Michael Nicholson (Affiliate)

Research in a Nutshell

We study how the DNA in our cells changes throughout life, and the implications of these changes for cancer and ageing. The molecular and evolutionary processes that occur in our cells combine to generate complex mutation patterns in a tumour’s DNA. To decipher these patterns, we build mathematical models that bridge between biological mechanisms and their presentation in genomic data. 

We use computer simulations, mathematical analyses, statistics, and bioinformatics approaches. Current research is centred around: 

1. Measuring cancer evolution. Cancer mutation patterns result from the molecular processes that lead to mutations, the cancer-promoting effect of certain mutations, and the temporal dynamics of clonal evolution. We quantify various aspects of these processes, e.g. how quickly alterations arise or how cancer-promoting different mutations are. 
2. Consequences of DNA damage. DNA chemical modifications interact with the molecular machines that perform replication and transcription. We’re using cancer and ageing data to better understand the outcome of these interactions, and their consequences on disease.

• Professor Martin Taylor, IGC, The University of Edinburgh
• Dr Tibor Antal, School of Mathematics, The University of Edinburgh
• Professor Ian Tomlinson, Department of Oncology, The University of Oxford
• Professor Ramon Grima, School of Biology, The University of Edinburgh
• Professor Kamila Naxerova, Harvard Medical School, Harvard University
• Professor Franziska Michor, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard University