BA Natural Sciences (Cantab. 1991), MA (Cantab. 1994), PhD (Edinburgh 1996)
Personal Chair
- About
-
- Email Address
- m.collinson@abdn.ac.uk
- Office Address
Room 4.37, Institute of Medical Sciences, Foresterhill, Aberdeen AB25 2ZD
- School/Department
- School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition
Biography
J. Martin Collinson
Graduated in Natural Sciences (Genetics) from Fitzwilliam College, University of Cambridge, in 1991. Obtained a PhD at the University of Edinburgh, working in the MRC Human Genetics Unit studying the roles of homeobox gene family members (Msx genes) in vertebrate embryological development.
Postdoctoral positions at the University of Edinburgh 1996-2002, studying the roles of cell adhesion molecules (Neurofascin) and transcription factors (Pax6) in vertebrate development and disease.
Appointed Lecturer at Aberdeen University, 2002.
Senior Lecturer from October 2005. Reader 2008. Personal Chair 2012
Vice-chair of the Editorial Board of the journal British Birds.
Former Chair of the British Ornithologists’ Union Records Committee
FOR BIRD/DNA enquiries, contact m.collinson@abdn.ac.uk
External Memberships
MEMBERSHIP OF PROFESSIONAL ORGANISATIONS
- British Society for Developmental Biology
- Genetics Society
- Former Chair of the BOU records Committee and Convenor of the Taxonomic Committee
EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERSHIP
- Ibis 2009 - present
- British Birds 1998 - present
- Research
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Research Overview
The major foci of work in the lab are:
THE GENETIC BASIS OF HUMAN BIRTH ABNORMALITIES AND DEGENERATIVE DISEASE
STEM CELL BIOLOGY IN HUMAN DEVELOPMENT AND DISEASE
We study the genetic basis of normal embryonic development (mostly eyes and limbs) and the processes that can go wrong in humans. We also study stem cell activity in adults, focusing on degenerative disease and fertility problems.
1) The development and evolution of eyes. There are several projects on the go.
a) The roles of a transcription factor, Pax6, in eye development and disease . We examine how mutations in Pax6 change the cell surface properties of mutant cells, and how this may impact on the eye.
Patients with mutations in the PAX6 gene develop multiple eye abnormalities, including any or all of: aniridia (absence of iris), corneal opacity (aniridia-related keratopathy), cataract (lens clouding), glaucoma and long-term retinal degeneration. We are interested in developing new therapeutic strategies
Figure 1: The eye of a PAX6+/- aniridic patient (photograph kindly provided by Dr K, Ramaesh, University of Edinburgh). Note the corneal opacity associated with vascularisation.
b) The development of eyes in true moles (Talpa). Moles live most of their lives underground and over evolutionary time we expect their eyes to degenerate. We study the Iberian Mole Talpa occidentalis, in which the eyes are permanently closed, and determine how the genetic pathways that underlie eye development are breaking down in this species.
Figure 2: An adult Iberian Mole
2) The genetic control of axon guidance and epithelial cell migration. What pushes a cell or a growth cone from point A to point B? We examine the relative contribution of chemical and contact mediated guidance cues in vivo.
Figure 3. Swirling patterns of cell migration in the corneal epithelium, visualised in eyes that are mosaic for LacZ expression.
3) The genetics and etiology of Congenital Talipes Equinovarus (clubfoot)
We study the genetic and environmental factors that underlie clubfoot - an extremely common birth abnormality (1 in 500 babies) for which virtually nothing is clear about the causes.
Figure 4. Human bilateral clubfoot.
28th August 2011 - Interview with the Naked Scientists about the clubfoot project - see
http://www.thenakedscientists.com/HTML/content/interviews/interview/1784/
POTENTIAL PHD STUDENT?
We are looking for motivated, funded PhD students for studies in any of the above fields, e.g.
