Research Group Leads: Dr Matt Jones and Dr Natasha Hill

School links: Peninsula Medical School and School of Biomedical Sciences

The extracellular matrix (ECM) is a 3D network of macromolecules that supports and surrounds cells, providing environmental information that determines cellular behaviour, tissue structure and function, and is essential for multicellular life. Rather than being a passive framework, the ECM is highly dynamic, with changes in composition being required for physiological processes such as angiogenesis and wound healing. Changes in the ECM also underpin proliferative diseases, including cancers, atherosclerosis, arthritis, fibrosis and neurodegenerative disorders. Understanding how the changing matrix and tissue microenvironment influences cell biology, and how the matrix is itself regulated by cells, is crucially important in developing our knowledge of how tissues function and how this is perturbed in disease. 

The aim of the Microenvironment and Matrix Group (MIRAGE) is to foster collaborative research by individuals interested in understanding the impact of the ECM on cells and how a variety of cell types modulate tissue microenvironments. The collective expertise of the group will help support researchers working in the field and provide opportunities for publications, grant applications and project development to group members. Our goals are to increase the awareness and visibility of matrix research at Plymouth and to provide a point of contact for researchers across a range of disciplines who may be interested in understanding how tissue microenvironments can impact human biology.