Dr Elena Polycarpou
Faculties, departments and locations
- Faculty of Health, Science, Social Care and Education
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences
- School of Life Sciences, Pharmacy and Chemistry
- Penrhyn Road
Senior Lecturer in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry
- Email:
- [email protected]
About
I obtained my BSc and MSc degrees in Medical Biochemistry and Cancer Biology respectively before completing my PhD at Kingston University London in 2013, where I investigated the effects and potential targets of the natural product, resveratrol and its metabolites on colorectal cancer growth.
My postdoctoral work, conducted in the Edith Sim laboratory, involved identifying novel targets for antimicrobial therapeutics in M. tuberculosis (aiming to develop inhibitors of the protein, HsaD involved in the cholesterol metabolism pathway) and the development of novel strategies to overcome the bacterial infection caused by P. aeruginosa (focusing on the azoreductase family of enzymes found ubiquitously in bacteria).
I joined the teaching team at Kingston in 2014, where I am currently a senior lecturer in biochemistry & molecular biology and hold a fellowship of the Higher Education Academy.
In my role as an academic, I was deputy course leader for Biochemistry (2018–2021) and module leader of LS4003 Scientific and Laboratory Skills (core module for the majority of the courses in the Department of Biomolecular Sciences and Applied & Human Sciences). I became module leader of LS5002 Proteins and Metabolism in the academic year 2020–21.
I have been a member and working group lead of the School's Athena Swan self-assessment team since 2016, with ongoing roles, responsibilities and duties to the present. We received Bronze recognition in 2017. In addition to learning, teaching and research, I am interested in being involved in public engagement and outreach/widening participation; I have co-organised and run the pilot National Science and Engineering Saturday Club (led by Professor Edith Sim) in association with the Sorrel Foundation and was co-organiser of Cafe Scientifique Kingston.
Qualifications
- 2016: Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
- 2009–2013: PhD Cancer Biology, Kingston University London
- 2008–2009: MSc Cancer Biology
- 2005–2008: BSc (Hons) Medical Biochemistry
Domains
Academic Impact Awards
- 2014: Best Project/Dissertation Supervisor Award (Nomination), Kingston University London
Courses taught
Current research students
- MSc by Research: Cocaine induces morphological microstructural changes of cardiac tissues. Implications for cardiac fibrosis.
Research Student: Pola Sobiecka.
Supervisory Team: E Polycarpou, J Fletcher, J Bennett. - PhD: The role of cannabinoids and synthetic cannabinoids as a mediator of actin cytoskeletal rearrangement and matrix protein deposition in cardiac cells.
Research Student: Ayse Merve Orme.
Supervisory Team: B Rooney, E Polycarpou, J Bennett and S Lawton. - PhD: Screening and evaluating the effect of pharmaceutical excipients on the pharmacokinetics of therapeutic agents.
Research Student: Rahulkumar Patel.
Supervisory Team: A Elshaer, E Polycarpou and J Barker. - PhD: Profiling wild-type and FGFR inhibitor drug resistant cervical cancer cell lines.
Research Student: Nauf Bou Antoun.
Supervisory Team: A-M Chioni, T Walker and E Polycarpou.
Successful completions
- PhD: Investigating the involvement of FGFR signalling in human cervical cancer cell lines.
Research Student: Hiba Mahmood.
Supervisory Team: A-M Chioni, T Walker and E Polycarpou. - MSc by Research: The phenotypic effect of cocaine on cardiomyocyte cells and implications for cytoskeletal dynamics: an exploratory investigation for narcotic drug mediated organ fibrogenesis.
Research Student: Avnish Verma.
Supervisory Team: B Rooney, E Polycarpou and J Bennett. - MSc by Research: Studying the metabolism of Tartazine by the gut microbiota.
Research Student: Gemma Hoynes.
Supervisory Team: E Polycarpou, A Ryan, G Forster-Wilkins and E Opara. - PhD: Smart nano-capsules for targeted anti-cancer drug delivery.
Research Student: Anna Caprifico.
Supervisory Team: G Calabrese, E Polycarpou and P Foot.
