Dr Rui Monteiro

Dr Rui Monteiro

Department of Cancer and Genomic Sciences
Associate Professor

Contact details

Telephone
+44 (0)121 414 7846
Email
r.monteiro@bham.ac.uk
Twitter
@LabMonteiro
View my research portal
Address
Department of Cancer and Genomic Sciences
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT
UK

The Monteiro Lab studies how haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) form during development, generate the blood lineages and are affected by disease. We investigate how haemogenic endothelial cells acquire a blood-forming fate, and how signalling pathways, transcriptional and epigenetic regulators, and cis-regulatory elements shape HSC development and function.

A key interest is how mutations in regulators of stem-cell function disrupt blood production and contribute to haematopoietic disorders, including bone marrow failure and leukaemia. Our work includes zebrafish models of GATA2 deficiency and studies of TGFβ signalling, Notch signalling and epigenetic regulation. We combine fundamental research into blood stem-cell and vascular development with disease-focused modelling.

We use in vitro cell-based and in vivo zebrafish models, combining genetic approaches and CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing with flow cytometry, imaging, and transcriptomic and genomic analyses, including single-cell approaches. By uncovering how blood stem cells develop and how their function is disrupted, we aim to improve understanding of haematopoietic disease and support the development of better disease models.

LinkedIn profile
Bluesky: @labmonteiro.bsky.social
The Monteiro Lab

Qualifications

  • Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, 2022
  • Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education, 2022
  • PhD in Developmental Biology, Hubrecht Institute, University of Utrecht, The Netherlands, 2005
  • MSc (equivalent 5-year degree) in Biochemistry, University of Lisbon, Portugal, 2000

Biography

Rui began his research career studying Notch target genes in chick embryos at the Instituto de Histologia e Embriologia, University of Lisbon, Portugal. After graduating in 2000, he pursued a PhD in Developmental Biology at the Hubrecht Institute, University of Utrecht, The Netherlands. He graduated in 2005, having studied BMP signalling in mouse and zebrafish.

In 2006, Rui joined Professor Roger Patient’s lab at the Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Oxford, to research developmental haematopoiesis. In 2014, he was awarded a BHF Intermediate Basic Science Research Fellowship and became a Principal Investigator at the Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford. There, he began investigating the role of TGFβ signalling in the emergence of blood stem cells during embryonic development. He became a University Research Lecturer in 2016.

Rui joined the University of Birmingham as a Birmingham Fellow in 2018, where he developed his work on zebrafish models of GATA2 deficiency. He became an Associate Professor in 2022 and continues to study GATA2 deficiency alongside the fundamental biology of blood stem-cell development in vertebrates.

Rui is Deputy Section Lead in the Department of Cancer and Genomic Sciences. Since 2026, he has also served as Vice-President of the Zebrafish Disease Models Society.

Teaching

MSc Genomic Medicine

  • Module Co-Lead, Assessment and Marking – LM Research Project
  • Module co-lead, Assessment and Marking  – LM Literature-based Project
  • Teaching delivery (Lecture) – LM Fundamental in Human Genetics and Genomics

MBChB

  • Cancer component Lead, Assessment and Marking – Foundations of Medical Science and Practice 4: Brain, Decision Making, Reproduction and Cancer
  • Teaching delivery (SGTs) – Foundations of Medical Science and Practice 4: Brain, Decision Making, Reproduction and Cancer
  • Teaching delivery – Research Taster, Y1
  • Teaching delivery (SGTs)– LC Medicine CBG

MSci Biomedical Sciences

  • Teaching delivery (Lectures) – LM Precision and Regenerative Medicine
  • Teaching delivery (Lecture) – LM Cell Communication in Health and Disease

Other

  • MSc Bioinformatics – Assessment and Marking
  • BMedSci Clinical Sciences – Assessment and Marking

Postgraduate supervision

Rui supervises undergraduate and postgraduate Master (MSc, MRes) and PhD students in the following areas of research:

• The role of transcriptional and epigenetic regulators in endothelial and haematopoietic development
• The role of endothelial and haemogenic-specific cis-regulatory elements in zebrafish
• Screening of modifiers of blood stem cell fitness, survival and differentiation
• In vivo modelling of the genetic basis of human disease in zebrafish

If you are interested in studying any of these subject areas please get in touch!

Research

Zebrafish are a powerful model for biomedical research, enabling the study of human disease and fundamental questions in development and regenerative medicine. Many genes and processes involved in angiogenesis and haematopoiesis are conserved across vertebrates, making zebrafish a valuable system for investigating blood and vascular development and disease.