1) Genetics and molecular biology of motor neurone development and disease
2) Eye Evolution
3) Control of cell migration and wound healing
4) Genetics of human disease
5) Adult Stem Cells
Research Areas
Biological and Environmental Sciences
Biomedical Sciences
Research Specialisms
- Genetics
Our research specialisms are based on the Higher Education Classification of Subjects (HECoS) which is HESA open data, published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
Funding and Grants
MRC Principal Applicant. The genetic basis of clubfoot. £515,000 from October 2008
BBSRC Principal Applicant – coholders Dr Ann Rajnicek (Univ of Aberdeen), Prof Min Zhao (UC Irvine), Prof Colin McCaig (Univ of Aberdeen) The genetic control of epithelial cell migration and wound healing physiology £643,000 from February 2007
WELLCOME TRUST Corneal dysgenesis in the Pax6-mutant mouse – shoddy workmanship or sabotage? £245,000 from 1/9/04.
Dr James Alexander Mearns Trust Molecular basis of gene dosage effects of Pax6 mutants £51,660 from 01/10/07.
NHS GRAMPIAN ENDOWMENT FUND Vascularisation of the cornea £2688 from 01/04/07
NEWLIFE (Birth Defects Foundation) Aetiology and therapy of congenital corneal opacity £80,000 from July 2005
- Teaching
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Teaching Responsibilities
TEACHING - BSc Programmes in Biomedical Sciences, Genetics, Human Embryology and Developmental Biology.
Human Embryology and Developmental Biology Degrees at the University of Aberdeen
The degrees are suitable for students wanting to learn about embryology, stem cells, bioengineering, reproductive biology, wound healing, evolution and cancer. Graduates can move on to jobs in academic and commercial jobs in embryology, clinical genetics, molecular biology and many biomedical fields.
'T-Club' - the Developmental Biology newsletter for University of Aberdeen.TClubDec12.pdf
Are you thinking about a degree in Developmental biology? Have a look at this.
- Publications
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Page 1 of 2 Results 1 to 50 of 97
What is John Latham’s Rose-fronted Parrot?
Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club, vol. 143, no. 4, pp. 559-563Contributions to Journals: ArticlesIntegrating orientation mechanisms, adrenocortical activity, and endurance flight in vagrancy behaviour
Scientific Reports, vol. 12, no. 1, 22104Contributions to Journals: ArticlesFirst genetic data for the critically endangered Cuban endemic Zapata Rail Cyanolimnas cerverai, and the taxonomic implications
Journal of Ornithology, vol. 163, no. 4, pp. 945-952Contributions to Journals: ArticlesThe tangled nomenclatural history of Haplopelia forbesi Salvadori, 1904: Were Forbes and Robinson right all along?
Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club, vol. 142, no. 1, pp. 131-137Contributions to Journals: ArticlesPathophysiology of aniridia-associated keratopathy: developmental aspects and unanswered questions
The Ocular Surface, vol. 22, pp. 245-266Contributions to Journals: ArticlesSystematic placement of the bee hummingbird (mellisuga helenae) (aves: Trochilidae) and potential consequences for nomenclature of the mellisugini
Ornitologia Neotropical, vol. 32, no. 1, pp. 45-50Contributions to Journals: ArticlesMorphological and genetic analyses reveal the first Mediterranean occurrence of American Herring Gull Larus smithsonianus
Revista catalana d'ornitologia = Catalan journal of ornithology, vol. 37, pp. 1-9Contributions to Journals: ArticlesWidespread tissue hypoxia dysregulates cell and metabolic pathways in SMA
Annals of Clinical and Translational Neurology, vol. 7, no. 9, pp. 1580-1593Contributions to Journals: ArticlesTaxonomic status of the extinct Canary Islands Oystercatcher Haematopus meadewaldoi
Ibis, vol. 162, no. 3, pp. 1068-1074Contributions to Journals: ArticlesPhylogeny of the Eurasian Wren Nannus troglodytes (Aves: Passeriformes: Troglodytidae) reveals deep and complex diversification patterns of Ibero-Maghrebian and Cyrenaican populations
PloS ONE, vol. 15, no. 3, e0230151Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0230151
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/14534/1/journal.pone.0230151.pdf
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
- [ONLINE] Erratum: Phylogeny of the Eurasian Wren Nannus troglodytes (Aves: Passeriformes: Troglodytidae) reveals deep and complex diversification patterns of Ibero-Maghrebian and Cyrenaican populations
Dense active matter model of motion patterns in confluent cell monolayers
Nature Communications, vol. 11, 1405Contributions to Journals: ArticlesBritish Heart Rhythm Society Clinical Practice Guidelines on the Management of Patients Developing QT Prolongation on Antipsychotic Medication.
