Staff Profile

Research Interests:

Pluripotent stem cells to model human disease: My research focus since joining Newcastle University has been the understanding of the basic biology and possible clinical applications of pluripotent stem cells. These include human embryonic stem cells (hESC) and more recently induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC) that may be generated from somatic tissue by ectopic expression of selected transcription factors. This latter type of pluripotent cell is of great potential importance in regenerative medicine since somatic cells differentiated from hiPSC should not suffer immune rejection when re-introduced into the patient. This desire for patient specific pluripotent stem cells was the driving force behind one of my earliest projects in Newcastle this being the generation of animal human interspecies embryos by somatic cell nuclear transfer. I was one of only three persons awarded a licence from the Human Fertility and Embryology Authority (HFEA) to further this work as a means of investigating the mechanism of epigenetic reprogramming in SCNT that re-imposes a pluripotent phenotype on the somatic genome.

More recently, in collaboration with Professor Majlinda Lako, I have been the first group to establish iPSC generation technology here in Newcastle. This has led to a number of publications and more than 400 hiPSC lines have now been generated from dermal fibroblasts and keratinocytes obtained from patient suffering from a range of monogenetic and complex diseases in addition to unaffected controls. The primary motivation behind this effort has been to develop in vitro models of human diseases for which animal models do not exist or are unsatisfactory representations of the disease. This has placed the Institute of Genetic Medicine at the forefront of iPSC research and has led to the award of major European grant funding (Innovative Medicines Initiative – StemBANNC consortium) totalling 2.3 million Euros (£1.8 million) to develop a bank of iPSC lines for use in the Pharmaceutical industry. This activity is of increasing importance since diseased patient specific iPSC may be used as a source of differentiated somatic cell types which may be used for drug discovery and toxicity trials. This importance has highlighted the marketability of iPSC to the extent that I have established a spin-out company (Newcells Biotech Ltd) to generate hiPSC based models of human disease that are used to study drug toxicity and /or efficacy within the pharmaceutical industry. More recently, my investigations have been focussed on the generation of more complex 3D structures comprising hiPSC derived somatic cells as models of disease and as mechanisms by which to increase our understanding of developmental biology. Moreover, such 3D ‘organoids’ are potentially valuable as tools to monitor the toxicity and efficacy of prospective drugs in their pre-clinical development and as such I am developing methods to generate both models of the otic vesicle and of the proximal and distal airways.

The basic biology of pluripotent stem cells: Immediately after establishing iPSC derivation it was important to demonstrate that these cells were equivalent to embryonic stem cells. Protocols for the differentiation of hiPSC are nearly all derived from work with hESC therefore the usefulness of the former relies upon their ability to differentiate in a similar manner to hESC, but some publications suggest that there are reproducible, differences in the transcriptomes of hESC and hiPSC. Some of these may result from the individual genetic backgrounds of the hESC and hiPSC compared but some differentially expressed genes seem to be common to all hiPSC lines analyzed and may arise because of inconsistent epigenetic reprogramming of the somatic genome. Some of our preliminary data suggested that the mitochondrial characteristics of hESC and hiPSC differ. Despite similar mitochondrial copy numbers, membrane potential and superoxide generation are substantially lower in hiPSC and Nuclear encoded genes involved in mitochondrial genome replication (POLG2, TFAM, TFMB1,TFMB2, MTERF) and inner mitochondrial membrane structure (UCP2, UCP4) show different expression levels to those observed in hESC thus if inconsistent reprogramming was a feature of hiPSC derivation, there was an urgent need to confirm that mitochondrial function in hiPSC lines and in their differentiated progeny was not compromised by misexpression of their nuclear encode mitochondrial genes. This led to the award a three year project grant from the BBSRC (£468,000) to investigate the transition from glycolytic to oxidative phosphorylation based metabolism during hiPSC differentiation. If incomplete epigenetic reprogramming is the cause of hiPSC mitochondrial dysfunction, it should be possible to manipulate the hiPSC epigenome to re-establish efficient mitochondrial activity. This possibility arises from earlier work in my group investigating the epigenetic changes occurring as both cause and consequence of embryonic stem cell differentiation (Stem Cells. 2009;27:1298-308, Stem Cells. 2008; 26:1174-85) and our investigations of the mechanisms by which pluripotent stem cells respond to and defend their genomes against oxidative stress (Stem Cells. 2004; 22:962-71, Stem Cells. 2005;23:516-29, Stem Cells. 2008; 26:455-64). In addition to basic biological studies, I have an ongoing research programme into the possibility of differentiation pluripotent stem cells into functional gametes. My group was one of few to demonstrate the generation and epigenetic analysis of primordial germ cells from hESC (Stem Cells. 2010;28:84-92, Stem Cells. 2008;26:3075-85). 

