Centre for Bioscience

I am Professor of Biology at the Open University (Department of Life Sciences). Our research involves investigation of how immune reactions develop in the CNS, the functions of blood-brain barrier and molecular controls on endothelial cell phenotype.

I have also had a long-standing interest in the use of multimedia for teaching, including a CD-ROM Immunology-Interactive (pub. Elsevier now in its 3rd edition), which was originally developed from a series of Immunology texts.

My teaching at the Open University and in London (KCH and LSHTM) is on Infectious Disease, Immunology, and Cell Biology. Most recently, I have been involved in the development of a virtual microscope to teach histology to medical laboratory scientists, and we have plans to develop a virtual stereo-dissecting microscope.

The three virtual laboratories which are made available as part of this OER project, were originally developed as components of a level-3 course Molecular and Cell Biology (S377), first presented in 2004. This course is still being presented annually. Each laboratory is supplemented with background reading material from the parent course, to provide a complete self-contained teaching package.

More than 1500 students have used the laboratories, which are designed primarily to teach experimental design and interpretation. We also use the SDS-PAGE virtual laboratory to train students in techniques, before they work in a real wet-laboratory at residential schools.

Taken together, the three laboratories and the associated reading will provide approximately 30 hours of student study-time.