Duncan Bassett is a Professor of Endocrinology at Imperial College and is a Consultant Physician at the Academic Health Sciences Centre specialising in Metabolic Bone Disease. He obtained a BA in Pathology from Cambridge University and a BM BCh from Oxford University. He undertook his research training at the Medical Research Council Clinical Sciences Centre, initially as an MRC Clinical Training Fellow and subsequently as MRC Clinician Scientist. He completed his PhD at Imperial College in 2000, was appointed Professor in 2013 and a Wellcome Trust Investigator in 2016.

Professor Bassett is a Principal Investigator in the Molecular Endocrinology Laboratory in the Department of Medicine at the Hammersmith Hospital. His current research is focused on understanding the fundamental cellular and molecular mechanisms that underlie skeletal development, maintenance and repair and their dysregulation in chronic degenerative diseases such as osteoporosis and osteoarthritis.

His investigation of the molecular basis of bone and cartilage disease have resulted in the identification of new genetic determinants of bone mass and strength and resulted in Wellcome Trust Strategic Award funding.

Professor Bassett also has longstanding interest in thyroid hormone action and particularly its role in the developing and adult skeleton. His studies have clarified the complex relationship between central and peripheral thyroid status and identified a critical role for local thyroid hormone metabolism in bone and cartilage. These studies have been the result of longstanding and productive collaborations with many of the worlds leading thyroid hormone researchers and have recently resulted in Horizon 2020 funding and a Wellcome Trust Investigator Award.

The Molecular Endocrinology Laboratory is an international leader in skeletal phenotyping and thyroid hormone action and Professor Bassett frequently receives invitations to speak at international scientific conferences in Europe, America and Japan. Members of the Molecular Endocrinology Group have been awarded 26 research prizes in the last 10 years.

He is currently Associate Editor of The Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, President Elect of The Bone Research Society and is a member of the Wellcome Trust Discovery Awards Panel and the Programme Committee of International Workshop on Resistance to Thyroid Hormone and Thyroid Hormone Action.

Selected Publications
SE Youlten, JP Kemp, JG Logan, EJ Ghirardello, CM Sergio, MRG Dack, SE Guilfoyle, VD Leitch, Natalie C Butterfield, D Komla-Ebri, RC Chai, AP Corr, JT Smith, JA Morris, MM McDonald, JMW Quinn, AR McGlade, N Bartonicek, MJansson, K Hatzikotoulas, MD Irving, A Beleza-Meireles, F Rivadeneira, E Duncan, JB Richards, DJ Adams, CJ Lelliott, R Brink, TG Phan, JA Eisman, DM Evans, E Zeggini, PA Baldock, JHD Bassett, GR Williams, PI Croucher (2021) Osteocyte transcriptome mapping identifies a molecular landscape controlling skeletal homeostasis and susceptibility to skeletal disease. Nature Communications 12(1):2444 (PMID: 33953184)

MM. McDonald, WH Khoo, PY Ng, W Kyaw, K Pathmanandavel, A. Grootveld, I Moran, D Butt, A Nguyen, S Warren, M Biro, NC. Butterfield, SE Guilfoyle, JG Logan, MRG Dack, HF Dewhurst, D Komla_Ebri, Y Li, Y Xiao, N Byrne, RL Terry, ST Mohanty, MK Simic, R Chai, JMW Quinn, SE. Youlten, P Thatcher, J Zamerli, JA Pettitt, D Abi-Hanna, R Jain, W Weninger, M Lundberg, S Sun, H Ebetino, P Timpson, WM Lee, PA Baldock, MJ Rogers, R Brink, GR Williams, JHD Bassett, JP. Kemp, NJ. Pavlos, PI Croucher, TG Phan (2021) Osteoclasts recycle via osteomorphs during RANKL-stimulated bone resorption, Cell 184:1330-1347 (PMID: 33636130)

J Steinberg, L Southam, NC Butterfield, TI Roumeliotis, A Fontalis, MJ Clark, RL Jayasuriya, D Swift, KM Shah, KF Curry, RA Brooks, AW McCaskie, CJ. Lelliott, JS Choudhary, JHD Bassett, GR Williams, JM Wilkinson, E Zeggini (2021) A molecular quantitative trait locus map for osteoarthritis. Nature Communication 12(1):1309 (PMID: 33637762)

