasco-Aviles, Nikiben Patel, Angeles Casillas-Bajo, Laura Frutos-Rincón, Enrique Velasco-Serna, Juana Gallar, Peter Arthur-Farraj, Jose A Gomez-Sanchez, Hugo Cabedo (2022), “A genetic compensatory mechanism regulated by Jun and Mef2d modulates the expression of distinct class IIa Hdacs to ensure peripheral nerve myelination and repair” eLife 11:e72917 2021Arthur-Farraj P, Coleman MP (2021), “Lessons from Injury: How Nerve Injury Studies Reveal Basic Biological Mechanisms and Therapeutic Opportunities for Peripheral Nerve Diseases” Neurotherapeutics Loreto A, Angeletti C, Gu W, Osborne A, Nieuwenhuis B, Gilley J, Arthur-Farraj P, Merlini E, Amici A, Luo Z, Hartley-Tassell L, Ve T, Desrochers LM, Wang Q, Kobe B, Orsomando G, Coleman MP. (2021), “Neurotoxin-mediated potent activation of the axon degeneration regulator SARM1.” eLife 10:e72823 Richard J Perry, PhD, Arina Tamborska, MBChB, Bhagteshwar Singh, MRCP, Brian Craven, MBBCh, Richard Marigold, FRCP, Peter Arthur-Farraj, PhD, Jing Ming Yeo, MRCP, Liqun Zhang, PhD, Ghaniah Hassan-Smith, PhD, Matthew Jones, MD, Christopher Hutchcroft, MRCP, Esther Hobson, PhD, Dana Warcel, MBBS, Daniel White, MRCP, Phillip Ferdinand, MRCP, Alastair Webb, DPhil, Prof Tom Solomon, FMedSci, Prof Marie Scully, MD, Prof David J Werring, PhD, Prof Christine Roffe (2021), “Cerebral venous thrombosis after vaccination against COVID-19 in the UK: a multicentre cohort study ” Lancet 398: 1147-56 Wagstaff LJ, Gomez-Sanchez JA, Fazal SV, Otto GW, Kilpatrick AM, Michael K, Wong LYN, Ma KH, Turmaine M, Svaren J, Gordon T, Arthur-Farraj P, Velasco-Aviles S, Cabedo H, Benito C, Mirsky R, Jessen KR (2021), “Failures of nerve regeneration caused by aging or chronic denervation are rescued by restoring Schwann cell c-Jun” eLife 10:e62232 2020Aravinthan Varatharaj; Naomi Thomas; Mark A Ellul; Nicholas W S Davies; Thomas A Pollak; Elizabeth L Tenorio; Mustafa Sultan; Ava Easton; Gerome Breen; Michael Zandi; Jonathan P Coles; Hadi Manji; Rustam Al-Shahi Salman; David K Menon; Timothy R Nicholson; Laura A Benjamin; Alan Carson; Craig Smith; Martin R Turner; Tom Solomon; Rachel Kneen; Sarah L Pett; Ian Galea; Rhys H Thomas; Benedict D Michael; Claire Allen; Neil Archibald; James Arkell; Peter Arthur-Farraj; Mark Baker et al. (2020), “Neurological and neuropsychiatric complications of COVID-19 in 153 patients: a UK-wide surveillance study” Lancet Psychiatry Arthur-Farraj P, Moyon S (2020), “DNA methylation in Schwann cells and in oligodendrocytes” Glia 2019Jessen KR, Arthur-Farraj PJ (2019), “Repair Schwann cell update: Adaptive reprogramming, EMT, and stemness in regenerating nerves” Glia 2012Arthur-Farraj PJ, Murphy SM, Laura M, Lunn MP, Manji H, Blake J, Ramdharry G, Fox Z, Reilly MM (2012), “Hand weakness in Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease 1X” Neuromuscular Disorders 22:622-626 Peroos S, Forsythe E, Pugh JH, Arthur-Farraj P, Hodes D (2012), “Longevity and Patau syndrome: what determines survival?” BMJ Case Reports 6;2012. pii: bcr0620114381. 2011Arthur-Farraj P, Wanek K, Hantke J, Davis CM, Jayakar A, Parkinson DB, Mirsky R, Jessen KR (2011), “Mouse schwann cells need both NRG1 and cyclic AMP to myelinate” Glia 59:720-733 2008Mirsky R, Woodhoo A, Parkinson DB, Arthur-Farraj P, Bhaskaran A, Jessen KR (2008), “Novel signals controlling embryonic Schwann cell development, myelination and dedifferentiation” Journal of Peripheral Nervous System 13:122-135 Parkinson DB*, Bhaskaran A*, Arthur-Farraj P* (equal contribution), Noon LA, Woodhoo A, Lloyd AC, Feltri ML, Wrabetz L, Behrens A, Mirsky R, Jessen KR (2008), “c-Jun is a negative regulator of myelination” Journal of Cell Biology 181:625-637 2006Arthur-Farraj P, Mirsky R, Parkinson DB, Jessen KR (2006), “A double point mutation in the DNA-binding region of Egr2 switches its function from inhibition to induction of proliferation: A potential contribution to the development of congenital hypomyelinating neuropathy” Neurobiology of Disease 24:159-169 |