Associate Professor, Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences
My research is currently focused on the human bacterial pathogen Helicobacter pylori, which is the main cause of stomach ulcers and gastric cancer. I am studying mucosal immunity and inflammation,… read more
My research is currently focused on the human bacterial pathogen Helicobacter pylori, which is the main cause of stomach ulcers and gastric cancer. I am studying mucosal immunity and inflammation, T-cell subset responses (particularly regulatory T-cells and Th17), development of novel diagnostics, and gastric carcinogenesis. I am interested in how virulence factors (such as the cag pathogenicity island and duodenal ulcer promoting gene A) interact with host cells to provoke a more severe inflammatory response. Apart from associations with gastro-duodenal disease I am interested in the hygiene hypothesis and am exploring the link between some infections (H. pylori and gastro-intestinal parasites) and a reduced risk of allergy and autoimmune disease. Most of our work involves isolating and characterizing immune cells from human gastric tissues and peripheral blood.
Current main projects include
The techniques in use in the laboratory include
Neisseria meningitidis: Immunity and inflammation, vaccines
Recombinant lactic acid bacteria as vaccine vectors
Mucosal immunology and oral vaccines
DNA vaccines
Immunity to gastrointestinal helminth parasites Trichinella spiralis & Trichuris muris
Host-pathogen interactions.
Diagnostics
The University of Nottingham E Floor, West Block, Queen's Medical Centre Nottingham, NG7 2UH
telephone: +44 (0) 115 82 31090 email:nddcbru@nottingham.ac.uk