Prof Mike Shipston

Personal profile

• Dean International, College of Medicine & Veterinary Medicine, University of Edinburgh
• Professor of Physiology, Edinburgh Medical School & Institute of Cardiovascular and Neuroscience Research, University of Edinburgh
• Wellcome Trust Advanced Training Fellow 1993-1996, University of Edinburgh and NIEHS, USA
• PhD, MRC Brain Metabolism Unit 1992
• BSc (1st Class Hons), University of St Andrews 1989

Research Theme

• Signalling, Homeostasis and Energy Balance
• Synapses, Circuits and Behaviour 

Research

My laboratory is particularly interested in posttranscriptional and posttranslational mechanisms of ion channel regulation and how these determine the dynamics of cellular excitability and systems level physiology in health and disease. A current focus is on regulation of the stress axis and the role of LRR-family accessory subunits in ion channel regulation.

The laboratory takes an Integrative Physiology approach examining from the level of single ion channel proteins, through control of cell and systems physiology to whole body function using a variety of multiomic, cellular, computational and imaging tools

Funding

SHENG-AI

Team members

• Heather McClafferty (Research Associate)
• Qiuting Qian (PhD student)
• Siwei Fei (PhD student)
• Fu Rao (PhD student)

Collaborations

• Peter Duncan, University of Edinburgh
• Paul Le Tissier, University of Edinburgh
• Nicola Romano, University of Edinburgh
• Mark Hollywood, Dundalk Institute of Technology (CHECK)
• Richard Bertram, Florida State University
• Ying Chi  ZJE Institute, Zhejiang University

Selected recent publications

1. Nair SV, Romanò N, Duncan PJ, Tissier PL, Bertram R, Shipston MJ. (2026) Erg currents support electrical bursting in murine anterior pituitary corticotrophs. J Physiol 604:4834-4850.
2. Al Kawadri Y, McClafferty H, Dudem S, Rabab KE, Thornbury KD, Sergeant GP, Hollywood MA & Shipston MJ. (2025) Distinct domains of LINGO1 control surface expression and biophysical properties of large conductance Ca2+- and voltage-activated potassium (BK) channels. J Biol Chem 301:110550
3. Duncan PJ, Romano N, Nair SV, McClafferty H, Le Tissier P & Shipston MJ. (2024) Long-term, dynamic remodelling of the corticotroph transcriptome and excitability after a period of chronic stress. Endocrinology 165(12):bqae139
4. Duncan PJ, Romanò N, Nair SV, Murray JF, Le Tissier P, Shipston MJ (2023) Sex differences in pituitary corticotroph excitability. Front Physiol. 14:1205162
5. Duncan PJ, Fazli M, Romanò N, Le Tissier P, Bertram R, Shipston MJ (2022) Chronic stress facilitates bursting electrical activity in pituitary corticotrophs.J Physiol. 600:313-332
6. Duncan PJ, McClafferty H, Nolan O, Ding Q, Homer NZM, Le Tissier P, Walker BR, Shipston MJ, Romanò N, Chambers TJG (2022) Corticotroph isolation from Pomc-eGFP mice reveals sustained transcriptional dysregulation characterising a mouse model of glucocorticoid-induced suppression of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis. J Neuroendocrinol. 34:e13165
7. Ma Y, Wei W, Gong L, li, C, Hong Y, WangX, Liang R, Shao Q, Liang Q, Huang W, Shipston MJ, Ouyang H. (2022) Biomacromolecule-based agent for high-precision light-based 3D hydrogel bioprinting. Cell Reports Physical Science 3:100985

Information for students:

Willingness to discuss research projects with undergraduate and postgraduate students: YES - please click here