Dr. Karina Pombo García
Karina Pombo-García is a group leader on “Molecular Organization of Cell Interfaces”. Her lab will investigate the molecular assembly of cell interfaces in the epithelial tissue and in pathology of intestinal diseases. Her group will use super-resolution imaging STED in combination with gut organoids, biophysics & chemical biology to uncover how epithelial cells organise their components in space and time under different physico-chemical environments to drive self-organisation processes that shape mesoscale structures enabling tissue function. Her lab will explore how cells control the formation of bimolecular condensates under different chemical spaces to organise the cell.
Dimitrios Ioannidis
Dimitrios joined the lab in January 2024 as a PhD student between the Rosalind Franklin Institute and University of Oxford. Before that he studied in Newcastle University where he obtained a MRes in Medical and Molecular Biosciences and BSc in Biochemistry.In his current research, he aspires to uncover the effects of inflammation on the nanoscale organisation and dynamics of intestinal epithelial tight junctions using patient derived organoids. To this end, he is using super resolution STED microscopy and other advanced fluorescent microscopy techniques
Xuemeng Chen
Xuemeng Chen is a PhD student in the Pombo-Garcia lab, collaborating with Michael Grange’s group. She has a background in molecular biology and earned her MRes degree from University College London (UCL). Xuemeng began her PhD studies in 2023, working on a project that investigates the dynamics of condensate material properties in tight junction assembly using super-resolution microscopy techniques including STED and cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM). She is a quiet and friendly researcher who draws inspiration from music and introspection.
Konstantina Karagiani
Kostantina Karagianni has completed her BSc (Hons) Biochemistry degree at University of Bath in 2023. Her studies included a placement year at the UK Health Security Agency where she spent one year with the Pathogen Immunology Group. The placement research project focused on nasal immunity and the impact of vaccination or infection by respiratory pathogens. During this project she was trained and practised Flow Cytometry. After her undergraduate degree, Kostantina started her PhD at the Rosalind Franklin Institute where she is studying the human N-Glycosylation pathway. She is interested in studying the dynamics of N-Glycosylation pathway using super resolution microscopy as part of the Pombo-Garcia Lab.
Rebecca Hobbs
Rebecca joined the Pombo-Garcia Lab as a PhD student at the Rosalind Franklin Institute in January 2025. She previously completed an MBio in Biomedical Science from the University of Warwick, where she first discovered her interest for cell biology and biophysics. Her doctoral research explores the role of phase separation in the segregation of junctional proteins, using advanced fluorescence microscopy techniques to uncover new insights into cellular organization.
Alexander Carneiro
Alexander Carneiro earned his Biology degree in 2020, followed by a Master’s in Molecular & Cell Biology in 2021, receiving an Extraordinary Mention. He joined the CellCOM group in 2021 to research connexins as potential therapeutic targets for metastatic cancer. Recently, he completed an international stay in Pombo-Garcia Lab, focusing on connexin structure on the lateral membrane and their interaction with cell adhesions, after which he decided to join Dr. Karina Pombo’s team. During his PhD, Alexander has presented his research findings at numerous international conferences and actively contributed to organizing scientific events, effectively highlighting the advancements of his thesis work. ORCID ID: 0000-0001-5827-5494