Developing medicines from venom

Kirstie Rawson is a PhD student researching the structure, function and toxicity of antimicrobial peptides from venoms.

She successfully applied for a fully-funded PhD scholarship in 2015.

'I studied my undergraduate degree at Hallam, and after a few years of working in the NHS I decided I wished to pursue a career in research,' she says.

'I chose to come back to Sheffield Hallam due to the facilities and support offered by the Biomolecular Sciences Research Centre.

'The focus of my PhD research is to develop the understanding of the structure, function and toxicity of antimicrobial peptides from venoms. I will be modifying a selection of these peptides with the aim of increasing the antimicrobial activity and decreasing the toxicity to the host in order to make these molecules more appealing as future therapeutics.'