The Monteiro Lab studies how external signals and internal transcriptional and epigenetic regulators guide cell-fate decisions, including how embryonic endothelial cells acquire a blood stem-cell (HSC) fate. We combine developmental biology with genetic approaches, including CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing, transient transgenesis, imaging, and single-cell transcriptional and epigenetic profiling. We also use zebrafish and in vitro cell models to investigate haematological disease.

Current projects

1. Extrinsic signalling in blood stem-cell development
We investigate how signals from a cell’s environment guide the emergence of haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) from haemogenic endothelium. A particular focus is Notch signalling and how it interacts with other developmental cues to influence cell fate and blood stem-cell formation.

2. Epigenetic regulation and cis-regulatory elements in cell-fate decisions
We study how epigenetic regulators and cis-regulatory elements, including enhancers, work together to control gene expression and cell fate in endothelial cells and HSCs. By examining these processes in vivo, we aim to understand how they contribute to embryonic blood and vascular development.

3. Models of bone marrow failure and haematological disease
We use zebrafish and in vitro cell models to investigate how genetic changes disrupt blood production and contribute to disorders such as bone marrow failure and leukaemia. This includes our zebrafish model of GATA2 deficiency, in which disease progression is linked to defects in DNA-damage repair pathways.

Previous projects

TGFβ signalling in blood stem-cell and vascular development
Our previous work investigated how TGFβ signalling contributes to the formation of haematopoietic stem cells and blood vessels during embryonic development. This research provided insight into the roles of TGFβ in blood and vascular biology and its potential relevance to haematological and cardiovascular disease.

Other activities

Professional Body Memberships

  • 2014 - Member of the British Society of Developmental Biology
  • 2015 - Member of the Biochemical Society
  • 2018 - Member of the Zebrafish Disease Models Society
  • 2018 - Member of the International Society of Experimental Hematology
  • 2017 - Member of the European Zebrafish Society 

Institutional Responsibilities

  • 2020 – present – Department of Cancer and Genomic Sciences Early Career Researcher lead, University of Birmingham, UK
  • 2020 – present – Member of the Cancer and Genomic Sciences Postgraduate Research Committee, University of Birmingham, UK
  • 2020 – present - Member of the Cancer and Genomic Sciences Executive Committee, University of Birmingham, UK. 

Reviewing and Editorial Activities

  • 2022 – present – Review Editor, Frontiers in Hematology
  • 2022 – 2023– Topic Editor, Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology
  • 2014 – present – Peer reviewer for Developmental Cell, Nature communications, Blood, Haematologica, Stem Cell Reports, Development, others.
  • 2014 – present – Grant reviewer for UK (MRC, BBSRC, KKLF, GOSH Charity, BHF, Leukaemia UK, Royal Society) and European research funders (KWF)

Publications

Recent publications

Article

Wragg, JW, Gray, EL, Monteiro, R, Morris, JR, Beggs, AD, Müller, F & Gatz, SA 2025, 'A dual readout embryonic zebrafish xenograft model of rhabdomyosarcoma to assess clinically relevant multi-receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors', Frontiers in Oncology, vol. 15, 1547202. https://doi.org/10.3389/fonc.2025.1547202

Brix, A, Belleri, L, Pezzotta, A, Pettinato, E, Mazzola, M, Zoccolillo, M, Marozzi, A, Monteiro, R, Bene, FD, Mortellaro, A & Pistocchi, A 2024, 'ADA2 regulates inflammation and hematopoietic stem cell emergence via the A2bR pathway in zebrafish', Communications Biology, vol. 7, no. 1, 615. https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-024-06286-3

Mahony, C & Monteiro, R 2024, 'Protocol for the analysis of hematopoietic lineages in the whole kidney marrow of adult zebrafish', STAR Protocols, vol. 5, no. 1, 102810. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xpro.2023.102810

Mahony, CB, Copper, L, Vrljicak, P, Noyvert, B, Constantinidou, C, Browne, S, Pan, Y, Palles, C, Ott, S, Higgs, MR & Monteiro, R 2023, 'Lineage skewing and genome instability underlie marrow failure in a zebrafish model of GATA2 deficiency', Cell Reports, vol. 42, no. 6, 112571. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2023.112571

Gioacchino, E, Koyunlar, C, Zink, J, de Looper, H, de Jong, M, Dobrzycki, T, Mahony, CB, Hoogenboezem, R, Bosch, D, van Strien, PMH, van Royen, ME, French, PJ, Bindels, E, Gussinklo, KJ, Monteiro, R, Touw, IP & de Pater, E 2021, 'Essential role for Gata2 in modulating lineage output from hematopoietic stem cells in zebrafish', Blood Advances, vol. 5, no. 13, pp. 2687-2700. https://doi.org/10.1182/bloodadvances.2020002993

