• Yifan Wang (4th Year DPhil Student)
  
• Montserrat Vallet Buisan (3rd Year DPhil Student)

• Abigail Blatchford Freeman (2nd Year DPhil Student)
  

• Maeve Janecka (1st Year DPhil Student)

 SUPERVISION METRICS

Number of DPhil students supervised to completion: 4

Number of MSc students supervised in laboratory: +20

2018 - OxTALENT Award (Teaching & Learning Enhanced with New Technology). Awarded to Mrs Celine Jones, Mrs Laura Rose, Dr Rebecca Dragovic and Dr Kevin Coward for the development of integrated online tools to develop deeper learning styles and provide interactive feedback routes.

2017 - Most Acclaimed Lecturer Award (Medical Sciences). Awarded by the Oxford University Students Union (OUSU).

I completed a BSc with first class honours (2003) followed by a Masters in Medical Science (2006) in Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Adelaide. In 2007 I moved to the Nuffield Department of Women’s and Reproductive Health to take charge of the flow cytometry facility in the laboratory of Professor Ian Sargent and Professor Chris Redman. During this time I obtained my DPhil (2012) in which I focused on characterising blood-derived extracellular vesicles in normal pregnancy and pre-eclampsia. As part of my DPhil studies, I pioneered the use of Nanoparticle Tracking Analysis (NTA) for this purpose. After completing my DPhil, I continued to work in the same laboratory as a post-doctoral researcher/flow cytometer opterator. My research focused on the isolation and characterisation of human syncytiotrophoblast extracellular vesicles in normal preganancy and pre-eclampsia using a dual placental perfusion model.

In 2015 I was appointed as a Teaching Fellow for the MSc in Clinical Embryology, directed by Dr Kevin Coward. In addition to my teaching role, I have continued research into extracellular vesicles, working in the Endometriosis CaRe Centre with Professors Krina Zondervan and Christian Becker.

Extracellular vesicles and their role in endometriosis

Research by the Endometriosis CaRe Centre team has shown that extracellular vesicles derived from peritoneal fluid are altered in endometriosis. We are studying whether peritoneal fluid extracellular vesicles contribute to disease symptoms, and their potential use as diagnostic/therapeutic biomarkers.

I gained accreditation for my teaching through the Staff and Educational Development Association (SEDA). I hold a Supporting Learning Award (2017) and a Learning, Teaching and Asssessing Award (2019), both of which are aligned to the UK Professional Standards Framework.

In addition to teaching on the MSc in Clinical Embryology, I am a tutor on the Medical Sciences Division Preparing and Learning at Oxford (PLTO) 'Tutorials' course.