麻豆传媒

Background

Kate Harris is a 麻豆传媒 Academic Track Fellow in Drug Discovery, within the School of Natural and Environmental Sciences. Her research interests centre on drug discovery for fine control of the immune system, particularly in neurological diseases. This work is interdisciplinary, combining medicinal chemistry and in vitro cell biology, and also involves working within the Faculty of Medical Sciences. The goal of her fellowship is to provide the foundations for new drug discovery programmes in neurodegenerative disease which translate to bringing real benefit to patients.

Before taking up this post, Kate held Postdoctoral Research Associate posts at the University of Oxford, where she worked on drug discovery programmes in neurodegenerative disease and acute myeloid leukaemia, in addition to helping to establish new enzyme-based chemical synthesis methods for medicinal chemistry. She also held a Part-Time Stipendiary Lectureship in Organic Chemistry at Jesus College, University of Oxford.

Qualifications

PhD, Synthesis of Polyene Natural Products, Durham University, supervisor Professor Andy Whiting, 2017

MChem with Industrial Experience, Durham University and AstraZeneca R&D Oncology, 2013

We try to enable drug discovery by understanding the biology of disease and how to drug it with small molecules. Our particular interests are in diseases of the immune system and the brain, such as neurodegenerative diseases, brain cancers and rare metabolic diseases. We're particularly interested in how the brain's immune cells, microglia, and neurons work together in the healthy, ageing and diseased brain.

Our research projects are aligned with this central goal:

Small molecules to inhibit interferon signalling in neuroinflammatory disease

This project aims to reduce the body's reaction to the inflammatory chemical interferon, with the hoping of treating neurological conditions with an inflammatory component. There are specific 'interferonopathies' which present with neurodegeneration which we hope to treat. In addition, increasing evidence is suggesting that interferon signalling plays a key role in neuroinflammation in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). 

Collaborations: Dr Christopher Duncan (麻豆传媒), Professor Sophie Hambleton (麻豆传媒),  (University of St Andrews)

New ways to target complement with small molecules in the brain

This project aims to develop new disrupters of the complement pathway by targeting specific protein-protein interactions with small molecules that possess good properties for passing through the blood-brain barrier. By doing this, we hope to reduce excessive inflammation and neurodegeneration in the brain.

Collaborations: Dr Agnieszka Bronowska (麻豆传媒), Professor Claire Harris (麻豆传媒),

Understanding and harnessing the effect of different stimuli on microglial phenotype

This project aims to understand more about known inflammatory stimuli, linking the overall effect on neuroinflammation with an exact microglial phenotype that we can then target in future drug discovery programmes. We aim to generate robust chemical tools, and identify new molecular targets for neurodegenerative diseases and rare metabolic diseases, such as metachromic leukodystrophy (MLD).

Collaborations:  (University of Leeds), (University of Exeter), Dr Dan Erskine (麻豆传媒), (University of Liverpool)

Probing epigenetics with small molecules

This project is developing new inhibitors of the KDM family of enzymes, which are implicated in a range of cancers and immunological activities.

Collaborations: Professor Akane Kawamura (麻豆传媒), (University of Oxford), (University of Liverpool)

Interrogating the biology of the NLRP3 inflammasome

This project is using a combination of medicinal chemistry, computational chemistry and cell biology to understand more about how the NLRP3 inflammasome contributes to neurodegenerative disease.

Collaborations:  (麻豆传媒), Dr Viktor Korolchuk (麻豆传媒), (Queen's University Belfast), (Durham University)

