Current Position

Education

• PGCertHE, University of Sussex, 2024                                                                                                                  
• PhD in Molecular Biology, University of Leeds (2018)                                                                                              
• BSc (Hons) in Medical Biochemistry (Industry), University of Leeds (2014) 

Research Interests

- Identification of novel oncogenic mechanisms in HPV+ cervical cancer
- Understanding the manipulation of signalling networks and protein ubiquitination by HPV oncoproteins
- Investigation of the mechanisms of therapeutic resistance in HPV- HNSCC
- Exploring the role of deubiquitinating enzymes in cancer biology
 

Biography

Dr Ethan L Morgan studied for a BSc (Hons) in Medical Biochemistry at the University of Leeds and remained at Leeds for his PhD project in the lab of Professor Andrew Macdonald, where he studied the role of STAT3 signalling during the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) life cycle and during HPV-associated cervical cancer. This work resulted in four first author publications in high impact journals, several co-authored publications and finishing as the Virology Division winner and 3rd placed finalist in the Microbiology Society Young Microbiologist of the Year competition. Following this, he was awarded a Wellcome Trust ISSF fellowship to study deubiquitinating enzymes in cervical cancer. After completion of the fellowship in January 2020, Dr Morgan joined the lab of Dr Carter Van Waes in the Tumor Biology Section of NIDCD, NIH, where he studied the role of DNA damage and protein ubiquitination in the regulation of NFκB signalling in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC).     

In January 2023, Dr Morgan joined the University of Sussex to establish his independent career. His group focused on the role of HPV in manipulating the host cell to drive oncogenesis, with a particular in protein ubiquitination and signalling networks. The groups ultimate aim is to identify novel targets for therapeutic intervention, reducing the burden of HPV-associated cancers. In November 2025, Dr Morgan moved to The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics as an Associate Senior Scientist/Group Head to continue working on HPV-associated cancers.

Dr Morgan is an author on over 25 peer-reviewed articles with over 1300 citations and a h index of 27. He has given several invited conference talks and seminars and was awarded the Early Career Recognition Award from the International Papillomavirus Society in November 2024. He sits on the Virology Division committee for the Microbiology Society (UK) and is an Editorial Board Member for BMC Biology.