• Articles

  • Watson A, Queen R, Ferrandez-Peral L, Dorgau B, Collin J, Nelson A, Hussain R, Coxhead J, McCorkindale M, Atkinson R, Zerti D, Chichagova V, Conesa A, Armstrong L, Cremers FPM, Lako M. Unravelling genotype-phenotype correlations in Stargardt disease using patient-derived retinal organoids. Cell Death and Disease 2025, 16, 108.
  • Tsikandelova R, Galo E, Cerniauskas E, Hallam D, Georgiou M, Cerna-Chavez R, Atkinson R, Palmowski P, Burte F, Davies T, Steel DH, McKibbin M, Bond J, Haggarty J, Whitfield P, Korolchuk V, Armstrong L, Yang C, Dorgau B, Kurzawa-Akanbi M, Lako M. Retinal cells derived from patients with DRAM2-dependent CORD21 dystrophy exhibit key lysosomal enzyme deficiency and lysosomal content accumulation. Stem Cell Reports 2024, 19(8), 1107-1121.
  • Atkinson R, Georgiou M, Yang C, Szymanska K, Lahat A, Vasconcelos EJR, Ji Y, Moya Molina M, Collin J, Queen R, Dorgau B, Watson A, Kurzawa-Akanbi M, Laws R, Saxena A, Shyan Beh C, Siachisumo C, Goertler F, Karwatka M, Davey T, Inglehearn CF, McKibbin M, Luhrmann R, Steel DH, Elliott DJ, Armstrong L, Urlaub H, Ali RR, Grellscheid S-N, Johnson CA, Mozaffari-Jovin S, Lako M. PRPF8-mediated dysregulation of hBrr2 helicase disrupts human spliceosome kinetics and 5´-splice-site selection causing tissue-specific defects. Nature Communications 2024, 15(1), 3138.
  • Roguski A, Needham N, MacGillivray T, Martinovic J, Dhillon B, Riha RL, Armstrong L, Campbell IH, Ferguson A, Hilgen G, Lako M, Ritter P, Santhi N, von Schantz M, Spitschan M, Smith DJ. Investigating light sensitivity in bipolar disorder (HELIOS-BD). Wellcome Open Research 2024, 9, 64.
  • Chandrasekaran V, Wellens S, Bourguignon A, Djidrovski I, Fransen L, Ghosh S, Mazidi Z, Murphy C, Nunes C, Singh P, Zana M, Armstrong L, Dinnyes A, Grillari J, Grillari-Voglauer R, Leonard MO, Verfaillie C, Wilmes A, Zurich M-G, Exner T, Jennings P, Culot M. Evaluation of the impact of iPSC differentiation protocols on transcriptomic signatures. Toxicology in Vitro 2024, 98, 105826.
  • Dorgau B, Collin J, Rozanska A, boczonadi V, Molina MM, Unsworth A, Hussain r, Coxhead J, Dhanaseelan T, Armstrong L, Queen R, Lako M. Deciphering the spatio-temporal transcriptional and chromatin accessibility of human retinal organoid development at the single cell level. iScience 2024, 27(4), 109397.
  • Moya-Molina M, Dorgau B, Flood E, Letteboer SJF, Lorentzen E, Coxhead J, Smith G, Roepman R, Nagaraja Grellscheid S, Armstrong L, Lako M. Deciphering the impact of PROM1 alternative splicing on human photoreceptor development and maturation. Cell Death & Disease 2024, 15(10), 721.
  • Chichagova V, Georgiou M, Carter M, Dorgau B, Hilgen G, Collin J, Queen R, Chung G, Ajeian J, Moya-Molina M, Kustermann S, Pognan F, Hewitt P, Schmitt M, Sernagor E, Armstrong L, Lako M. Incorporating microglia-like cells in human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived retinal organoids. Journal of Cellular and Molecular Medicine 2023, 27(3), 435-445.
  • Djidrovski I, Georgiou M, Tasinato E, Leonard MO, Van den Bor J, Lako M, Armstrong L. Direct transcriptomic comparison of xenobiotic metabolism and toxicity pathway induction of airway epithelium models at an air–liquid interface generated from induced pluripotent stem cells and primary bronchial epithelial cells. Cell Biology and Toxicology 2023, 39, 1-18.
  • Kurzawa-Akanbi M, Whitfield P, Burte F, Bertelli PM, Pathak V, Doherty M, Hilgen B, Gliaudelyte L, Platt M, Queen R, Coxhead J, Porter A, Oberg M, Fabrikova D, Davey T, Beh CS, Georgiou M, Collin J, Boczonadi V, Hartlova A, Taggart M, Al-Aama J, Korolchuk VI, Morris CM, Guduric-Fuchs J, Steel DH, Medina RJ, Armstrong L, Lako M. Retinal pigment epithelium extracellular vesicles are potent inducers of age-related macular degeneration disease phenotype in the outer retina. Journal of Extracellular Vesicles 2022, 11(12), 12295.
