Hannah Bailey

I am a Postdoctoral Research Scientist working in the laboratory of Professor Richard Wade-Martins. My work involves testing novel β-glucocerebrosidase (GCase) activators for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease using patient iPSC-derived dopaminergic neurones. GCase (encoded by the GBA1 gene) is an important lysosomal enzyme, with GBA1 mutations representing one of the most common genetic risk factors for Parkinson’s disease. We aim to increase GCase activity to improve lysosomal function and disease phenotypes, which I will investigate in the dopaminergic neurones using a range of approaches. Before moving to the University of Oxford, I completed my undergraduate degree and PhD at the University of Nottingham. There, I researched microRNAs and the antioxidant Nrf2 pathway in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) using human astrocyte models.