Laboratory of Quantitative BiologyEsposito's group

Funding

Research support and funder acknowledgements

Our work in quantitative biology, cancer signalling, live-cell biochemistry, biophotonics, and space biology has been supported by European, UK, charitable, institutional, and international funders.

Funders

European Union Horizon Europe logoEuropean Union Horizon EuropeHiLIGHT consortium and MSCA doctoral network participationScience and Technology Facilities Council logoScience and Technology Facilities CouncilProof-of-concept award for microgravity and organ-on-chip workCancer Research UK logoCancer Research UKMulti-disciplinary project award and cancer centre supportMedical Research Council logoMedical Research CouncilCore, equipment, DTA, and DTP supportEngineering and Physical Sciences Research Council logoEngineering and Physical Sciences Research CouncilLife Science Interface fellowship and infrastructure supportBrunel University of London logoBrunel University of LondonInternal interdisciplinary and enterprise awardsZhejiang University logoZhejiang UniversityGlobal partnership collaboration

Current and recent awards

2023-2027PI

EU Horizon Europe

HiLIGHT: Highly Integrated Versatile Laser Source enabling two-photon excitation in digital diagnostics and biomedical research

~€4M consortium; ~£600k to the group
2022-2026Consortium participant

EU Horizon MSCA Doctoral Network

Doctoral Network for a Shared Excellence of Fluorescent Lifetime Imaging Microscopy in Biomedical Applications

Project 101073507
2025Co-I

STFC UKRI Proof-of-Concept

Harnessing Microgravity and Organ-on-a-Chip Technology for Advanced Breast Cancer Research

~£50k
2023PI

Brunel Research Interdisciplinary Labs

Xells: a ground-based infrastructure to study cells and tissue biochemistry in simulated microgravity

~£3.5k plus associated capital investment
2023PI

Brunel Research Initiative and Enterprise Fund

EpiX: spatio-temporal epigenetics in live organ cultures

~£15k

Previous major awards

2020-2021Co-PI

CRUK Cancer Centre pump-priming

KRAS-dependent reprogramming of tumour-stromal heterogeneity in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

~£50k
2020-2022Collaborator

Zhejiang University Global Partnership Fund

Dynamic ERK signaling and early embryonic stem cell fate determination

Partnership award
2019-2022PI

CRUK Multi-Disciplinary Project Award

OncoLive: optogenetic control and measurement of oncogenic mutations and signalling in organoid cultures

~£490k
2021-2022PI

MRC Cancer Unit core grant

Programme 7, Oncogenic signalling and heterogeneity in cancer evolution

MC_UU_12022/8
2016-2020Named scientist

MRC Cancer Unit core grant

Therapeutic target discovery and validation programme and the Systems Microscopy Initiative

MC_UU_12022/8
2013PI

MRC Foundation

Mid-Career Equipment Grant: Microscopy and Optogenetics

£200k
2012Award holder

MRC Centennial Award

Inducible acute oncogene activation in the living cell by optogenetics

~£10k
2009-2011Fellow

EPSRC Life Science Interface Fellowship

Multiplexed measurement of molecular interactions using hyper-spectral imaging and multi-parametric detection

~£410k

Funded postgraduate research

  • 2024- Executive Dean's PhD studentship: G-track, lineage tracing of blood stem cell development in embryo-like gastruloids.
  • 2020-2024 MRC DTA: oncogene-induced reprogramming of heterotypic cellular interactions.
  • 2018-2022 MRC DTA: investigating metabolic heterogeneity in cancer.
  • 2017-2020 MRC DTP: mapping changes in cellular information transfer underlying cell-fate decisions triggered by oncogenes.
  • 2016-2020 MRC DTA: oncogene-induced remodelling of cellular networks using optogenetics and next-generation microscopy.
  • 2013-2017 CRUK Cambridge Cancer Centre: systems approaches to oncogene-induced remodelling of cellular networks.
  • 2013-2017 Gates Cambridge Scholarship: mapping oncogene-driven cell signalling with quantitative biochemical imaging and optogenetics.