School Athena Swan self-assessment team member (2016–present)
- Bronze Award Application
- Silver Award Application (in progress)
Impact nominations
- National Saturday Science & Engineering Club (Nomination), The Rose Awards (Kingston University London) (2015)
Professional and scholarly affiliations
- Member, Royal Society of Biology
- Fellow, Advance HE
- Aurora (Advance HE): October 2021–March 2022
- Deputy Course Leader: BSc (Honours) Biochemistry – August 2018–December 2021
- Module Leader: LS4003 Scientific and Laboratory Skills – 2016–2020
- Module Leader: LS5002 Proteins and Metabolism – 2020–present
Qualifications and expertise
- Fellow of Advance HE (formerly Higher Education Academy)
Publications
Advances in chitosan-based CRISPR/Cas9 delivery systems
Caprifico, Anna E., Foot, Peter J.S., Polycarpou, Elena and Calabrese, Gianpiero, 2022, Pharmaceutics (14), 9, Published
Metabolites of cannabis induce cardiac toxicity and morphological alterations in cardiac myocytes
Merve, Ayse Orme, Sobiecka, Pola, Remeškevičius, Vytautas, Taylor, Luke, Saskoy, Lili, Lawton, Scott, Jones, Ben P., Elwakeel, Ahmed, Mackenzie, Francesca E., Polycarpou, Elena, Bennett, Jason and Rooney, Brian, 2022, International Journal of Molecular Sciences (23), 3, Published
Quercetin loaded cosm-nutraceutical electrospun composite nanofibers for acne alleviation: preparation, characterization and experimental clinical appraisal
Amer, Sandra Sherif, Mamdouh, Wael, Nasr, Maha, ElShaer, Amr, Polycarpou, Elena, Abdel-Aziz, Rasha T.A. and Sammour, Omaima A., 2022, International Journal of Pharmaceutics (612), Published
Overcoming the protein corona in chitosan-based nanoparticles
Caprifico, Anna E., Foot, Peter J.S., Polycarpou, Elena and Calabrese, Gianpiero, 2021, Drug Discovery Today (26), 8pp 1825-1840, Published
Efficacy of cannabinoids against glioblastoma multiforme: a systematic review
Kyriakou, Ismini, Yarandi, Niousha and Polycarpou, Elena, 2021, Phytomedicine (88), Published
Cocaine induces cytoskeletal changes in cardiac myocytes: implications for cardiac morphology
Verma, Avnish, Merve, Ayse Orme, Remeškevičius, Vytautas, Sobiecka, Pola, Taylor, Luke, Lawton, Scott, Jones, Ben P., Polycarpou, Elena, Bennett, Jason and Rooney, Brian, 2021, International Journal of Molecular Sciences (22), 5, Published
Biomedical and pharmacological uses of fluorescein isothiocyanate chitosan-based nanocarriers
Caprifico, Anna E., Polycarpou, Elena, Foot, Peter J.S. and Calabrese, Gianpiero, 2021, Macromolecular Bioscience (21), 1, Published
Overcoming the blood-brain barrier: functionalised chitosan nanocarriers
Caprifico, Anna E., Foot, Peter J.S., Polycarpou, Elena and Calabrese, Gianpiero, 2020, Pharmaceutics (12), 11, Published
Fluorescein isothiocyanate chitosan nanoparticles in oral drug delivery studies
Caprifico, Anna E., Polycarpou, Elena, Foot, Peter J.S. and Calabrese, Gianpiero, 2020, Trends in Pharmacological Sciences (41), 10pp 686-689, Published
Cosm-nutraceutical nanovesicles for acne treatment: physicochemical characterization and exploratory clinical experimentation
Amer, Sandra Sherif, Nasr, Maha, Abdel-Aziz, Rasha T.A., Moftah, Noha H., El Shaer, Amr, Polycarpou, Elena, Mamdouh, Wael and Sammour, Omaima, 2020, International Journal of Pharmaceutics (577), Published
Cocaine addicted to cytoskeletal change and a fibrosis high
Verma, Avnish, Bennett, Jason, Örme, Ayşe Merve, Polycarpou, Elena and Rooney, Brian, 2019, Cytoskeleton (76), 2pp 177-185, Published
Stainless steel with tailored porosity using canister-free hot isostatic pressing for improved osseointegration implants
Hassanin, Hany, Al-Kinani, Ali A., Elshaer, Amr, Polycarpou, Elena, El-Sayed, Mahmoud Ahmed and Essa, Khamis, 2017, Journal of Materials Chemistry B (5), 47pp 9384-9394, Published
Investigation of the mycobacterial enzyme HsaD as a potential novel target for anti-tubercular agents using a fragment-based drug design approach
Ryan, Ali, Polycarpou, Elena, Lack, Nathan A., Evangelopoulos, Dimitrios, Sieg, Christian, Halman, Alice, Bhakta, Sanjib, Eleftheriadou, Olga, McHugh, Timothy D., Keany, Sebastian, Lowe, Edward D., Ballet, Romain, Abuhammad, Areej, Jacobs, William R., Ciulli, Alessio and Sim, Edith, 2017, British Journal of Pharmacology (174), 14pp 2209-2224, Published
Identification of novel members of the bacterial azoreductase family in 'Pseudomonas aeruginosa'
Crescente, Vincenzo, Holland, Sinead M., Kashyap, Sapna, Polycarpou, Elena, Sim, Edith and Ryan, Ali, 2016, Biochemical Journal (473), 5pp 549-558, Published
Identification of NAD(P)H Quinone Oxidoreductase Activity in Azoreductases from P. aeruginosa: Azoreductases and NAD(P)H Quinone Oxidoreductases Belong to the Same FMN-Dependent Superfamily of Enzymes
Ryan, Ali, Kaplan, Elise, Nebel, Jean Christophe, Polycarpou, Elena, Crescente, Vincenzo, Lowe, Edward, Preston, Gail M. and Sim, Edith, 2014, PLoS ONE (9), 6, Published
Resveratrol 3-O-d-glucuronide and resveratrol 4'-O-d-glucuronide inhibit colon cancer cell growth: Evidence for a role of A3 adenosine receptors, cyclin D1 depletion, and G1 cell cycle arrest
Polycarpou, Elena, Meira, Lisiane B., Carrington, Simon, Tyrrell, Elizabeth, Modjtahedi, Helmout and Carew, Mark A., 2013, Molecular Nutrition and Food Research (57), 10pp 1708-1717, Published
Arylamine N-Acetyltransferases
Boukouvala, Sotiria, Fakis, Giannoulis, Stavrakaki, Ioanna, Polycarpou, Elena, Laurieri, Nicola and Sim, Edith (2024). [Published]