School of Research

A University of Dundee scientist has accepted a role to lead a $55 million initiative aiming to create a “tissue time machine” to fight disease.

Jason Swedlow, Professor of Quantitative Cell Biology at Dundee’s School of Life Sciences, has been seconded to the position of Programme Director of Delta Tissue, a global effort to predict the future state of human tissue and the efficacy of available treatments for individuals diagnosed with some of the world’s deadliest diseases.

A near-£1 million investment will help University of Dundee spinout company Ten Bio Ltd to commercialise the human skin culture system it developed to provide a viable alternative for many experiments currently performed on animals.

Led by TRICAPITAL LTD and with matched funding from Scottish Enterprise, the investment of £911,000 will enable the company to progress its mission to transform the testing of new pharmaceutical and cosmetic products. Initial launch of the company’s brand will be in the US, where the majority of potential customers are based.

In the summer of 2019, undergraduate student Fergus Buchanan undertook a lab project with Dr Alan Prescott. The research undertaken has been published in Frontiers in Immunology as part of a collaboration with the group of Diego Gomez-Nicola in Southampton.

The Pathological Society funded summer school project allowed Fergus to gain confocal and electron microscopy experience from one of the School’s foremost experts over a 12 week period.