Staff case study – Katie Hughes
08 Sep 2026 - Rosie de Laune
Katie joined ISIS in February 2026 as the Business Development Manager. Her role is to understand where ISIS can best help with industry problems and then reach out to businesses and build those collaborations.
Katie studied biochemical engineering at UCL, before completing her PhD at the University of Sheffield in stem cell research; developing bone grafts for cleft palette patients. She then moved to Keele University as a postdoctoral researcher in a similar field before leaving academia for industry and joining Adaptimmune: a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel cancer immunotherapy products for cancer patients.
While at Adaptimmune, Katie initially worked in the laboratory as part of the Allogeneic group, but then the programme required additional investment to continue and so she transitioned into more of a business development role. She had to learn to pitch her research to investors, “I really enjoyed taking complex science and communicating its impact,” she explains.
She used her knowledge and understanding of the science behind the group’s work and developed her communication skills to find different ways to talk about it when faced with different audiences.
“When I first started my career, I couldn’t imagine myself away from the laboratory bench,” she says. “But then when I experienced building other people’s excitement in our research, I realised I couldn’t go back!”
When I first started my career, I couldn’t imagine myself away from the laboratory bench, but then when I experienced building other people’s excitement in our research, I realised I couldn’t go back!
Katie Hughes
Without funding gained from outside investors, the stem cell research carried out by her group at Adaptimmune wouldn’t have progressed as far as it did. “These kinds of projects, especially in start-ups or small/medium-sized companies, need external funding to keep them going, which is something the scientists can forget,” she adds.
She has been applying this way of thinking at ISIS, joining the wider industry engagement group who aim to increase industrial engagement to support the excellent science carried out at the facility.
Since joining ISIS, Katie has focussed on understanding which techniques at ISIS are best placed for helping to solve problems for industry and then finding ways to reach businesses in those areas. “I needed a crash course in neutron science when I started,” she says, “but everyone has been extremely helpful in explaining what they do, and its relevance to industry.”
Outside of work, Katie loves to bake, especially developing her skills making birthday cakes for her two children. “I’m trying to learn how to knit, but our new kitten has set me back by taking too much of an interest!”