NC Butterfield, KF Curry, J Steinberg, H Dewhurst, D Komla-Ebri, NS Mannan, A-T Adoum, VD Leitch, JG Logan, JA. Waung, E Ghirardello, L Southam, SE Youlten, EA McAninch, VE Vancollie, F Kussy, JK. White, CJ Lelliott, DJ Adams, R Jacques, AC Bianco, A Boyde, E Zeggini, PI Croucher, GR Williams and JHD Bassett (2021) Accelerating functional gene discovery in osteoarthritis. Nature Communications 12(1):467 (PMID: 33473114)

S Beck-Cormier, CJ Lelliott, JG Logan, DT Lafont, L Merametdjiana, VD Leitch, NC Butterfield, HJ Protheroe, PI Croucher, PA Baldock, A Gaultier-Lintia, Y Maugars, G Nicolas, C Banse, S Normant, N Magne, E Gérardin, Nina Bon, S Sourice, J Guicheux, L Beck, GR. Williams, JHD Bassett (2019) Slc20a2, encoding the phosphate transporter PiT2, is a novel genetic determinant of bone quality and strength. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research 34:1101-1114 (PMID: 30721528)

JA. Morris, JP Kemp, SE. Youlten, JG. Logan, R Chai, NA. Vulpescu, V Forgetta, A Kleinman, S Mohanty, CM Sergio, J Quinn, C Medina-Gomez, K Trajanoska, EJ Ghirardello, NC Butterfield, KF Curry, VD Leitch, PC Sparkes, L Laurent, A-T Adoum, NS Mannan, D Komla-Ebri, AS Pollard, HF Dewhurst, S Kaptoge, P Baldock, C Cooper, J Reeve, E Ntzani, E Evangelou, C Ohlsson, D Karasik, F Rivadeneira, CL. Ackert-Bicknell, DP Kiel, JH. Tobias, CL Gregson, NC Harvey, DJ Adams, CJ Lelliott, DA Hinds, Y-H Hsu, MT Maurano, PI Croucher, GR Williams, JHD Bassett, DM Evans, JB Richards (2019) An atlas of genetic influences on osteoporosis in humans and mice. Nature Genetics 51:258-266 (PMID: 30598549)

JP Kemp, JA Morris, C Medina-Gomez, V Forgetta, NM Warrington, SE Youlten, J Zheng, CL Gregson, E Grundberg, Ka Trajanoska, JG Logan, AS Pollard, PC Sparks, EJ Ghirardello, R Allen, VD Leitch, NC Butterfield, DSK Komla-Ebri, A-T Adoum, KF Curry, JK White, F Kussy, K Greenlaw, CJ Xu, NC Harvey, C Cooper, DJ Adams, CMT Greenwood, MT Maurano, S Kaptoge, F Rivadeneira, JH Tobias, PI Croucher, CL Ackert-Bicknell, JHD Bassett, GR Williams, JB Richards, DM Evans. (2017) Identification of 153 new loci associated with heel bone mineral density and functional involvement of GPC6 in osteoporosis. Nature Genetics 49:1468-1475 (PMID: 28869591)

GS Hönes, H Rakov H, JG Logan, XH Liao, E Werbenko, AS Pollard, E Rijntjes, S Latteyer, K Engels K, KH Strucksberg, D Zwanziger, L Klein-Hitpass, J Köhrle, JHD Bassett, GR Williams, S Refetoff, D Führer, LC Moeller (2017) Noncanonical thyroid hormone signaling mediates cardiometabolic effects in vivo. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 114:E11323-E11332 (PMID: 29229863)

JHD Bassett, GR Williams (2016) Role of thyroid hormones in skeletal development and bone maintenance. Endocrine Reviews 37:135-187 (PMID: 26862888)

JHD Bassett, A Gogakos, JK White, H Evans, RM Jacques, A van der Spek, , R Ramirez-Solis, E Ryder, D Sunter, A Boyde, MJ Campbell, PI Croucher, GR Williams (2012) Rapid-throughput skeletal phenotyping of 100 knockout mice identifies 9 new genes that determine bone strength. PLoS Genetics 8(8) e1002858 (PMID:22876197)

JHD Bassett, A. Boyde, PGT Howell, RH Bassett, TM Galliford, M Archanco, H Evans, MA Lawson, P Croucher, D St.Germain, VA Galton, GR Williams (2010) Optimal bone mineralization and strength requires the type 2 iodothyronine deiodinase in osteoblasts. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 107:7604-7609 (PMID: 20368437)