Dr Charalampos (Babis) Rallis
Reader in Genetics, Genomics and Fundamental Cell Biology, Director of Industrial Innovation
Email: c.rallis@qmul.ac.uk
Room Number: 4.14, Fogg Building
Website: https://www.rallislab.org/
Twitter: @rallislab
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Following his PhD studies on limb development with Prof Malcolm Logan at the MRC National Institute for Medical Research, Babis did postdoctoral research on single cell expression profiling of axial stem cells and integrin signalling during somitogenesis with Prof David Ish-Horowicz FRS at the CRUK Lincoln's Inn Fields Laboratories. This was followed by a Research Associate position with Prof Jurg Bahler at the UCL Institute of Healthy Ageing working on nutrient-responsive pathways, ageing mechanisms, quiescence and senescence.
Babis moved to the University of Essex in 2020 where he established his own independent research group. He joined the School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences in September 2023.
The Rallislab investigates gene and protein networks implicated in cellular fitness and metabolism, neurodegeneration, cancer and ageing with a focus on the nutrient-responsive signalling pathway mechanistic Target of Rapamycin (mTOR). The aim of the group is to elucidate the molecular mechanisms and principles behind senescence and lifespan and apply this knowledge for the amelioration, or even prevention, of age-related diseases. In addition, the group performs quantitative fitness profiling of microbial strains, microbiomes and mycobiomes and explore the effects of nutrition on biome physiology and subsequent effects on human healthy ageing. The group uses established and relevant cellular systems such as the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe and mammalian 2D and 3D tissue culture systems such as fibroblasts, cancer cell lines, human dopaminergic and iPSC-derived motor neurons. Besides classical molecular biology, genetic, cell biology and microscopy approaches, the group utilises multi-omics (transcriptome, proteome, metabolome and phenome approaches) as well as related data integrations and network biology.