  • Rozanska A, Cerna R, Queen R, Collin J, Zerti D, Dorgau B, Beh C, Davey T, Coxhead J, Hussain R, Alaama J, Steel D, Benvenisty N, Armstrong L, Parulekar M, Lako M. pRB-depleted pluripotent stem cell retinal organoids recapitulate cell state transitions of retinoblastoma development and suggest an important role for pRB in retinal cell differentiation. Stem Cell Translational Medicine 2022, 11(4), 415-433.
  • Dorgau B, Georgiou M, Chaudhary A, Molina M, Collin J, Queen R, Hilgen G, Davey T, Hewitt P, Schmitt M, Kustermann S, Pognan F, Steel D, Sernagor E, Armstrong L, Lako M. Human Retinal Organoids Provide a Suitable Tool for Toxicological Investigations: A Comprehensive Validation Using Drugs and Compounds Affecting the Retina. Stem Cell Translational Medicine 2022, 11(2), 159-177.
  • Jackson RM, Hatton CF, Spegarova JS, Georgiou M, Collin J, Stephenson E, Verdon B, Haq IJ, Hussain R, Coxhead JM, Mudhar H-S, Wagner B, Hasoon M, Davey T, Rooney P, Khan A, Ward C, Brodlie M, Haniffa M, Hambleton S, Armstrong L, Figueiredo F, Queen R, Duncan CJ, Lako M. Conjunctival epithelial cells resist productive SARS-CoV-2 infection. Stem Cell Reports 2022, 17(7), 1699-1713.
  • Georgiou M, YAng C, Atkinson R, Pan K, Buskin A, Molina M, Collin C, Alaama J, Goertler F, Ludwig S, Davey T, Luhrmann R, Grellscheid S, Johnson C, Ali R, Armstring L, Korolchuk V, Urlaub H, Mozzafari J, LAko M. Activation of autophagy reverses progressive and deleterious protein aggregation in PRPF31 patient iPSC-derived retinal pigment epithelium cells. Clinical and Translational Medicine 2022, 12(3), e759.
  • Zerti D, Hilgen G, Dorgau b, Collin J, Ader M, Armstrong L, Sernagor E, Lako M. Transplanted pluripotent stem cell‐derived photoreceptor precursors elicit conventional and unusual light responses in mice with advanced retinal degeneration. Stem Cells 2021, 39(7), 882-896.
  • Djidrovksi I, Georgiou M, Hughes GL, Patterson EI, Casas-Sanchez A, Penington SH, Biagini GA, Moya-Molina M, van den Bor J, Smit MJ, Chung G, Lako M, Armstrong L. SARS-CoV-2 infects an upper airway model derived from induced pluripotent stem cells. Stem Cells 2021, 39(10), 1310-1321.
  • Armstrong L, Collin J, Mostafa I, Queen R, Figueiredo F, Lako M. In the eye of the storm: SARS-CoV-2 infection and replication at the ocular surface?. Stem Cells Translational Medicine 2021, 10(7), 976-986.
  • Collin J, Queen R, Darin Zerti D, Bojic S, Dorgau B, Moyse N, Molina MM, Yang C, Dey S, Reynolds G, Hussain R, Coxhead JM, Lisgo S, Henderson D, Joseph A, Rooney P, Ghosh S, Clarke L, Connon CJ, Haniffa M, Figueiredo F, Armstrong L, Lako M. A single cell atlas of human cornea that defines its development, limbal progenitor cells and their interactions with the immune cells. The Ocular Surface 2021, 21, 279-298.
  • Georgiou M, Chichagova V, Hilgen G, Dorgau B, Sernagor E, Armstrong L, Lako M. Room temperature shipment does not affect the biological activity of pluripotent stem cell-derived retinal organoids. PlosOne 2020, 15(6), e0233860.
  • Bojic S, Falco MM, Stojkovic P, Ljujic B, Gazdic Jankovic M, Armstrong L, Markovic N, Dopazo J, Lako M, Bauer R, Stojkovic M. Platform to study intracellular polystyrene nanoplastic pollution and clinical outcomes. Stem Cells 2020, 38(10), 1321-1325.
  • Chichagova V, Hilgen G, Ghareeb A, Gergiou M, Carter M, Sernagor E, Lako M, Armstrong L. Human iPSC differentiation to retinal organoids in response to IGF1 and BMP4 activation is line‐ and method‐dependent. Stem Cells 2020, 38(2), 195-201.
  • Cerniauskas E, Kurzawa-Akanbi M, Xie L, Hallam D, Moya-Molina M, White K, Steel D, Doherty M, Whitfield P, Al-Aama J, Armstrong L, Kavanagh D, Lambris J, Korolchuk V, Harris C, Lako M. Complement modulation reverses pathology in Y402H-retinal pigment epithelium cell model of AMD by restoring lysosomal function. Stem Cells Translational Medicine 2020, 9(12), 1585-1603.
