The Lynch Lab is based in St John's Institute of Dermatology at King's College London (KCL) within the Guy's Campus. We are motivated by key challenges in Dermatological Surgery: Preventing skin cancer and minimizing scarring. We focus on the interactions between two of the most important cell types in the skin - fibroblasts and keratinocytes. To understand these interactions we integrate single-cell genomics, spatial transcriptomics, non-invasive skin imaging, AI and 3-dimensional organotypic cell culture models.
Skin cancer is the most common cancer in Humans and many patients face a lifelong cycle of developing new tumours. Our research addresses:
Scars can result from trauma, surgery or inflammatory processes such as acne. Our regenerative research aims to understand how skin heals—and how to make it heal better. We investigate:
Our ethos is translational: Clinical problem → Mechanistic insights → Therapeutic strategies → IP development → Clinical trial / Industry partnership
Using 3D culture models and single cell and spatial datasets to identify druggable pathways that reduce the incidence of basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma.
Combining OCT imaging with machine learning to distinguish BCC and cSCC from benign lesions (Bo Wan).
Building on the discovery of human fibroblast subpopulations to support the development of cell-based regenerative therapies for scars.
Can we use fractional lasers and vascular lasers to reduced the incidence of basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma?.
We are committed to translating our research from the bench to the bedside through strategic commercial collaborations and spin-out companies.
Dr. Lynch is a co-inventor on two patents covering the sorting and therapeutic use of human dermal fibroblast subpopulations. These patents form the core IP for Fibrodyne, a King’s College London spin-out co-founded with Professor Fiona Watt.
Fibrodyne secured £2M in seed investment to develop novel cell-based therapies, representing a direct translation of the lab's Regenerative Dermatology research.
The Lynch Lab has previously collaborated with Mitra Bio on a clinical trial aimed at diagnosing skin cancer through a non-invasive, molecular approach. This partnership demonstrates our ability to lead and sucessfully execute trials in collaboration with industry partners.
Consultant Dermatologist & Dermatological Surgeon, St John’s Institute of Dermatology
Dr Lynch is a fellowship-trained Mohs surgeon and clinician-scientist whose work spans skin cancer prevention, non-invasive diagnostics, fibroblast biology, and regenerative dermatology.
Project: Jeyrroy uses fibroblast–keratinocyte spheroid co-cultures and spatial transcriptomics to identify pathways that drive tumour-associated phenotypes in BCC and cSCC, aiming to develop risk-reducing therapies.
Luis is interested in understanding pathways that prevent the development of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) and is currently applying for funding to pursue a research fellowship.
Postdoctoral Researcher
PhD Student (Completed 2024)
Research Assistant
Below are selected highlights from the lab's work. A full list of publications is available below.
Ganier C, Mazin P, Herrera-Oropeza G, Du-Harpur X, Blakeley M, Gabriel J, Predeus AV, Cakir B, Prete M, Harun N, Darrigrand JF, Haiser A, Wyles S, Shaw T, Teichmann SA, Haniffa M, Watt FM, Lynch MD.
Multiscale spatial mapping of cell populations across anatomical sites in healthy human skin and basal cell carcinoma.
PNAS, 2024.
Pubmed ID: 38165934
This senior-author paper from the Lynch Lab provides unprecedented insight into the cellular architecture of healthy skin and the basal cell carcinoma (BCC) microenvironment. The work creates a multiscale spatial atlas that directly informs the lab's novel cancer prevention strategies.
Reynolds G, Vegh P, Fletcher J,... Lynch MD,...Teichmann S, Watt F, Haniffa M.
Developmental cell programs are co-opted in inflammatory skin disease.
Science, 2021.
Pubmed ID: 33479125
As part of the Human Cell Atlas collaboration, this paper describes the diverse cell types present in healthy skin, eczema, and psoriasis. This foundational atlas serves as a springboard for the Lynch Lab's current work examining different anatomical sites, apatial transcriptomics, and skin cancer.
Du-Harpur X, Arthurs C, Ganier C, Woolf RT, Laftah Z, Lakhan, MK, Salam A, Wan B, Watt FM, Luscombe NM, Lynch MD.
Clinically-relevant vulnerabilities of deep machine learning systems for skin cancer diagnosis.
Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 2020. Pubmed ID: 32931808
Led by the Lynch Lab, this project was the first to show that simple variations in image color balance and rotation can dramatically affect the accuracy of deep learning models for skin cancer diagnosis, highlighting clinically-relevant vulnerabilities in AI-based diagnostic systems.
Philippeos C, Telerman S, Oulès B, Pisco A, Shaw T, Elgueta R, Lombardi G, Driskell R, Soldin M, Lynch MD and Watt FM (joint senior author).
Spatial and single-cell transcriptional profiling identifies functionally distinct human dermal fibroblast subpopulations.
Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 2018. Pubmed ID: 29391249
In this joint senior-author paper, the lab contributed key single-cell sequencing and apatial transcriptomic experiments. The study successfully identified multiple, functionally distinct fibroblast subpopulations in human skin, creating a new and detailed census of fibroblast heterogeneity.
Lynch MD, Lynch CNS, Craythorne E, Liakath-Ali K, Mallipeddi R, Barker JN and Watt FM.
Spatial constraints govern competition of mutant clones in human epidermis.
Nature Communications, 2017. Pubmed ID: 29066762
In this foundational first-author paper, Dr. Lynch demonstrated that sun-exposed, non-cancerous skin contains a high burden of expanded mutant clones. The work revealed that apatial constraints are a major factor governing the competition and selection of these clones within the human epidermis.
We welcome applications from PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, clinician-scientists, research assistants, computational biologists, and engineers.
We offer:
To enquire about positions, please send a CV and brief summary of your interests via the contact information below.
