Katherine Staines

My research looks to understand the development, regulation and pathology of the musculoskeletal system, with a particular focus on understanding the molecular pathogenesis of osteoarthritis. My current research is funded by the Medical Research Council & Medical Research Scotland, and my group consists of a PDRA (Dr Jasmine Samvelyan), and three PhD students (David Hughes, Rachel Lopera-Burgueno, Lewis Hsu).

I am in the European Calcified Tissue Society (ECTS) Academy, and currently sit on the Editorial Board for the Journal of Endocrinology, the Journal of Molecular Endocrinology, BMC musculoskeletal disorders, and Frontiers in Endocrinology, Bone Research. I have reviewed papers for more than 35 different internationally-recoginsed journals, and has reviewed grants for a number of funding bodies including the Rosetrees Trust, the ECTS, and the Belgian Public Research Programme. My research has featured as a number of press releases.

I completed my BSc in Anatomical Sciences at Bristol University in 2008. I then moved to the University of Edinburgh and was awarded my PhD in 2012, with a thesis that examined the role of Mepe in chondrocyte matrix mineralisation, under the direction of Prof. Colin Farquharson.

In 2012, I started my first postdoctoral position with Prof. Andy Pitsillides at the Royal Veterinary College, London. It was during this Arthritis Research UK funded post that my interest in osteoarthritis developed. In 2014, Imoved back to the University of Edinburgh to work on another Arthritis Research UK postdoctoral position looking at the subchondral bone in osteoarthritis. I was then awarded a Vice Chancellor's Fellowship at Edinburgh Napier University in 2017, before joining the University of Brighton as a Senior Lecturer in 2020.

I currently supervise a dynamic team of PhD students and postdocs examining musculoskeletal health. My supervisory interests are:

-       Osteoarthritis

-       Secondary osteoporosis

-       Musculoskeletal model development

-       Imaging of the musculoskeletal system

I am always happy to hear from enthusiastic and motivated individuals who are looking to join our team.

I teach on various courses with PABS and adopt a research-focused approach including discussing current and exciting literature, as well as my own research and that within PABS. I always strive to make my teaching as interactive as possible.