Dr Frank Hills

Senior Lecturer in Clinical Biochemistry/Proteomics

Department: School of Health and Social Sciences

Contact

Qualifications

BSc PhD

Research Interests

Obstetric care

  • The role of oxidative stress and inflammatory cytokines on placental function
  • Anti-apoptotic treatments for common disorders of pregnancy
  • Regulation of imprinted genes within the human placenta
  • Role of insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) and IGFBP-1 in pregnancy

Reproductive Physiology

  • Interactions between IGFs and cell surface receptors
  • hCG and endometrial function

Teaching Interests

  • Reproductive biology, Obstetrics and Gynaecology
  • Cell Biology
  • Basic and applied Molecular Biology Techniques
  • Biochemistry techniques
  • Proteomics
  • Statistics and data analysis  

Biography

Recent Publications/ Seminars

Peer reviewed research papers

  • Iglesias-Platas I, Monk D, Jebbink J, Buimer M, Boer K, van der Post J, Hills F, Apostolidou S, Ris-Stalpers C, Stanier P and Moore GE (2007). STOX1 is not imprinted and is not likely to be involved in preeclampsia. Nat Genet. 39:279-80
  • Monk D, Arnaud P, Apostilou S, Hills FA, Kelsey G, Stanier P, Feil R and Moore GE (2006). Limited conservation of imprinting in the human placenta. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 103: 6623-8
  • Hills FA, Abrahams VM, Gonzalez-Timon B, Francis J, Cloke B, Hinkson L, Rai R, Mor G, Regan L, Sullivan M, Lam EW and Brosens JJ (2006). Heparin prevents programmed cell death in human trophoblast. Mol Hum Reprod 12:237-243.
  • Monk D, Arnaud P, Apostolidou S, Hills FA, Kelsey G, Stanier P, Feil R, Moore GE. Limited evolutionary conservation of imprinting in the human placenta. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2006 Apr 25;103(17): 6623-8
  • Monk D, Sanches R, Arnaud P, Apostolidou S, Hills FA, Abu-Amero S, Murrell A, Friess H, Reik W, Stanier P, Constancia M, Moore GE. Imprinting of IGF2 P0 transcript and novel alternatively spliced INS-IGF2 isoforms show differences between mouse and human. Hum Mol Genet. 2006 Apr 15;15(8):1259-69.
  • Hills FA, Elder MG, Chard T, Sullivan MH. Regulation of human villous trophoblast by insulin-like growth factors and insulin-like growth factor-binding protein-1. J Endocrinol. 2004 Dec;183(3): 487-96.
  • Carter AM, Hills F, O'Gorman DB, Roberts CT, Sooranna SR, Watson CS, Westwood M. The insulin-like growth factor system in mammalian pregnancy - a workshop report. Placenta. 2004 Apr;25 Suppl A:S53-6.
  • Anim-Nyame N, Hills FA, Sooranna SR, Steer PJ, Johnson MJ. The relationship between insulin and insulin-like growth factor binding protein-1 is modified by pre-eclampsia. Gynecol Endocrinol. 2003 Dec;17(6):471-6.
  • Loudon JA, Elliott CL, Hills F, Bennett PR. Progesterone represses interleukin-8 and cyclo-oxygenase-2 in human lower segment fibroblast cells and amnion epithelial cells. Biol Reprod. 2003 Jul;69(1):331-7.
  • Mak IY, Brosens JJ, Christian M, Hills FA, Chamley L, Regan L, White JO. Regulated expression of signal transducer and activator of transcription, Stat5, and its enhancement of PRL expression in human endometrial stromal cells in vitro. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2002 Jun;87(6):2581-8.

External lectures as an Invited Speaker

25th September 2003. IGFs and IGFBP-1 in the regulation of trophoblast function. 9th International Federation of Placenta Association Meeting (IFPA) and 10th Conference of the European Placental Group (EPG), Mainz, Germany.

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