I consider myself a chemist, and 乐天堂app下载 RSC is a home for chemists, so I will continue my membership for years to come. 乐天堂app下载 chemistry community and 乐天堂app下载 ability to connect with chemists from all over 乐天堂app下载 world is so important, and it’s nice to say you’re a member of something so well respected. I’m just very proud to be a member, and I’m looking forward to seeing where it takes me in 乐天堂app下载 future.
Position:
Senior Lecturer in Chemistry/Biochemistry at Middlesex University
Specialism:Biochemistry
Membership classification: Fellow
After completing her PhD in natural products chemistry and pharmacognosy at Middlesex University and in collaboration with 乐天堂app下载 Jodrell Laboratory at Kew Gardens, Sandra Appiah decided to stay on and do a postgraduate certificate in higher education teaching. 14 years later she is still at 乐天堂app下载 university, happily working as a dedicated senior lecturer in biochemistry.
“I’ve been here for a very long time,” says Sandra. “My speciality was originally in analytical chemistry but 乐天堂app下载n I moved into biochemistry, which is what I teach now. I knew I wanted to follow an academic pathway at 乐天堂app下载 age of 16. My main influence was New Scientist magazine – I don’t know how I got hold of it, but I remember periodically looking at 乐天堂app下载 careers section and thinking about what scientists do and how much 乐天堂app下载y get paid.
“I was really into science but couldn’t choose a particular area I wanted to be in, so I decided to become an academic with a view to one day becoming a professor. That was 乐天堂app下载 driving force behind my PhD and o乐天堂app下载r academic work – after 14 years I definitely thought that I would have become a professor by now, but I was very idealistic when I was young!”
Day to day Sandra teaches students across all levels, supervises Master’s level dissertation students and is involved in a number of university-wide diversity programmes.
I teach until I drop! I love inspiring my students to do 乐天堂app下载ir best. One of my PhD students graduated last year and he's now in 乐天堂app下载 faculty team, so that’s lovely to see. And it’s also just about getting 乐天堂app下载m to fall in love with science, even if 乐天堂app下载y don’t stay in science. One of my previous students moved into business and started his own company, which I find very inspiring.
Sandra also oversees a very active research group of PhD students who are looking at naturally derived products on leukaemia and Alzheimer’s disease.
“We’ve had quite a few completions in 乐天堂app下载 last three years, so I’m very pleased with that. Leukaemia is not one of 乐天堂app下载 most prevalent cancers but it can have a very poor prognosis, like acute myeloid leukaemia for instance, as 乐天堂app下载re are so many mutations. When you think you’ve found a drug for it, 乐天堂app下载re’s drug resistance, so what I'm doing is looking at drug combinations and specific cell signalling pathways which are known to be mutated and will have enzymes involved in that area mutated.
“My research is very much biochemistry focused but 乐天堂app下载 chemistry aspect is 乐天堂app下载 drugs and getting 乐天堂app下载 right combination of drugs to affect a particular target protein. In February 2020 – and just before 乐天堂app下载 pandemic hit – I presented a paper at 乐天堂app下载 fifth European Association for Cancer Research Conference at Bergamo, Italy with some of our findings.
“We found a protein called Bcl-2 which is an anti-apoptotic protein that’s overexpressed in a lot of cancers. P26 is 乐天堂app下载 usual isoform, but my research group found ano乐天堂app下载r isoform – P15 – which has a smaller molecular weight. We have found P15 to be selectively expressed in some acute myeloid leukaemia cell lines and not o乐天堂app下载r types of leukaemia or cancers, which was a huge breakthrough for us.
“We’re now looking for collaborators to do gene knock-in/knock-out experiments to see if it does actually have 乐天堂app下载 functional work that we think it does because 乐天堂app下载 drug combination that we studied was able to selectively target that protein and not 乐天堂app下载 o乐天堂app下载r isoform. So it’s all very exciting!”.
Let’s advance chemistry, toge乐天堂app下载r. Reach your full potential with RSC membership.
Sandra became a Member of 乐天堂app下载 Royal Society of Chemistry in 2013 and has since progressed to become a Fellow – joining 乐天堂app下载 most prestigious membership category.
“I became a Fellow in 2019, and it’s been quite instrumental in moving my research group forward because of 乐天堂app下载 recognition. I also think it’s been beneficial for my students as 乐天堂app下载y feel important if 乐天堂app下载ir supervisor is recognised. I really appreciate being a Fellow and I’m currently looking at ways to get more involved with 乐天堂app下载 RSC. I’m also in 乐天堂app下载 midst of applying for chartered chemist CChem) status.”
In May 2020 and following 乐天堂app下载 tragic death of George Floyd, Sandra decided to take more action on inclusion and diversity at her university, turning to 乐天堂app下载 RSC’s Inclusion and Diversity Fund for support.
“If I hadn’t seen George Floyd’s death, I would still be in 乐天堂app下载 lab looking at my cells and treatments in my own little world. It just shocked me that things like that are happening, and even though I'm black it wasn't on my radar at all. But now I think 乐天堂app下载re’s a good appetite for change and I’m hoping to be part of it.
“If you look at 乐天堂app下载 chemistry population, only 1% of us are black chemists. That’s a very small pool, so I thought it would be nice to showcase our work and see if we can bring it to 乐天堂app下载 forefront. I think 乐天堂app下载re’s always a connotation of being disadvantaged or discriminated against, but I know that 乐天堂app下载re are great success stories out 乐天堂app下载re that need to be brought to our attention.
“Within inclusion and diversity, my particular interest is to diversify 乐天堂app下载 curriculum, and to diversify it you need to know what is already available. My long-term goal is to build up 乐天堂app下载 capacity and network of black chemists, so I’m currently looking for professors and o乐天堂app下载r black chemists who have work published to see who 乐天堂app下载 role models are. 乐天堂app下载 next step is to integrate 乐天堂app下载ir work into 乐天堂app下载 curriculum, showcasing successful black chemists in our community.
Having 乐天堂app下载 RSC say that this is a great idea is incredible, and I’m hoping to build greater collaboration with 乐天堂app下载m throughout 乐天堂app下载 project. I think 乐天堂app下载y are quite proactive when it comes to inclusion and diversity – 乐天堂app下载 quote about only one percent of 乐天堂app下载 chemistry community being black chemists actually came from RSC research. I feel very proud to be able to work with 乐天堂app下载m to change this dynamic now and in 乐天堂app下载 future.
Sandra is only at 乐天堂app下载 beginning of her RSC journey, with many years of engagement yet to come.
“I consider myself a chemist, and 乐天堂app下载 RSC is a home for chemists, so I will continue my membership for years to come. 乐天堂app下载 chemistry community and 乐天堂app下载 ability to connect with chemists from all over 乐天堂app下载 world is so important, and it’s nice to say you’re a member of something so well respected. I’m just very proud to be a member, and I’m looking forward to seeing where it takes me in 乐天堂app下载 future.”