Overview

Prof. Frayling has been working as a molecular geneticist for more than twenty years, the majority of that time with common human traits and diseases, particularly type 2 diabetes, obesity and related conditions. He obtained a personal chair as Professor of Human Genetics in 2007 and heads a team of 14 that has become internationally recognized as a world leader in the genetics of common traits and conditions. More information, including publications, is available on the team's website: http://www.t2diabetesgenes.org/

Outstanding contributions include the identification of the first genetic variants that influence adiposity (FTO, Science 2007) height (HMGA2, Nature Genetics 2007, Nature 2010) and birth weight (ADCY5, CDKAL1, Nature Genetics 2010) in the general population.

His training began as a Clinical Grade A trainee molecular geneticist in the Churchill Hospital, Oxford, where he learnt the basics of human genetics including linkage analyses in Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and Bayesian statistics in Cystic fibrosis risk calculations. He began his research career in 1996 in Exeter in the field of monogenic forms of diabetes. His work, as a PhD student with Prof Andrew Hattersley, played a key role in the characterization of the genes for maturity onset diabetes of the young. Key work prior to the genome wide association studies includes some of the first use of meta-analyses and multiple replication studies to determine the role of common variants in disease. These include the assessment of common variants in the KCNJ11 (E23K variant, Diabetes 2003) gene in type 2 diabetes risk and the identification of the first robust associations between common variants and birth weight (TCF7L2 and Glucokinase, AJHG 2006 & 2007).

Broad research specialisms

He and his colleagues focus on using genome wide approaches to identify genetic variation associated with common human disease and quantitative phenotypes and translating that knowledge into an improved understanding of disease biology.

They are members of several large collaborations that are continuing to identify more variants in the human genome that influence important human traits. They are translating these genetic associations into an improved understanding of the biological basis of disease and normal physiology. Examples include Mendelian Randomization studies that provide evidence for a role of sex-hormones in type 2 diabetes, links between fetal growth and type 2 diabetes, and, genetic variants that increase adiposity but lower risk of metabolic diseases.

Qualifications

• PhD, 1998

Links

Research group links

• Institute of Biomedical and Clinical Science
• Diabetes, cardiovascular risk and ageing

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Research

Research interests

Prof. Frayling gives an overview of research carried out by his interdisciplinary team at RILD (the Research, Innovation, Learning and Development Centre) in the video below, filmed at the Living Systems Institute Symposium 2016.  

Research projects

Grants/Funding

• European Research Council Advanced Award. 2013-2018. Euros 2.0 million. Understanding the causes of hyperglycaemia in the face of rising obesity.
• British Heart Foundation. Project grant Frayling PI. The genetics of favourable adiposity. August 2017 – July 2020. £234,000
• Diabetes UK, sponsor of Hanieh Yaghootkar, RD Lawrence Fellow. The genetics of healthy obesity.
• Medical Research Council CASE studentship Frayling PI with GSK. The role of common genetic variants for predicting the modulation of Cardio vascular outcomes by daprodustat. October 2017 – September 2021. £98,000 
• Medical Research Council project grant. Frayling Co-applicant with Michael Weedon, Andrew Wood. February 1st 2017 to January 31st 2019.Using genetics to understand sleep and chronotype and their relationship to obesity and type 2 diabetes.  £401,009
• Medical Research Council March 2015. Genetic and environmental influences on ageing well in the UK Biobank. MRC, £470,000, awarded March 2015 (Co-applicant) 
• Medical Research Council Experimenal Challenge September 2014-August 2018. Co-I with McCarthy, Rorsman, Gloyn, Karpe Oxford; Rutter Imperial College and Hattersley, Exeter. Defining the molecular and physiological mechanisms of pancreatic islet dysfunction which lead to type 2 diabetes Exeter. £580,000 to Exeter.
• Diabetes Research & Wellness foundation. Sponsor of Dr Jessica Tyrrell. Jan 2015 to December 2017. £172,389
• DiabetesUK 1st September 2012 – 31st August 2015. Using human genetics to understand the role of adiponectin in type 2 diabetes and insulin resistance. £139,000. PI.
• EU FP7. February 2012-2016. Genomic and Lifestyle predictors of foetal outcome relevant to diabetes and obesity and their relevance to prevention strategies in South Asian peoples. “GIFTS”. Work package leader. E110,00 to Exeter
• Diabetes UK 2011-2014 (awarded December 2010) Studentship. The role of sex hormones in type 2 diabetes. September 2010-August 2013.
• Wellcome Trust June 2010 – May 2014. Henry Wellcome Postdoctoral research fellowship, Sponsor to John Perry. Using next generation sequencing technology to identify rare genetic variants in type 2 diabetes. £250,000.
• EU Marie Curie programme Sept 2010 – Sept 2013. “Biology of Liver and Pancreas Development” (BOLD). Supervisor of one Early Stage Researcher
• EPSRC. 1 October 2011 - 31 March 2013 Ant Colony Optimisation for the Discovery of Gene-Gene Interactions in Genome-Wide Association Studies. £99,212. Co-applicant.
• Wellcome Trust October 2009-2012. Next generation disease association analysis: low pass sequencing and high density SNP genotyping for type 2 diabetes. (with Mark McCarthy, Peter Donnelly, Gil McVean, Andrew Hattersley, Mark Daly, Goncalo Abecasis, Michael Boehnke, Karen Molke, David Altshuler, Leif Groop). £156,000 to Exeter.
• NIDDK October 2009 - 2012. Identifying variants causal for Type 2 Diabetes in major human populations (with Mark McCarthy, Andrew Hattersley, 20 others). $56,000 to Exeter.
• Wellcome Trust 2010. The Wellcome Wolfson Centre for Translational Medicine. £6million from the Wellcome Trust. I was one of 12 principle investigators, and one of 3 who wrote the successful bid for this new building.