• Articles

  • Herasymenko O, Silva M, Abu-Saleh AA, Ahmad A, Alvarado-Huayhuaz J, Arce OEA, Armstrong RJ, Arrowsmith C, Bachta KE, Beck H, Berta D, Bieniek MK, Blay V, Bolotokova A, Bourne PE, Breznik M, Brown PJ, Campbell ADG, Carosati E, Chau I, Cole DJ, Cree B, Dehaen W, Denzinger K, dos Santos Machado K, Dunn I, Durai P, Edfeldt K, Edwards A, Fayne D, Felfoldi D, Friston K, Ghiabi P, Gibson E, Guenther J, Gunnarsson A, Hillisch A, Houston DR, Halborg Jensen J, Harding RJ, Harris KS, Hoffer L, Hogner A, Horton JT, Houliston S, Hultquist JF, Hutchinson A, Irwin JJ, Jukic M, Kandwal S, Karlova A, Katis VL, Kich RP, Kireev D, Koes D, Inniss NL, Lessel U, Liu S, Loppnau P, Lu W, Martino S, McGibbon M, Meiler J, Mettu A, Money-Kyrle S, Moretti R, Moroz YS, Muvva C, Newman JA, Obendorf L, Paige B, Pandit A, Park K, Perveen S, Pirie R, Poda G, Protopopov M, Putter V, Ricci F, Roper NJ, Rosta E, Rzhetskaya M, Sabnis Y, Satchell KJF, Schmitt Kremer F, Scott T, Seitova A, Steinmann C, Talagayev V, Tarkhanova OO, Tatum NJ, Treleaven D, Velasque Werhli A, Walters WP, Wang X, Wells J, Wells G, Westermaier Y, Wolber G, Wortmann L, Zhang J, Zhao Z, Zheng S, Schapira M. . Journal of Chemical Information and Modeling 2025, 65(13), 6884-6898.
  • Xu S, Fan L, Zaborniak P, Zhu R, Ji H, Madden KS, De Souza JV, Bronowska AK. . QRB Discovery 2025, 6, e18.
  • Cogswell TJ, Josa-Cullere L, Zimmer D, Galan SRG, Jay-Smith M, Harris KS, Bataille CJR, Jackson TR, Zhang D, Davies SG, Vyas P, Milne TA, Wynne GM, Russell AJ. . RSC Medicinal Chemistry 2024, 15(10), 3495-3506.
  • Josa-Cullere L, Galan SRG, Cogswell TJ, Jackson TR, Jay-Smith M, Mola L, Greaves CR, Carter TS, Madden KS, Trott S, Zhang D, Bataille CJR, Davies SG, Vyas P, Milne TA, Naylor A, Wynne GM, Russell AJ. . European Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 2023, 258, 115509.
  • Xu S, Kondal MD, Ahmad A, Zhu R, Fan L, Zaborniak P, Madden KS, de Souza JV, Bronowska AK. . International Journal of Molecular Sciences 2023, 24(2), 1270.
  • Madden KS, Todd PMT, Urata K, Russell AJ, Vincent KA, Reeve HA. . Bioorganic and Medicinal Chemistry 2023, 83, 117255.
  • Chatzopoulou M, Madden KS, Bromhead LJ, Greaves C, Cogswell TJ, Da Silva Pinto S, Galan SRG, Georgiou I, Kennedy MS, Kennett A, Apps G, Russell AJ, Wynne GM. . ACS Medicinal Chemistry Letters 2022, 13(2), 262-270.
  • Jackson TR, Vuorinen A, Josa-Cullere L, Madden KS, Conole D, Cogswell TJ, Wilkinson IVL, Kettyle LM, Zhang D, O'Mahony A, Gracias D, McCall L, Westwood R, Terstappen GC, Davies SG, Tate EW, Wynne GM, Vyas P, Russell AJ, Milne TA. . iScience 2022, 25(8), 104787.
  • Josa-Culleré L, Madden KS, Cogswell TJ, Jackson TR, Carter TS, Zhang D, Trevitt G, Davies SG, Vyas P, Wynne GM, Milne TA, Russell AJ. . Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 2021, 61, 15608-15628.
  • Madden KS, Jokhoo HRE, Conradi FD, Knowles JP, Mullineaux CW, Whiting A. . Organic and Biomolecular Chemistry 2019, 17, 3752-3759.
  • Madden KS, Knowles JP, Whiting A. . Tetrahedron 2019, 75(45), 130657.
  • Madden KS, Laroche B, David S, Batsanov AS, Thompson D, Knowles JP, Whiting A. . European Journal of Organic Chemistry 2018, 2018(38), 5312-5322.
  • Madden KS, David S, Knowles JP, Whiting A. . Chemical Communications 2015, 51(57), 11409-11412.
  • Blades K, Box MR, Dickinson S, Lamont GM, Madden K, McCoull W, Williams JD, Kemmitt PD. . Journal of Organic Chemistry 2014, 79(16), 7682-7688.
  • Hennessy EJ, Blades K, Box MR, Chuaqui C, Dowling JE, Davies CD, Ferguson AD, Goldberg FW, Howe NJ, Kemmitt PD, Lamont GM, Madden K, McWhirter C, Varnes JG, Ward RA, Williams JD, Yang B, McCoull W. . MedChemComm 2014, 5(10), 1533-1539.

• Reviews

  • Huang, C, Harris, KS, Siddiqui, G, Jorg, M. . ACS Pharmacology and Translational Science 2025.
  • Stennett A, Friston K, Harris CL, Wollman AJM, Bronowska AK, Madden KS. . Expert Opinion on Therapeutic Targets 2023, 258, 115509.
  • Jorg M, Madden KS. . RSC Medicinal Chemistry 2021, 12(5), 646-665.
  • Madden KS, Mosa FA, Whiting A. . Organic and Biomolecular Chemistry 2014, 12(40), 7877-7899.