  • Collin J, Queen R, Zerti D, Dorgau B, Georgiou M, Djidrovski I, Hussain R, Coxhead JM, Joseph A, Rooney P, Lisgo S, Figueiredo FC, Armstrong L, Lako M. Co-expression of SARS-CoV-2 entry genes in the superficial adult human conjunctival, limbal and corneal epithelium suggests an additional route of entry via the ocular surface. The Ocular Surface 2020, 19, 190-200.
  • Atwal M, Swan RL, Rowe C, Lee KC, Lee DC, Armstrong L, Cowell IG, Austin CA. Intercalating TOP2 poisons attenuate topoisomerase action at higher concentrations. Molecular Pharmacology 2019, 96(4), 475-484.
  • Alsaeedi F, Wilson R, Candlish C, Ibrahim I, Leitch AC, Abdelghany TM, Wilson C, Armstrong L, Wright MC. Expression of serine/threonine protein kinase SGK1F promotes an hepatoblast state in stem cells directed to differentiate into hepatocytes. PloS One 2019, 14(6), e0218135.
  • Chichagova V, Dorgau B, Felemban M, Georgiou M, Armstrong L, Lako M. Differentiation of Retinal Organoids from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells. Current Protocols in Stem Cell Biology 2019, 50(1), e95.
  • Collin J, Zerti D, Queen R, SantoFerreira T, Bauer R, Coxhead J, Hussain R, Steel D, Mellough C, Ader M, Sernagor E, Armstrong L, Lako M. CRX Expression in Pluripotent Stem Cell‐Derived Photoreceptors Marks a Transplantable Subpopulation of Early Cones. Stem Cells (Durham) 2019, 37(5), 609-622.
  • Volpato V, Smith J, Sandor C, Ried JS, Baud A, Handel A, Newey SE, Wessely F, Attar M, Whiteley E, Chintawar S, Verheyen A, Barta T, Lako M, Armstrong L, Muschet C, Artati A, Cusulin C, Christensen K, Patsch C, Sharma E, Nicod J, Brownjohn P, Stubbs V, Heywood WE, Gissen P, De Filippis R, Janssen K, Reinhardt P, Adamski J, Royaux I, Peeters PJ, Terstappen GC, Graf M, Livesey FJ, Akerman CJ, Mills K, Bowden R, Nicholson G, Webber C, Cader MZ, Lakics V. Reproducibility of Molecular Phenotypes after Long-Term Differentiation to Human iPSC-Derived Neurons: A Multi-Site Omics Study. Stem Cell Reports 2018, 11(4), 897-911.
  • Sanchis DM, Xu Y, Taheem D, Yu M, Tilgner K, Barta T, Gassner K, Anyfanftis G, Wan T, Elango R, Alharthi S, Elharouni AA, Pryzborski S, Adam S, Saretzki G, Samarasinghe S, Armstrong L, Lako M. iPSC modelling of severe aplastic anemia reveals impaired differentiation and telomere shortening in blood progenitors. Cell Death & Disease 2018, 9, 128.
  • Hallam D, Rawlings D, Steel D, Armstrong L, Lako M. In Reply to the Letter to the Editor from Hallam et al.: An Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Patient Specific Model of Complement Factor H (Y402H) Polymorphism Displays Characteristic Features of Age-Related Macular Degeneration and Indicates a Beneficial Role for UV Light Exposure. Stem Cells 2018, 36(4), 627-629.
  • Hallam D, Hilgen G, Dorgau B, Zhu L, Yu M, Bojic S, Hewitt P, Schmitt M, Uteng M, Kustermann S, STEEL D, Nicholds M, Thomas R, Treumann A, Porter A, Sernagor E, Armstrong L, Lako M. Human induced pluripotent stem cells generate light responsive retinal organoids with variable and nutrient dependent efficiency. Stem Cells 2018, 36(10), 1501-1513.
  • Jeong M, O'Reilly M, Kirkwood NK, Alaama J, Lako M, Kross J, Armstrong L. Generating inner ear organoids containing putative cochlear hair cells from human pluripotent stem cells. Cell Death & Disease 2018, 9, 922.
  • Neganova I, Cotts L, Banks P, Gassner K, Armstrong L, Ladds G, Lako M. EDG5 plays an important role in induction and maintenance of pluripotency. Stem Cells 2018, 37(3), 318-331.
  • Buskin A, Zhu L, Chichagova V, Basu B, Mozaffari-Jovin S, Dolan D, Droop A, Collin J, Bronstein V, Mehrotra S, Farkas M, Hilgen G, White K, Pan KT, Treumann A, Hallam D, Bialas K, Chung G, Mellough C, Ding Y, Krasnogor N, Pryzborski S, Zwolinski S, Alharthi S, Al-Aama J, Xu Y, Wheway G, Szymanska K, McKibbin M, Inglehearn CF, Elliott DJ, Lindsay S, Ali R, Steel DH, Armstrong L, Sernagor E, Urlaub H, Pierce E, Luehrmann R, Grellscheid SN, Johnson CA, Lako M. Disrupted alternative splicing for genes implicated in splicing and ciliogenesis causes PRPF31 retinitis pigmentosa. Nature Communications 2018, 9, 4234.