Research grants

• 2020 MRC
  MRC Multimorbidity. £98,000 consolidator award. One of 11 consolidator awards. GEMINI “Genetic Evaluation of Multimorbidity towards INdividualisation of treatment”
• 2020 EU-IMI
  EU-IMI. SOPHIA (Stratification of Obese Phenotypes to optimize future obesity therapy)
• 2020 CRUK
  Partner in £7.1 million programme award (Bristol led, Exeter, focusing on links between adiposity and cancer) International cancer epidemiology programme: Towards improved causal evidence and enhanced prediction of cancer risk and survival
• 2019 HDRUK
  Health Data science MSc. One of six national awards to set up a Health Data Science MSc programme.
• 2019 MRC
  MR/T002239/1 PI Using genetics to test the disease consequences of higher adiposity uncoupled from its adverse metabolic effects. £477000
• 2019 Research England
  Expanding excellence in England. £7million (co-I with 6 others)
• 2017 BHF Research Project
  Project grant Frayling PI. The genetics of favourable adiposity. August 2017 – July 2020. £234,000
• 2013 ERC Advanced Investigator Award
  European Research Council Advanced Award. Understanding the causes of hyperglycaemic in the face of rising obesity. Euros 2 million. PI.

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External Engagement and Impact

Awards

2012. Minkowski award, awarded annually by the European Association Study Diabetes to leading Diabetes researcher under the age of 45.

2012. Morgagni Silver medal award. Awarded bi-annually to leading European-based Diabetes researcher under the age of 40.

2006. Gave the RD Lawrence lecture at the annual Diabetes UK conference, which is an award given to the best diabetes researcher in the UK under the age of 40.

2007-2012 Held a Royal Society Wolfson career award.

September 2007. One of four recipients of the “Rising Star” symposium at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes.

2003 Won the European Association for diabetes (EASD) Albert Renold award that enabled him to work at the Centre National de genotypage (CNG) with Prof Mark Lathrop throughout 2004.

Committee/panel activities

Wellcome Trust Physiological Sciences funding committee October 2009 – April 2011.

Diabetes UK research grants committee (occasional).

BHF grants committee (2012-ongoing)

Consultant for Centre for Science and Policy. November 2009, Impact of direct to consumer genetic tests

Scientific Advisory Board. International Nutrition Group MRC LSHTM, Gambia. February 2010–2012.

European Association for the study of Diabetes (EASD) and Japanese Association of Diabetes, representative at “East-West forum” for diabetes research May 29th 2010.

Editorial responsibilities

Associate Editor and Board. Diabetelogia, 2007-2012

Invited lectures

September 2012 - Minkowski lecture EASD 2012, Berlin.

December 2011 - International Diabetes Federation.

April 2011 - Diabetes UK annual Profesional conference, London, UK.

July 2010 - 32nd International Society for Animal Genetics. Edinburgh, UK.

June 2010 - American Diabetes Association. Orlando, USA.

May 2010 - EASD & Japan Diabetes Society: East-West Diabetes Forum, Okayama, Japan.

April 2009 - European Association Association Diabetes. Bergen Norway.

March 2009 - Cologne Spring meeting, The variable genome. Cologne Germany.

October 2008, - Cologne Plant Biosciences meeting, Germany

September 2008 - KIGS/KIMS Japan National Conference. Kobe, Japan

June 2008 - American Diabetes Association, San Francisco, USA.

September 2007 - EASD “Rising Star Symposium” EASD, Amsterdam. Award

March 2006 - RD Lawrence lecture. Diabetes UK, Birmingham, UK. Award

December 2003.- National Diabetes symposium, Tokyo, Japan.

April 2003 - FEBS. San Diego, USA.

March 2003 - British Endocrine Society, Glasgow, UK.

June 2001 - Dutch Endocrinology Society meeting, Netherlands.

October 1999 - Fetal Origins of Adult Disease, Mahabalipurum, India.

Media Coverage

Radio and television interviews to explain the “fat gene” discovery of 2007.

Patient meetings, run by DiabetesUK, the UK’s largest diabetes charity,

“DNA testing: Science or Swindle?” - a public seminar hosted by the DANA centre at the Science Museum, London.

“Embarrassing Fat bodies” - we tested the number of “fat genes” carried by several overweight individuals from the same family and explained the results to the family and audience.

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Teaching

Undergraduate

He teach undergraduate medical students and undergraduate students on the Medical Sciences programmes. Teaching duties range from academic mentorship, plenary lectures and “Research in Action” Special study units, basic introduction to statistics in "Principles of medical research", research module lead on Exeter's Genomic Medicine MSc, to leading small group learning sessions with titles such as “the genetics of obesity” and “translating science into clinical practice: non-invasive prenatal testing”

Postgraduate

He has supervised 9 PhD students to completion and many MSc and undergraduate project students. His team specialize in taking BSc students from undergraduate computing courses and training them in genetics during MSc and PhD programmes.

Modules

2023/24

Information not currently available

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