Researcher Spotlight: Prof. Robert Carlisle

Who are you?

Robert Carlisle and Associate Professor in the Institute for Biomedical Engineering (IBME) at the University of Oxford, where I have worked since 2012 on drug formulation and delivery projects.

What’s your background?

I have a BSc in Biochemistry, MSc in Toxicology and PhD in Gene Delivery. I am the Chair of the IBME panel, represent the panel on the Graduate Studies committee. I was the Associate Director of the CDT in Synthetic Biology from 2015-2021 and have been the Course Director of the MSc in nanotechnology for Medicine and Health care since 2016.

What are your current research interests?

I have projects on the delivery of therapeutics for anti-microbial activity, for anti-cancer activity and for vaccination.

What’s your interest in AMR

AMR is a huge and prescient problem for which our current approaches are running out of road. New ways to formulate and deliver existing drugs more effectively and the application of new treatment modalities will be essential in attempting to address the problem. Mechanical approaches to biofilm disruption offer an attractive solution as they may be more ‘resistance-proof’.

And what’s your role in the Beyond Antibiotics team?

I am a Co-PI supervising projects on delivery of drugs into and throughout biofilm. There is a particular emphasis on more advanced biologic therapies, for example bacteriophage, and on the development and application of advanced cavitation nuclei which can instigate both mechanical (i.e., cavitation) and enzymatic disruption of bacterial biofilms.

Any interesting hobbies or interests outside of the lab?

I spend most of my weekend managing a Girls U13 and a Boys U15 football team.