  • Kamarudin TA, Bojic S, Collin J, Yu M, Alharthi S, Buck H, Shortt A, Armstrong L, Figueiredo FC, Lako M. Differences in the activity of endogenous BMP signalling impact on the ability of induced pluripotent stem cells to differentiate to corneal epithelial like cells. Stem Cells 2018, 36(3), 337-348.
  • Wilmes A, Rauch C, Carta G, Kern G, Meier F, Posch W, Wilflingseder D, Armstrong L, Lako M, Beilmann M, Gstraunthaler G, Jennings P. Towards optimisation of induced pluripotent cell culture: Extracellular acidification results in growth arrest of iPSC prior to nutrient exhaustion. Toxicology in Vitro 2017, 45(3), 445-454.
  • De Sousa PA, Steeg R, Wachter E, Bruce K, King J, Hoeve M, Khadun S, McConnachie G, Holder J, Kurtz A, Seltmann S, Dewender J, Reimann S, Stacey G, O'Shea O, Chapman C, Healy L, Zimmermann H, Bolton B, Rawat T, Atkin I, Veiga A, Kuebler B, Serano BM, Saric T, Hescheler J, Brustle O, Peitz M, Thiele C, Geijsen N, Holst B, Clausen C, Lako M, Armstrong L, Gupta SK, Kvist AJ, Hicks R, Jonebring A, Brolen G, Ebneth A, Cabrera-Socorro A, Foerch P, Geraerts M, Stummann TC, Harmon S, George C, Streeter I, Clarke L, Parkinson H, Harrison PW, Faulconbridge A, Cherubin L, Burdett T, Trigueros C, Patel MJ, Lucas C, Hardy B, Predan R, Dokler J, Brajnik M, Keminer O, Pless O, Gribbon P, Claussen C, Ringwald A, Kreisel B, Courtney A, Allsopp TE. Rapid establishment of the European Bank for induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (EBiSC) - the Hot Start experience. Stem Cell Research 2017, 20, 105-114.
  • Baud A, Wessely F, Mazzacuva F, McCormick J, Camuzeaux S, Heywood WE, Little D, Vowles J, Tuefferd M, Mosaku O, Lako M, Armstrong L, Webber C, Cader MZ, Peeters P, Gissen P, Cowley SA, Mills K. Multiplex High-Throughput Targeted Proteomic Assay to Identify Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells. Analytical Chemistry 2017, 89(4), 2440-2448.
  • Yang C, Xu Y, Yu M, Lee D, Alharti S, Hellen N, Shaik NA, Banaganapalli B, Mohamoud H, Elango R, Przyborski S, Tenin G, Williams S, O'Sullivan J, Al-Radi OO, Atta J, Harding S, Keavney B, Lako M, Armstrong L. Induced pluripotent stem cell modelling of HLHS underlines the contribution of dysfunctional NOTCH signalling to impaired cardiogenesis. Human Molecular Genetics 2017, 26(16), 3031-3045.
  • Chichagova V, Hallam D, Collin J, Buskin A, Saretzki G, Armstrong L, Yu-Wai-Man P, Lako M, Steel DH. Human iPSC disease modelling reveals functional and structural defects in retinal pigment epithelial cells harbouring the m.3243A>G mitochondrial DNA mutation. Scientific Reports 2017, 7, 12320.
  • Meader E, Barta T, Melguzo SD, Tilgner K, Montaner D, ElHarouni A, Armstrong L, Lako M. Brief Report: Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Hematopoietic Progenitors Are Unable to Downregulate Key Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition-Associated miRNAs. Stem Cells (Durham) 2017, 36(1), 55–64.
  • Hallam D, Collin j, Bojic S, Chichagova V, Buskin A, Xu Y, Lafage L, Otten EG, Anyfantis G, Mellough C, Przyboski S, Alhart S, Korolchuk V, Lotery A, Saretzki G, McKibbin M, Armstrong L, Steel D, Kavanagh D, Lako M. An iPSC patient specific model of CFH (Y402H) polymorphism displays characteristic features of AMD and indicates a beneficial role for UV light exposure. Stem Cells 2017, 35(11), 2305-2320.
  • Neganova I, Chichagova V, Armstrong L, Lako M. A critical role for p38MAPK signalling pathway during reprogramming of human fibroblasts to iPSCs. Scientific Reports 2017, 7, 41693.
  • Zhu L, Gomez-Duran A, Saretzki G, Jin S, Tilgner K, Melguzo-Sanchis D, Anyfantis G, Al-Aama J, Vallier L, Chinnery P, Lako M, Armstrong L. The mitochondrial protein CHCHD2 primes the differentiation potential of human induced pluripotent stem cells to neuroectodermal lineages. Journal of Cell Biology 2016, 215(2), 187-202.
