Ray Playford Staff Profile Photo

Professor Raymond Playford

Professor of Molecular Medicine
School of Medicine and Biosciences
Ray.playford@uwl.ac.uk

Raymond Playford is a clinician scientist who serves as Professor of Molecular Medicine at UWL. He is also Chairman of the Herbal Medicines Advisory Committee of the MHRA, member of the Policy and Education Advisory Committee of the General Osteopathy Council, and a visiting Consultant Gastroenterologist at St Georges NHS Trust.

Prof. Playford received a medical degree from St. Bartholomew's Medical School and obtained both a PhD and a DSc.

Previous posts include Senior Deputy Vice Chancellor at Plymouth University, Faculty Dean University of Tasmania, Vice Principal Queen Mary, University of London and medical advisor to the Government sponsored Healthcare UK. He has served in executive and non-executive roles for several companies in the UK and in USA. He has published over 150 original scientific and clinical papers and received several awards for research including the British Society of Gastroenterology Sir Francis Avery Jones Research Medal.

  • Qualifications

    • PhD (London),
    • DSc (Leicester),
    • BSc (London),
    • MB, BS (London) St Bartholomew’s Medical School, London,
    • Certificate in NHS Management (OU)

  • Memberships

    Fellow of Academy Medical Science, Royal College of Physicians
    Royal College of Pathologists, Royal Society of Arts, British
    Society of Gastroenterology & Principal fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA)

Research

  • Research and publications

    Book Chapters

    SJ Middleton & Playford RJ (2020).  Bacterial Overgrowth of the small intestine & Effects of massive  small bowel resection. Oxford Textbook of Medicine.  Editors JD Firth, CP Conlon CP & TM Cox. Oxford University Press. 6th edition, 15.10.2 & 15.10.7. 

    Full Papers

    Berlanga-Acosta J, Fernández-Mayola M, Mendoza-Marí Y, García-Ojalvo A, Playford RJ., & Guillen-Nieto G. (2021). Intralesional Infiltrations of Cell-Free Filtrates Derived from Human Diabetic Tissues Delay the Healing Process and Recreate Diabetes Histopathological Changes in Healthy Rats. Frontiers in Clinical Diabetes and Healthcare, 2; DOI=10.3389/fcdhc.2021.617741 

    Playford RJ, Cattell M, & Marchbank T.  (2020). Marked variability in bioactivity between commercially available bovine colostrum for human use; implications for clinical trials. PLoS One, 15:e02347192020 

    Marchbank T, & Playford RJ (2018). Trefoil factor family peptides enhance cell migration by increasing cellular osmotic permeability and aquaporin 3 levels. FASEB Journal,32:1017–1024 

    Marchbank T, Davison G, Oakes JR, Ghatei MA, Patterson M, Moyer MP, & Playford RJ. (2011) The nutraceutical bovine colostrum truncates the increase in gut permeability caused by heavy exercise in athletes. American Journal of Physiology (Gastrointestinal Liver Physiology), 300:G477-84. 

    van Heel DA, Ghosh S, Butler M, Hunt KA, Lundberg AM, Ahmad T, McGovern DP, Onnie C, Negoro K, Goldthorpe S, Foxwell BM, Mathew CG, Forbes A, Jewell DP, & Playford RJ. (2005). Muramyl dipeptide and toll-like receptor sensitivity in NOD2-associated Crohn's disease. Lancet. 365(9473):1794-6. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(05)66582-8. PMID: 15910952 

    Sinha A, Nightingale JM, West KP, Berlanga-Acosta J, & Playford RJ. (2003). Epidermal growth factor (EGF) enemas treat ulcerative colitis. New England Journal of Medicine, 349:350-7. 

    Beck F, Chawengsaksophak K, Waring P, Playford RJ, & Furness JB. (1999). Reprogramming of intestinal differentiation and intercalary regeneration in Cdx2 mutant mice.   Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, 96:7318-7323 

    Playford RJ, Marchbank T, Goodlad RA, Chinery RA, Poulsom R, Hanby AM, & Wright NA. (1996)   Transgenic mice which overexpress the human trefoil peptide, pS2, have an increased resistance to intestinal damage. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science; 93:2137-2142. 

    Playford RJ, Marchbank T, Calam J, Hansen FH. (1995). EGF is digested to smaller, less active, forms in acidic gastric juice. Gastroenterology 108:92-101. 

    Playford RJ, Watanaba P, Woodman AC, Deprez PH, & Calam J. (1993).  Effect of luminal growth factor preservation on intestinal growth. Lancet, 341: 843-848. 

    Playford RJ, Domin J, Beecham J, Parmar KI, Tatemoto K, Bloom SR, & Calam J.  (1990) Peptide YY : A natural defence against diarrhoea. Lancet, 335:1555-7

    A full list of publications can be found via the PubMed website.

Courses taught on