Philip Johnson

Pathway 1+3

Cohort 2018

1+3 Student

I completed my undergraduate in Biochemistry (BSc.) at the University of Manchester. During my undergrad, I spent a year in the lab of Dr. Daniel Hart at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). We investigated early left/right patterning during cardiac development in zebrafish, utilising CRISPR-Cas9 knockouts. 

When I joined the Kings DTP, I decided to take the 1+3 pathway. This allowed me to sample the experience of undertaking a research project in 3 very different labs/fields. This ranged from infection and immunology to high end microscopy, giving me valuable experience before choosing my PhD project. These rotations were all fantastic experiences with helpful and supportive supervisors, and I would recommend rotating to all future students!  

For my PhD project, I chose to study the vacuolar-ATPase (V-ATPase), an essential proton pump implicated in many diseases. Excitingly, the scope of my project has evolved during my project and now includes investigating the role of V-ATPase in tumour metastasis and viral entry 

The strength of the DTP really is the academic community you become a part of. Discussions your peers and the world-leading academics at King’s are a vital aspect of your development into a successful scientist. The rotations, community, and research days that the DTP promotes foster a collaborative environment that I am thankful to be a part of!  

Rotations 

  1. The role of interferons in restricting Salmonella enterica replication(Dr. Charlotte Odendall and Dr. Chad Swanson).  
  2. Super resolution imaging of membraneIgE(mIgE) during B-cell activation (Dr. Susan Cox and Prof. Hannah Gould). 
  3. 73-Deoxychondropsin A: Investigating a novel marine-derived V-ATPase inhibitor(Prof.Agi Grigoriadis and Prof. Paul Long)