  • Neganova A, Shmeleva E, Munkley J, Chichagova V, Anyfantis G, Anderson R, Passos AJ, Elliott DJ, Armstrong L, Lako M. JNK/SAPK signalling is essential for efficient reprogramming of human fibroblasts to induced pluripotent stem cells. Stem Cells 2016, 34(5), 1198-1212.
  • Barta T, Peskova L, Collin J, Montaner D, Neganova I, Armstrong L, Lako M. Inhibition of miR-145 Enhances Reprogramming of Human Dermal Fibroblasts to Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells. Stem Cells 2016, 34(1), 246-251.
  • Nurkovic J, Volarevic V, Lako M, Armstrong L, Arsenijevic N, Stojkovic M. Aging of Stem and Progenitor Cells: Mechanisms, Impact on Therapeutic Potential, and Rejuvenation. Rejuvenation Research 2016, 19(1), 3-12.
  • Jin S, Collin J, Zhu L, Montaner D, Armstrong L, Neganova I, Lako M. A Novel role for miR-1305 in Regulation of Pluripotency-Differentiation Balance, Cell Cycle and Apoptosis in Human Pluripotent Stem Cells. Stem Cells 2016, 34(9), 2306-2317.
  • Chichagova V, Sanchez-Vera I, Armstrong L, Steel D, Lako M. Generation of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Using RNA-Based Sendai Virus System and Pluripotency Validation of the Resulting Cell Population. Methods in Molecular Biology 2015, 1353, 285-307.
  • Yang C, Al-Aama J, Stojkovic M, Keavney B, Trafford A, Lako M, Armstrong L. Concise Review: Cardiac Disease Modeling Using Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells. Stem Cells 2015, 33(9), 2643-2651.
  • Jiang Y, Habibollah S, Tilgner K, Collin J, Barta T, Al-Aama JY, Tesarov L, Hussain R, Trafford AW, Kirkwood G, Sernagor E, Eleftheriou CG, Przyborski S, Stojkovic M, Lako M, Keavney B, Armstrong L. An Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Model of Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS) Reveals Multiple Expression and Functional Differences in HLHS-Derived Cardiac Myocytes. Stem Cells Translational Medicine 2014, 3(4), 416-423.
  • Yung SK, Tilgner K, Ledran MH, Habibollah S, Neganova I, Singhapol C, Saretzki G, Stojkovic M, Armstrong L, Przyborski S, Lako M. Brief Report: Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Models of Fanconi Anemia Deficiency Reveal an Important Role for Fanconi Anemia Proteins in Cellular Reprogramming and Survival of Hematopoietic Progenitors. Stem Cells 2013, 31(5), 1022-1029.
  • Tilgner K, Neganova I, Singhapol C, Saretzki G, Al-Aama JY, Evans J, Gorbunova V, Gennery A, Przyborski S, Stojkovic M, Armstrong L, Jeggo P, Lako M. Brief Report: A Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Model of Cernunnos Deficiency Reveals an Important Role for XLF in the Survival of the Primitive Hematopoietic Progenitors. Stem Cells 2013, 31(9), 2015-2023.
  • Moad M, Pal D, Hepburn AC, Williamson SC, Wilson L, Lako M, Armstrong L, Hayward SW, Franco O, Cates J, Fordham SE, Przyborski S, Carr-Wilkinson J, Robson CN, Heer R. A novel model of urinary tract differentiation, tissue regeneration, and disease: Reprogramming human prostate and bladder cells into induced pluripotent stem cells. European Urology 2013, 64(5), 753-761.
  • Tilgner K, Neganova I, Moreno-Gimeno I, Al-Aama JY, Burks D, Yung S, Singhapol C, Saretzki G, Evans J, Gorbunova V, Gennery A, Pryzborski S, Stojkovic M, Armstrong L, Jeggo P, Lako M. A human iPSC model of Ligase IV deficiency reveals an important role for NHEJ-mediated-DSB repair in the survival and genomic stability of induced pluripotent stem cells and emerging haematopoietic progenitors. Cell Death and Differentiation 2013, 20, 1089-1100.
  • Armstrong L. Epigenetic Control of Embryonic Stem Cell Differentiation. Stem Cell Reviews and Reports 2012, 8(1), 67-77.
  • Jiang Y, Cowley SA, Siler U, Melguizo D, Tilgner K, Browne C, Dewilton A, Przyborski S, Saretzki G, James WS, Seger RA, Reichenbach J, Lako M, Armstrong L. Derivation and functional analysis of patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cells as an in vitro model of chronic granulomatous disease. Stem Cells 2012, 30(4), 599-611.
  • Atkinson SP, Collin J, Irina N, Anyfantis G, Kyung BK, Lako M, Armstrong L. A Putative Role for the Immunoproteasome in the Maintenance of Pluripotency in Human Embryonic Stem Cells. Stem Cells 2012, 30(7), 1373-1384.
