Sarah Woolner

Sarah Woolner is a Research Fellow in the Division of Cell Matrix Biology & Regenerative Medicine at the University of Manchester, where she established her own laboratory after receiving a prestigious Wellcome Trust/Royal Society Sir Henry Dale Fellowship in July 2012. Her academic journey began with a Biological Sciences degree from the University of Edinburgh (2000), followed by a PhD at UCL under Paul Martin, a postdoctoral position at the University of Wisconsin-Madison with Bill Bement (2006), and subsequent research at the University of Manchester with Nancy Papalopulu.

Dr. Woolner's research centers on understanding how cell division orientation shapes tissues and determines cell fate at the cellular level. Her laboratory investigates the mechanisms by which cells read their external environment to orient division, with particular focus on how extracellular matrix cues influence mitotic spindle positioning. Her work addresses fundamental questions about how molecular forces are balanced inside cells to position the mitotic spindle and how these internal mechanisms coordinate with the external cellular environment across tissues.

Her research spans Cell Biology, Developmental Biology, and Biophysics, with significant implications for understanding embryonic development failures and cancer progression. Analysis of her recent publications reveals a strong focus on tissue mechanics, cell division orientation, and the biophysical aspects of cellular organization.

Dr. Woolner's scientific contributions have been recognized through several prestigious fellowships including the Beit Memorial Fellowship, Stepping Stones Fellowship, and the Wellcome Trust/Royal Society Sir Henry Dale Fellowship. She has supervised 6 research students and is currently involved in multiple research projects including 'Laser capture dissection for spatially-resolved -omics analysis' (2024-2025) and 'Multi-modal high throughput live cell system to track biomechanical properties' (2023-2024), where she serves as a Co-Investigator.