Shane Herbert
- Current job title: Wellcome Trust Research Career Development Fellow in the Faculty of Life Sciences at the University of Manchester
- Current location: University of Manchester, UK
- Field of research: Regulation of blood vessel formation
- Education history: BSc Biochemistry, University of Leeds, (2002); Wellcome Trust Henry Wellcome Postdoctoral Fellowship, University of California San Francisco (UCSF), (2007); Wellcome Trust Research Career Development Fellow, University of Manchester, (2011)
- Wellcome Trust awards: Sir Henry Wellcome Fellowship; Research Career Development Fellowship
Tell us about your background.
I did my PhD at the University of Leeds, working on tissue culture systems. I was looking at endothelial cells - the building blocks of all blood vessels. I really wanted to take this research out of an in vitro context and put it into an in vivo one. This is why I applied for a Sir Henry Wellcome Fellowship. I looked for labs that were doing top-end research on blood vessel formation in vivo, and this took me to UCSF (University of California at San Francisco), where I worked on zebrafish as a model system. During this time we found a group of genes involved in blood vessel sprouting, which led me to apply for a Research Career Development Fellowship. I'm investigating these genes at the University of Manchester.
Why did you choose your career?
Research has always excited me; it's like having a hobby that you do every day.
How would you describe your job?
I run a small research lab of currently three people. Although I may not be a postdoc anymore, I still find plenty of time to be in the lab, which is great. However, a lot of my time is now committed to discussing experiments with lab members, shaping the direction of our research and other general aspects of lab management. I've also recently taken on a number of teaching commitments, such as lectures and tutorials.
In lay terms, what is your science about?
I'm interested in understanding the mechanisms that regulate new blood vessel formation. In a disease context, we really want to be able to block new blood vessel growth as it's important in the formation of tumours, for example. The formation of new blood vessels is what supports the growth and expansion of the tumour. The opposite is true of stroke, where promoting blood vessel growth is important. If you can understand the molecular mechanisms, you can potentially block or promote blood vessel growth.
What are you working on at the moment?
My short-term objective is to look at the role of some recently identified genes that regulate cell behaviour during new blood vessel sprouting. Cells are organised into either tip cells or stalk cells. We are looking at the genes that regulate what they will become.
What is the ultimate aim of your work?
I'm looking at the mechanisms that regulate cell type-specific gene expression. We want to be able to manipulate these pathways to control blood vessel development, either promoting or preventing it - particularly in an in vivo or disease context.
What are the difficulties and challenges of being a scientist, and how do you overcome them?
One of the difficulties is finding your research niche - something you can progress in and that doesn't have too much competition. That takes time. I've been lucky as I had four years for my Sir Henry Wellcome Fellowship working in the same area. I was able to develop a continuity and develop that niche. A future challenge will be acquiring tenure and further funding - to do that, you have to keep publishing at the highest level.
How has the Wellcome Trust award influenced your career decisions?
Both awards have allowed me to develop and establish an independent research career. This is particularly difficult, especially in the current economic climate, so I feel privileged to be able to further my scientific career.
What is the best part about doing science?
I love the flexibility; every day I could have a new idea and work on something different. It's also rewarding, especially as I'm ultimately working towards a therapeutic goal.
Who is your biggest role model?
My former PhD supervisor, Dr John Walker, he really taught me how to enjoy science by focusing on the positives, even when experiments aren't working. It's an important lesson.
Who is your favourite scientist in pop culture?
My favourite scientist is Dr Emmett Brown from 'Back to the Future' - ask any school kid what a scientist looks like, and they will draw a Doc-like character.
What music do you listen to at work?
I'm going through a David Bowie phase at the moment - his early stuff. In the lab here, it's really great, there's a Spotify account so we're constantly listening to random songs.
What are your hobbies?
I'm really into mountain biking and I play guitar.
If you were not a scientist, you would be…
Perhaps I would be an air crash investigator. Figuring out which bolt or faulty wire has brought down a multimillion-pound plane is incredibly challenging but in the end saves lives. Also, I'm unhealthily addicted to that 'Air Crash Investigation' television show on National Geographic!