  • Amps K, Andrews PW, Anyfantis G, Armstrong L, Avery S, Baharvand H, Baker J, Baker D, Munoz MB, Beil S, Benvenisty N, Ben-Yosef D, Biancotti JC, Bosman A, Brena RM, Brison D, Caisander G, Camarasa MV, Chen J, Chiao E, Choi YM, Choo AB, Collins D, Colman A, Crook JM, Daley GQ, Dalton A, De Sousa PA, Denning C, Downie J, Dvorak P, Montgomery KD, Feki A, Ford A, Fox V, Fraga AM, Frumkin T, Ge L, Gokhale PJ, Golan-Lev T, Gourabi H, Gropp M, Lu G, Hampl A, Harron K, Healy L, Herath W, Holm F, Hovatta O, Hyllner J, Inamdar MS, Irwanto AK, Ishii T, Jaconi M, Jin Y, Kimber S, Kiselev S, Knowles BB, Kopper O, Kukharenko V, Kuliev A, Lagarkova MA, Laird PW, Lako M, Laslett AL, Lavon N, Lee DR, Lee JE, Li C, Lim LS, Ludwig TE, Ma Y, Maltby E, Mateizel I, Mayshar Y, Mileikovsky M, Minger SL, Miyazaki T, Moon SY, Moore H, Mummery C, Nagy A, Nakatsuji N, Narwani K, Oh SK, Oh SK, Olson C, Otonkoski T, Pan F, Park IH, Pells S, Pera MF, Pereira LV, Qi O, Raj GS, Reubinoff B, Robins A, Robson P, Rossant J, Salekdeh GH, Schulz TC, Sermon K, Sheik Mohamed J, Shen H, Sherrer E, Sidhu K, Sivarajah S, Skottman H, Spits C, Stacey GN, Strehl R, Strelchenko N, Suemori H, Sun B, Suuronen R, Takahashi K, Tuuri T, Venu P, Verlinsky Y, Ward-van Oostwaard D, Weisenberger DJ, Wu Y, Yamanaka S, Young L, Zhou Q, International Stem Cell Initiative. Screening ethnically diverse human embryonic stem cells identifies a chromosome 20 minimal amplicon conferring growth advantage. Nature Biotechnology 2011, 29(12), 1132–1144.
  • Yung S, Ledran M, Moreno-Gimeno I, Conesa A, Montaner D, Dopazo J, Dimmick I, Slater NJ, Marenah L, Real PJ, Paraskevopoulou I, Bisbal V, Burks D, Santibanez-Koref M, Moreno R, Mountford J, Menendez P, Armstrong L, Lako M. Large-scale transcriptional profiling and functional assays reveal important roles for Rho-GTPase signalling and SCL during haematopoietic differentiation of human embryonic stem cells. Human Molecular Genetics 2011, 20(24), 4932-4946.
  • Neganova I, Vilella F, Atkinson SP, Lloret M, Passos JF, von Zglinicki T, O'Connor JE, Burks D, Jones R, Armstrong L, Lako M. An Important Role for CDK2 in G1 to S Checkpoint Activation and DNA Damage Response in Human Embryonic Stem Cells. Stem Cells 2011, 29(4), 651-659.
  • Tilgner K, Atkinson SP, Yung S, Golebiewska A, Stojkovic M, Moreno R, Lako M, Armstrong L. Expression of GFP Under the Control of the RNA Helicase VASA Permits Fluorescence-Activated Cell Sorting Isolation of Human Primordial Germ Cells. Stem Cells 2010, 28(1), 84-92.
  • Armstrong L, Hughes O, Yung S, Hyslop L, Stewart R, Wappler I, Peters H, Walter T, Stojkovic P, Evans J, Stojkovic M, Lako M. The role of PI3K/AKT, MAPK/ERK and NFκβ signalling in the maintenance of human embryonic stem cell pluripotency and viability highlighted by transcriptional profiling and functional analysis. Human Molecular Genetics 2006, 15(11), 1894-1913.
  • Armstrong L, Saretzki G, Peters H, Wappler I, Evans J, Hole N, Von Zglinicki T, Lako M. Overexpression of telomerase confers growth advantage, stress resistance, and enhanced differentiation of ESCs toward the hematopoietic lineage. Stem Cells 2005, 23(4), 516-529.
  • Stojkovic M, Stojkovic P, Leary C, Hall VJ, Armstrong L, Herbert M, Nesbitt M, Lako M, Murdoch A. Derivation of a human blastocyst after heterologous nuclear transfer to donated oocytes. Reproductive BioMedicine Online 2005, 11(2), 226-231.
  • Stojkovic P, Lako M, Stewart R, Przyborski S, Armstrong L, Evans J, Herbert M, Hyslop L, Ahmad S, Murdoch A, Strachan T, Stojkovic M. An Autogeneic Feeder Cell System That Efficiently Supports Growth of Undifferentiated Human Embryonic Stem Cells. Stem Cells 2005, 23(3), 306-314.
