Poppy Smith

Poppy is a Research Fellow at UCL School of Pharmacy exploring the commercialisation of a tissue-engineered 3D angiogenesis model that aims to recreate blood vessel formation in a rapid and easily quantifiable manner suitable for drug candidate screening, using hiPSC-derived endothelial cells. Supported by the Knowledge Exchange and Innovation Fund with Prof. James Phillips.

Poppy’s PhD on the BBSRC London Interdisciplinary Doctoral (LIDo) Programme was based at UCL researching the application of endothelial cells in nerve tissue engineering under the supervision of Prof. James Phillips of UCL Centre for Nerve Engineering and Prof. Parmjit Jat of the Institute of Prion Diseases. During this time, Poppy worked on multiple side projects including screening candidates for diabetic neuropathy as a Research Consultant for Procter & Gamble and exploring the effects of the novel PI3Ka activator UCL-TRO-1938 as a Nerve Regeneration Microscopist.

Poppy is actively involved in higher education teaching, as an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA). She supervises MPharm and MSc students at UCL, lectures on the Biomaterials & Tissue Engineering module at the University of Bedfordshire and was previously a mentor on the In2Research programme.

Prior to this, Poppy completed her integrated Master’s degree at Durham University in Biology and Chemistry within Natural Sciences with first-class honours in 2020. Her Master’s project developed the liposomal delivery of TADF emitters for bio-imaging and bio-sensing, supervised by Prof. Martin Cann and Dr. Lars Palsson.

Selected Funding & Awards:

The Institution of Engineering and Technology International Travel Award, £1,500, 2024
Guarantors of Brain Travel Grant, £1,000, 2024
International Symposium on Peripheral Nerve Regeneration Best Oral Presentation, 2024
Institute of Healthcare Engineering Early Career Researcher Festival Poster Prize, 2024
Institute of Healthcare Engineering Workshop Award, £2,500, 2023
Biomedical Engineering (BioMedEng) Society 2022 Conference, Best PhD Talk, 2022

Contact:

Email: [email protected]

UCL Profile: https://profiles.ucl.ac.uk/79994-poppy-smith

Twitter: @poppyosmith

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/poppy-smith-b488ab1b8