About me

Experience:

2022 -

2028

CRUK Career Establishment Award

2019 -

Present

Hon. Lecturer (Imperial College London)

2019 -

Present

Programme Leader Track (MRC LMS)

2013 -

2019

Postdoctoral Research Fellow (Francis Crick Institute)

2011 -

2013

Postdoctoral Research Fellow (MRC LMB)

2007 -

2011

PhD (MRC LMB)

2004 -

2007

BA Natural Sciences (Pharmacology) (University of Cambridge, UK)

Research focus:

We are interested in transporters - these are proteins which are found within cellular membranes that regulate the passage of small molecules, such as metabolites and drugs, into and out of cells. Our aim is to understand the roles of transporters in cancer metabolism, and how this intersects with their role in drug uptake.

Joined LMS:

2019

About me:

I love the idea of explaining the unexplained, and so trying to tackle why cancer drugs work for some and not others is a perfect question for me. I particularly enjoy tackling this with enthusiastic group members and collaborators – teamwork makes the job all the more satisfying. When not in the lab, I love music and food, and am a particular fan of festivals where I can combine the two.  

My awards and achievements:

CRUK Career Establishment Awardee

Impact of my work:

We think that by understanding how transporters influence drug uptake into cells, we can determine whether they impact how patients respond to chemotherapy. Eventually, we hope to be able to look at the 'transporter signature' of a patient's tumour to help to tailor therapeutic approaches in a more personalised way.

My Research

Drug transport and tumour metabolism

The drug transport and tumour metabolism group at the LMS was formed in 2019. The team, led by Louise Fets, strives to better understand the role of membrane transporters in drug distribution and tumour metabolism.  

VIEW MY RESEARCH GROUP

Selected publications

Alam, S., Doherty, E., Ortega-Prieto, P., Arizanova, J., & Fets, L. (2023). Membrane transporters in cell physiology, cancer metabolism and drug response. Disease Models & Mechanisms, 16(11). https://doi.org/10.1242/dmm.050404

Fets, L., Bevan, N., Nunes, P.M., Campos S., Silva Dos Santos M., Sherriff E., MacRae J. I, House D., Anastasiou D. (2022). MOG analogues to explore the MCT2 pharmacophore, α-ketoglutarate biology and cellular effects of N-oxalylglycineCommun Biol 5, 877. https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-022-03805-y

Newton H, Wang Y, Camplese L, Mokochinski JB, Kramer HB, Brown AEX, Fets L, Hirabayashi S. (2020). Systemic muscle wasting and coordinated tumour response drive tumourigenesisNature Communications 11, 4653.

Fets L, Driscoll PC, Grimm F, Jain A, Nunes PM, Gounis M, Doglioni G, Papageorgiou G, Ragan TJ, Campos S, dos Santos MS, MacRae JI, O’Reilly N, Wright AJ, Benes CH, Courtney KD, House D, Anastasiou D. (2018). MCT2 mediates concentration-dependent inhibition of glutamine metabolism by MOGNat Chem Biol 14, 1032–1042.

Macpherson JA, Theisen A, Masino L, Fets L, Driscoll PC, Encheva V, Snijders AP, Martin SR, Kleinjung J, Barran PE, Fraternali F, Anastasiou D. (2019). Functional cross-talk between allosteric effects of activating and inhibiting ligands underlies PKM2 regulation. eLife 2019;8:e45068.

Clark J, Kay RR, Kielkowska A, Niewczas I, Fets L, Oxley D, et al. Dictyostelium uses ether-linked inositol phospholipids for intracellular signalling. (2014). EMBO J 33(19), 2188–2200.

Fets L, Nichols JME, Kay RR. A PIP5 kinase essential for efficient chemotactic signaling. (2014). Curr Biol 24(4), 415–21.

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