Prof Martin Knight

Martin Knight
BEng, MSc, PhD, FHEA

Professor of Mechanobiology
Dean for Research (Faculty of Science and Engineering)

School of Engineering and Materials Science
Queen Mary University of London
www.sems.qmul.ac.uk/staff/m.m.knight/
Centre for Bioengineering
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Research

Organ-on-a-Chip, NAMs, Mechanobiology, Primary Cilia, Musculoskeletal Bioengineering, Cancer

Interests

A key aspect of Prof Knight's work explores the development of organ-on-a-chip models for understanding human biology in health and disease and predicting the response to therapeutics. This technology, which includes New Approach Methodologies (NAMs) for safety testing, is set to replace/reduce the use of animals in science whilst improving the understanding of human biology and speeding up the delivery of new medicines.

Prof Knight is the Co-Director of the Queen Mary Centre for Predictive in vitro Models (www.cpm.qmul.ac.uk/) and one of the directors of the associated EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Next Generation Organ-on-a-chip Technology.

As a Professor of 'Mechanobiology', Prof Knight is particularly interested in the incorporation of physiological and pathological biomechanical stimuli to improve the predictive power of these in vitro models. His research group work on a variety of different musculoskeletal, cardiovascular and epithelial tissues including cartilage, synovium, bone, kidney and artery, as well as diseases including osteoarthritis, cancer, atherosclerosis and inflammation.

Prof Knight is also interested in the fundamental mechanisms of how living cells and tissues respond to biomechanical stimuli. This led him to examine the role of the cellular structures known as primary cilia. Knight's research group conducted pioneering research showing the involvement of cilia in mechanosignalling and inflammation and is now investigating whether manipulation of cilia can be used as a therapeutic strategy.

Prof Knight runs a large multidisciplinary research group which currently consists of 4-6 post docs, a technician, and 6 PhD students as primary supervisor and more as second supervisor.