Team Leader
Dr Paul Lu attended the University of Texas at Austin in 1996 and studied early development using frogs as a model organism.
History
Under the guidance of Dr. Gary Freeman, he obtained his Ph.D. degree in 2001.
Dr Lu moved to the University of California San Francisco in 2002 and worked as a postdoctoral fellow with Dr. Gail Martin. While in Gail’s group, he focused on understanding the molecular mechanisms involved in the development of mouse limbs.
During this period, Dr Lu developed a strong interest in understanding the development of the mammary gland, which has similar developmental characteristics to limbs. He started a collaboration with Dr. Zena Werb and in 2006 joined her group to focus on the role of the growth factor FGF in branching morphogenesis, a fundamental process essential for development of many vertebrate organs. Dr Lu was attracted by the mammary gland because it has unparalleled advantages to answer an array of basic developmental and cell biological questions, and understanding its development underpins mechanisms of breast cancer.
In 2010, Dr Lu moved to Manchester and became a group leader in the Breakthrough Breast Cancer Research Unit, which is located in the Paterson Institute for Cancer Research. He is also on the faculty in the Wellcome Trust Centre for Cell Matrix Research and Faculty of Life Sciences at the University of Manchester.