Mahony, CB, Cacialli, P, Pasche, C, Monteiro, R, Savvides, SN & Bertrand, JY 2021, 'Hapln1b, a central organizer of the ECM, modulates kit signaling to control developmental hematopoiesis in zebrafish', Blood Advances, vol. 5, no. 23, pp. 4935–4948. https://doi.org/10.1182/bloodadvances.2020001524

Dobrzycki, T, Mahony, CB, Krecsmarik, M, Koyunlar, C, Rispoli, R, Peulen-Zink, J, Gussinklo, K, Fedlaoui, B, de Pater, E, Patient, R & Monteiro, R 2020, 'Deletion of a conserved Gata2 enhancer impairs haemogenic endothelium programming and adult zebrafish haematopoiesis', Communications Biology, vol. 3, no. 1, 71. https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-020-0798-3

Dobrzycki, T, Krecsmarik, M & Monteiro, R 2020, 'Genotyping and Quantification of In Situ Hybridization Staining in Zebrafish', Journal of Visualized Experiments , vol. 2020, no. 155, e59956. https://doi.org/10.3791/59956

Dobrzycki, T, Lalwani, M, Telfer, C, Monteiro, R & Patient, R 2020, 'The roles and controls of GATA factors in blood and cardiac development', IUBMB Life, vol. 72, no. 1, pp. 39-44. https://doi.org/10.1002/iub.2178

Bonkhofer, F, Rispoli, R, Pinheiro, P, Krecsmarik, M, Schneider-Swales, J, Tsang, IHC, Bruijn, MD, Monteiro, R, Peterkin, T & Patient, R 2019, 'Blood stem cell-forming haemogenic endothelium in zebrafish derives from arterial endothelium', Nature Communications, vol. 10, no. 1, 3577. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-11423-2

Comment/debate

Monteiro, R 2026, 'Balancing act: how Apelin tunes vascular and haemogenic identities', EMBO Reports. https://doi.org/10.1038/s44319-026-00696-6

Preprint

Mahony, CB, Noyvert, B, Vrljicak, P, Ott, S, Higgs, M & Monteiro, R 2021 'Gata2a maintains cebpa and npm1a in haematopoietic stem cells to sustain lineage differentiation and genome stability' bioRxiv. https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.07.19.452890

Review article

Panara, V, Monteiro, R & Koltowska, K 2022, 'Epigenetic regulation of endothelial cell lineages during zebrafish development—new insights from technical advances', Frontiers in cell and developmental biology, vol. 10, 891538. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcell.2022.891538

Thambyrajah, R & Monteiro, R 2022, 'In the spotlight: the role of TGFβ signalling in haematopoietic stem and progenitor cell emergence', Biochemical Society Transactions, vol. 50, no. 2, BST20210363, pp. 703-712. https://doi.org/10.1042/BST20210363

Working paper

Dobrzycki, T, Krecsmarik, M, Koyunlar, C, Rispoli, R, Peulen-Zink, J, Gussinklo, K, Pater, ED, Patient, R & Monteiro, R 2019 'A zebrafish model for MonoMAC syndrome identifies an earlier role for gata2 in haemogenic endothelium programming and generation of haematopoietic stem cells' bioRxiv, pp. 1-38. https://doi.org/10.1101/516203

View all publications in research portal

Languages and other information

Languages

  • Portuguese (native)
  • English (proficient)

Other information

Professional Body Memberships

  • 2026 – Vice-President, ZDMS
  • 2024 – present – Board of Directors, ZDMS
  • 2018 – Member, Zebrafish Disease Models Society
  • 2018 – Member, International Society of Experimental Hematology
  • 2017 – Member, European Zebrafish Society 
  • 2015 – Member, Biochemical Society
  • 2014 – Member, British Society of Developmental Biology

Institutional Responsibilities

  • 2024 – present – Deputy Section Lead (Gene Structure and Function section), DCGS
  • 2020 – 2024 – DCGS Early Career Researcher lead, University of Birmingham, UK
  • 2020 – present – Member of the DCGS Postgraduate Research Committee, University of Birmingham, UK
  • 2020 – present - Member of the Cancer and Genomic Sciences Executive Committee, University of Birmingham, UK

Reviewing and Editorial Activities

  • 2022 – present – Review Editor, Frontiers in Hematology
  • 2022 – 2023– Topic Editor, Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology
  • 2014 – present – Peer reviewer for Developmental Cell, Nature communications, Blood, Haematologica, Stem Cell Reports, Development, others
  • 2014 – present – Grant reviewer for UK (MRC, BBSRC, KKLF, GOSH Charity, BHF, Leukaemia UK, Royal Society) and European research funders (KWF, NWO, EU Commission)