Arrhythmia & electrophysiology review, vol. 8, no. 3, pp. 161-165Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.15420/aer.2019.8.3.G1
- [ONLINE] http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/31463053
Geographic patterns of mtDNA and Z-linked sequence variation in the Common Chiffchaff and the ‘chiffchaff complex’
PloS ONE, vol. 14, no. 1, e0210268Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0210268
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/11734/1/journal.pone.0210268.pdf
- [ONLINE] View publication in Mendeley
The core Planar Cell Polarity gene, Vangl2, maintains apical-basal organisation of the corneal epithelium
Journal of Anatomy, vol. 234, no. 1, pp. 106-119Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/joa.12676
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/10915/1/Panzica_et_al_accepted_pdf.pdf
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
- [ONLINE] View publication in Mendeley
Limbal epithelial stem cell activity and corneal epithelial cell cycle parameters in adult and aging mice
Stem Cell Research, vol. 33, pp. 185-198Contributions to Journals: ArticlesLens-regulated retinoic acid signalling controls expansion of the developing eye
Development, vol. 145, no. 19, dev167171Contributions to Journals: ArticlesA conditional Pax6 depletion study with no morphological effect on the adult mouse corneal epithelium
BMC Research Notes, vol. 11, 705Contributions to Journals: ArticlesComputer simulation of neutral drift among limbal epithelial stem cells of mosaic mice
Stem Cell Research, vol. 30, pp. 1-11Contributions to Journals: ArticlesEndogenous bioelectric currents promote differentiation of the mammalian lens
Journal of Cellular Physiology, vol. 233, no. 3, pp. 2202-2212Contributions to Journals: ArticlesThe developmental and genetic basis of ‘clubfoot’ in the peroneal muscular atrophy mutant mouse
Development, vol. 145, no. 3, dev160093Contributions to Journals: ArticlesTaxonomic status of the Liberian Greenbul Phyllastrephus leucolepis and the conservation importance of the Cavalla Forest, Liberia
Journal of Ornithology, vol. 159, no. 1, pp. 19-27Contributions to Journals: ArticlesWhen morphology is not reflected by molecular phylogeny: the case of three ‘orange-billed terns’ Thalasseus maximus, T. bergii and T. bengalensis (Charadriiformes: Laridae).
Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, vol. 121, no. 2, pp. 439-445Contributions to Journals: ArticlesMulti-locus barcoding confirms the occurrence of Elegant Tern in Western Europe
Journal of Ornithology, vol. 158, no. 2, pp. 351–361Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-016-1380-0
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/9090/1/JORN_D_16_00029_R2.pdf
Requirement of Pax6 for the integration of guidance cues in cell migration
Royal Society Open Science, vol. 4, 170625Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.170625
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/9465/1/Requirement_of_Pax6_for.pdf
The taxonomic position and breeding range of Golden Nightjar Caprimulgus eximius (Caprimulgidae)
Ostrich: Journal of African Ornithology, vol. 88, no. 3, pp. 281-286Contributions to Journals: ArticlesThe core planar cell polarity gene, Vangl2, directs adult corneal epithelial cell alignment and migration
Royal Society Open Science, vol. 3, no. 10, 160658Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.160658
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/7592/1/160658.full.pdf
Unusual DNA of a Western Bonelli's warbler trapped on Shetland
British Birds, vol. 109, no. 10, pp. 637-638Contributions to Journals: Comments and Debates- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Contact-mediated control of radial migration of corneal epithelial cells
Molecular vision, vol. 22, pp. 990-1004Contributions to Journals: ArticlesTaxonomic recommendations for Western Palearctic birds: 11th report
Ibis, vol. 158, no. 1, pp. 206-212Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/ibi.12322
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Lineage tracing in the adult mouse corneal epithelium supports the limbal epithelial stem cell hypothesis with intermittent periods of stem cell quiescence
Stem Cell Research, vol. 15, no. 3, pp. 665-677Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scr.2015.10.016
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/7867/1/stem_cell_research_15_3_nov_2015.pdf
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
'Stejneger's Stonechat' in Dorset: New to Britain
British Birds, vol. 108, no. 7, pp. 423-427Contributions to Journals: Review articles'Eastern Grasshopper Warbler' on Fair Isle: New to Britain
British Birds, vol. 108, no. 4, pp. 231-235Contributions to Journals: ArticlesFörsta genetiskt bekräftade östlig rödstrupig sångare Sylvia cantillans i Sverige
Ornis Svecica, vol. 25, no. 1-2, pp. 40-44Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Water pipits: Three species rather than one?
British Birds, vol. 108, no. 1, pp. 42-48Contributions to Journals: ArticlesTaxonomic recommendations for Western Palaearctic birds: 10th report
Ibis, vol. 157, no. 1, pp. 193-200Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/ibi.12221
Hemizygous Le-Cre transgenic mice have severe eye abnormalities on some genetic backgrounds in the absence of LoxPSites
PloS ONE, vol. 9, no. 10, pp. 1-19Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0109193
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
The Expression and Roles of Nde1 and Ndel1 in the Adult Mammalian Central Nervous System
Neuroscience, vol. 271, pp. 119-136Contributions to Journals: ArticlesA genetic screen of the island races of Wren Troglodytes troglodytes in the North-east Atlantic
Bird Study, vol. 61, no. 2, pp. 135-142Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00063657.2014.894493
Taxonomic recommendations for Western Palearctic birds: Ninth report
Ibis, vol. 155, no. 4, pp. 898-907Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/ibi.12091
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
CSI: Birding … barcoding the past, present and future
The ConversationContributions to Specialist Publications: ArticlesGenetic analysis of migrant Siberian Chiffchaffs in Britain and Ireland
British Birds, vol. 106, no. 2, pp. 109-113Contributions to Journals: Articles3D MRI analysis of the lower legs of treated idiopathic congenital talipes equinovarus (clubfoot)
PloS ONE, vol. 8, no. 1, e54100Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0054100
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/3489/1/3D_MRI_analysis.pdf
British records of 'Eastern Yellow Wagtail'
British Birds, vol. 106, no. 1, pp. 36-41Contributions to Journals: ArticlesStem cells and corneal epithelial maintenance: Insights from the mouse and other animal models
Mouse Development: From Oocyte to Stem Cells, pp. 357-394, 38 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-30406-4-19
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Taxonomic recommendations for British birds: Eighth report
Ibis, vol. 154, no. 4, pp. 874-883Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1474-919X.2012.01273.x
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
What the eye doesn't see: The prevalence of fraud in ornithology
British Birds, vol. 105, no. 5, pp. 236-257Contributions to Journals: Review articles- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Interaction between hedgehog signalling and PAX6 dosage mediates maintenance and regeneration of the corneal epithelium
Molecular vision, vol. 18, pp. 139-150Contributions to Journals: ArticlesEffects of aberrant Pax6 gene dosage on mouse corneal pathophysiology and corneal epithelial homeostasis
PloS ONE, vol. 6, no. 12, e28895Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0028895
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Taxonomic recommendations for British birds: Seventh report
Ibis, vol. 153, no. 4, pp. 883-892Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1474-919X.2011.01155.x
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
The role of electrical signals in murine corneal wound re-epithelialization
Journal of Cellular Physiology, vol. 226, no. 6, pp. 1544-1553Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/jcp.22488