Comparative Neuromuscular Diseases Laboratory - Research
The Comparative Neuromuscular Diseases Laboratory, directed by Prof Richard Piercy, is located at the ·¬ÇÑapp's Camden Campus and is a subgroup within the RVC's Neuromuscular Group which also includes Dr Susan Brown's group (Extracellular matrix and muscular dystrophy) and Prof. Dominic Wells's group (Neuromuscular Diseases). Each group shares dedicated laboratory facilities and they combine for lab meetings and seminars on a weekly basis.
The Comparative Neuromuscular Diseases Laboratory researches a number of naturally occurring neuromuscular diseases of dogs, horses and cats, with particular emphasis on aetiology and pathogenesis, via genetic, cell and molecular biology techniques in the lab. There is increasing emphasis on utilising veterinary neuromuscular diseases to model similar or identical diseases of humans; consequently our aim is to generate answers that will be of benefit to both humans and animals.
The group is currently or has received funding from the HorseRace Betting Levy Board, BBSRC, Myotubular Trust, Petplan Charitable Trust, Wellcome Trust, Morris Animal Foundation, Association of Racecourse Veterinary Surgeons, The Horse Trust and Industry sources.