Dr Fraser Collins

Biography

Fraser graduated from the University of Swansea in 2004 with a degree in Genetics and Zoology.  He then spent 5 years working as a Quality Control Scientist for British Biocell before going back to study at Cardiff University in 2009 for his Ph.D entitled: Death Receptor 3: A Regulator of Bone Turnover and New target for Therapy for Osteoporosis?  Following successful completion of his Ph.D Fraser moved to Michigan State University to take up a post-doctoral position where his research focussed on the gut-bone axis and how probiotic bacteria can be utilised to treat adverse bone pathology.  Specifically, how probioitics can modulate the intestinal environment, immune system and have long-ranging effects on the bone marrow and bone health.  In 2017, Fraser took up a Research Fellow position in the Arthrtitis and Regenerative Medicine laboratory at the University of Aberdeen where his research focusses on understanding how Gdf5-lineage synovial cells can be exploited for the development of novel therapies for osteoarthritis.

Research Overview

Osteoarthritis; Cartilage regeneration; Mesenchymal stem cell biology; Osteoporosis; Single-cell RNA-sequencing

Current Research

My current research focuses on understanding the relationship between the mesenchymal stromal cells within the synovial joint, in both naive and injured states.  Using single cell RNA-sequencing and specific lineage-tracing models I aim to identify the synovial mesenchymal stem cell for the development of novel osteoarthritis therapies.

Please visit our Arthritis and Regenerative Medicine page to find out more about our team and the research that we do.