Rawan Maani

Rawan Maani

Email: rm1080@hallam.shu.ac.uk
Research Centre: BMRC
Research Group: Cancer Research Group
PhD Thesis Title: Interaction and functional impact of colorectal cancer extracellular vesicles on Escherichia coli
Director of Studies: Nick Peake
Supervisors: Mel Lacey, Sarah Forbes

SUMMARY

Associate fellow of higher education academy. I have a BSc in biology and MSc in Biotechnology, An-Najah National University, Palestine. Also, MSc in Biotechnology and Pharmacology, Sheffield Hallam University, UK. Currently, my PhD research area focuses on colorectal cancer and gut microbiome, investigating the extracellular vesicles mediated tumour-microbiome interactions.

RESEARCH

Colorectal cancer (CRC) accounts for about 10% of all new cancer cases worldwide. The gut microbiome comprises a large population of microorganisms and has been identified as an etiological factor for CRC. Dysbiosis which is defined as an imbalance in the gut microbial community, is closely related to tumour development and progression.

A large body of evidence reveals differences in gut microbial composition between CRC patients and healthy individuals, and a high prevalence of pro-inflammatory and pro-carcinogenesis microbes have been found in CRC patients, such as E. coli. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are cell-derived membrane-surrounded vesicles that carry bioactive molecules, such as microRNA, DNA, and proteins, and deliver them to recipient cells.

My research showed that CRC interacts with E. coli through EVs that alter the bacterial phenotypic characteristics, they increase bacterial growth and reduce its ability to form biofilm.