Faheem Shaik

Profile

Following a Bachelor in Pharmacy from Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University (JNTU) in India, I carried out an MSc in Drug Discovery and Development at University College London (UK). I then worked at Generon Ltd. (Berkshire, UK) as a Research and Production Assistant before joining the University of Leeds as a PhD student in 2016. I am currently supervised for my PhD by Dr Vas Ponnambalam, Dr Michael Harrison and Dr Stephen Muench within the Faculty of Biological Sciences.

Research interests

My PhD project focuses on the structure and function and membrane proteins and lipid particles that regulate vascular physiology and human disease. I am analysing a wide range of membrane proteins expressed in different vascular cell types using biochemistry, cell biology and biophysical techniques. One specific area of study is the interaction between scavenger receptors (SRs) and modified or oxidised lipoprotein particles implicated in causing atherosclerosis. Binding of SR proteins to modified lipid particles promote the formation of fat cholesterol-enriched lesions in arteries, leading to plaque rupture and blood clots which can cause heart attacks, strokes and peripheral limb ischaemia. Understanding the molecular basis for such interactions could be one route to targeting such protein-lipid particle interactions in disease states.

Qualifications

• MSc in Drug Discovery and Development (UCL)
• Bpharm (JNTU, India)