On Friday 9 May 2025, research degree students and academic judges came together to showcase their presentations at Rising Scientist Day – an annual event designed to showcase the talent and hard work of our postgraduate research students. We found out what some of MDR’s participants had to say about their experience:
The day featured two parts: a PhD poster competition and a three-minute thesis competition which allowed students to win prizes based on their clarity and communication of scientific ideas.
For the poster competition, students presented their research and assessed the originality and quality of their research, poster content and design and presentation and communication skills. The judges then reviewed the posters and agreed on the winners.
For the three-minute thesis, judges scored the presentations out of ten using the same criteria to then determine the prize winners for first, second, and third place.
Beyond the prizes, Rising Scientist Day offered students a valuable platform to share their scientific ideas, engage with peers and experts, and sharpen their presentation skills. Here’s what some of the participants had to say about their experience:
Luke Hanna – Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction
I’m currently researching perianal fistulising Crohn’s disease (pfCD) — a particularly challenging form of inflammatory bowel disease. In pfCD, patients develop abnormal tunnels (fistulae) between the anorectum and the skin near the anus, which are often resistant to standard medical treatments for Crohn’s disease.
To better understand the immunopathophysiology of pfCD, I’ve been working with single-cell RNA sequencing of immune cells (CD45+) isolated directly from fistula tissue. Our data reveal strong evidence for upregulation of JAK-STAT signalling, alongside increased activity of JAK-dependent cytokines such as interferon-gamma and interleukin-22.
Importantly, our gene set enrichment analysis shows that these inflammatory pathways can be downregulated in vitro using upadacitinib, a JAK-1 inhibitor — highlighting its potential therapeutic relevance in pfCD.
It was a privilege presenting this work at the Rising Scientist Day and I want to thank my amazing team: my supervisors Prof Powell, Prof Hart, and Mr Tozer, as well as Dr Laura Constable and Dr Domenico Cozzetto, whose expertise in sequencing analysis has been key to this work.
Yuan Wang – Metabolism, Reproduction and Digestion
I was honoured to present my poster on how the gut microbiome modulates metabolic diseases through its metabolites. My research focuses on integrating metagenomic and metabolomic data to better understand host–microbiome interactions. It was an exciting opportunity to share my findings with peers and faculty, and I’m grateful to have received a prize for my work. As science continues to move toward interdisciplinary approaches, I was especially inspired by conversations with researchers from different backgrounds who also study the gut microbiome. Many thanks to the organizers, judges, and everyone involved — I truly enjoyed the experience.