  • Armstrong L, Lako M, Lincoln J, Cairns PM, Hole N. mTert expression correlates with telomerase activity during the differentiation of murine embryonic stem cells. Mechanics of Development 2000, 97(1-2), 109-116.
  • James AL, Chilvers KF, Perry JD, Armstrong L, Gould FK. Evaluation of p-naphtholbenzein-beta-D-galactoside as a substrate for bacterial beta-galactosidase. Applied and Environmental Microbiology 2000, 66(12), 5521-5523.

• Conference Proceedings (inc. Abstracts)

  • Siler U, Jiang Y, Cowley SA, Melguzo D, Tilgner K, Browne C, Dewilton A, Pryzborski S, Saretzki G, James WS, Seger RA, Reichenbach J, Lako M, Armstrong L. Derivation and Functional Analysis of Patient Specific Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells as an In Vitro Model of Chronic Granulomatous Disease. In: 15th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT). 2012, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA: Nature Publishing Group.
  • Siler U, Jiang Y, Cowley SA, Melguzo D, Tilgner K, Browne C, deWilton A, Pryzborski S, Saretzki G, James WS, Seger RA, Reichenbach J, Lako M, Armstrong L. Derivation and functional analysis of patient specific induced pluripotent stem cells (IPSCS) as an in vitro model of chronic granulomatous disease. In: 15th Biennial Meeting European Society for Immunodeficiency (ESID). 2012, Florence, Italy: Springer.
  • Campbell SC, Ferris WF, Armstrong L, Hole N, Lako M, Macfarlane WM. Programmed cell death gene 4 (PDCD4): A novel gene upregulated during islet neogenesis and embryonic stem cell differentiation. In: Journal of Gene Medicine: 1st Annual Conference of the British Society for Gene Therapy. 2004, Oxford, UK: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
  • Lako M, Lindsay S, Cairns PM, Lincoln J, Armstrong L, Hole N. Involvement of Wnt genes in early haematopoiesis and identification of Wnt3 as a regulator of haematopoietic commitment. In: BLOOD. 2000.

• Editorials

  • Armstrong L, Lako M. Editorial: Methods and advances in induced pluripotent stem cells—ophthalmology. Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology 2023, 11, 1298956.
  • Lako M, Armstrong L. Engraftment's Holy Grail: is one signal enough?. Blood 2014, 124(20), 3035-3036.
  • Armstrong L, Lako M, Buckley N, Lappin TRJ, Murphy MJ, Nolta JA, Pittenger M, Stojkovic M. Our Top 10 Developments in Stem Cell Biology over the Last 30 Years. Stem Cells 2012, 30(1), 2-9.

• Reviews

  • Kurzawa-Akanbi M, Tzoumas N, Corral-Serrano JC, Guarascio R, Steel D, Cheetham ME, Armstrong L, Lako M. Pluripotent stem cell-derived models of retinal disease: Elucidating pathogenesis, evaluating novel treatments, and estimating toxicity. Progress in Retinal and Eye Research 2024, 100, 101248.
  • Yang C, Georgiou M, Atkinson R, Collin J, Al-Aama J, Nagaraja-Grellscheid S, Johnson C, Ali R, Armstrong L, Mozaffari-Jovin S, Lako M. Pre-mRNA Processing Factors and Retinitis Pigmentosa: RNA Splicing and Beyond. Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology 2021, 9, 700276.
  • Volarevic V, Markovic BS, Gazdic M, Volarevic A, Jovicic N, Arsenijevic N, Armstrong L, Djonov V, Lako M, Stojkovic M. Ethical and safety issues of stem cell-based therapy. International Journal of Medical Sciences 2018, 15(1), 36-45.
  • Adam S, Melguzo Sanchis D, El-Kamah D, Samarasinghe S, Alharti S, Armstrong L, Lako M. Concise review: Getting to the core of inherited bone marrow failures. Stem Cells 2017, 35(2), 284-298.
  • Nikolic A, Volarevic V, Armstrong L, Lako M, Stojkovic M. Primordial Germ Cells: Current Knowledge and Perspectives. Stem Cells International 2016.
  • Armstrong L, Al-Aama J, Stojkovic M, Lako M. Concise Review: The Epigenetic Contribution to Stem Cell Ageing: Can We Rejuvenate Our Older Cells?. Stem Cells 2014, 32(9), 2291-2298.
  • Atkinson SP, Lako M, Armstrong L. Potential for Pharmacological Manipulation of Human Embryonic Stem Cells. British Journal of Pharmacology 2013, 169(2), 269-289.
  • Tilgner K, Armstrong L, Lako M. Positive effect of human ESC conditioned medium on somatic cell reprogramming. Serbian Journal of Experimental and Clinical Research 2010, 11(1), 3-5.
  • Armstrong L, Lako M, Dean W, Stojkovic M. Epigenetic modification is central to genome reprogramming in somatic cell nuclear transfer. Stem Cells 2006, 24(4), 805-814.