Priority Area Leads:
Virology: Professor Jane McKeating, School of Immunity and Infection, j.a.mckeating@bham.ac.uk;
Bacteriology: Professor Ian Henderson, School of Immunity and Infection, i.r.henderson@bham.ac.uk; Professor Mark Pallen, School of Biosciences, m.pallen@bham.ac.uk
Birmingham ranks among the top half-dozen academic institutes in the UK in microbiology research, with expertise in both virology and bacteriology at the highest level. Our research spans a spectrum that runs from the fundamental biology of the microorganism to translational research focusing on pathogen-host interactions. Virology research encompasses virus-associated cancers, chronic viral infection and strategies to evade host immune responses and viral vaccines. Bacteriology research groups explore the processes of cell wall synthesis, protein secretion, antimicrobial action, pathogenesis and pathogenomics.
Birmingham has one of the UK's oldest, largest and most research-active medical schools and we are co-located with a brand-new "superhospital", the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. We also host the Birmingham Cancer Research UK Centre. Our campus location also provides excellent opportunities for local collaborations with other research disciplines and core facilities (e.g. biochemistry, mass spectrometry, immunology, structural biology, genomics, modelling). Recruitment and retention of talented students and staff are facilitated by our position at the heart of a dynamic, well connected, regenerated but affordable metropolis.The university benefits from teaching and research collaborations in local NHS Trusts (particularly the UHB Trust) and with the Health Protection Agency.
Virology
Virology research at Birmingham focuses on clinically relevant human disease. We use multidisciplinary approaches to study the molecular pathways underlying human disease and to enable the better design of novel therapies and vaccines. Our main areas of study include virus-associated cancers, chronic viral infection and strategies to evade host immune responses and viral vaccines. We have an extensive portfolio of translational and therapeutic initiatives on a number of medically important viruses including
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hepatitis C virus (McKeating, Balfe and Mutimer),
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human papillomavirus (Roberts, Woodman and Parish),
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Epstein-Barr virus (Rowe, Rickinson, Bell and Hislop),
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Kaposi Sarcoma-associated virus (Blackbourn and Hislop), Merkel cell polyomavirus (Blackbourn),
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Adenovirus (Turnell, Grand and Searle) and
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human cytomegalovirus (Moss).
Our success is evidenced by an outstanding publication record, a wide group of international collaborators and a diverse grant income. We are actively seeking to recruit new fellows in all of these research areas.
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Bacteriology
Bacteriology research spans a spectrum that runs from the fundamental biology of model organisms to translational research on pathogens of medical importance. Research strengths include
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cell envelope biosynthesis in organisms as diverse as mycobacteria, E. coli and pneumococci (Besra, Alderwick, Bhatt, Henderson, Lovering, Mitchell)
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bacterial protein secretion (Henderson, Pallen)
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molecular basis of microbial pathogenesis (May, Krachler, Henderson, Pallen)
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bacterial transcription and nucleoid structure (Busby, Grainger, Pallen)
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high-throughput sequencing / bacterial pathogenomics (Pallen, Loman Henderson).
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molecular basis of antimicrobial action / resistance (Piddock, Webber, Hawkey, Bavro).
Birmingham is at the forefront of efforts to understand biology’s premier model organism, Escherichia coli, with a particular focus on regulation of gene expression (Busby; Grainger; Pallen; Cole), plasmid biology (Thomas) and cell wall biosynthesis (Henderson, Mitchell, Lovering).
In 2012 the University established the Institute of Microbiology and Infection (IMI), bringing together and co-locating bacteriologists from the Colleges of Medical and Dental Sciences and Life and Environmental Sciences.
We particularly welcome applications from those whose research interests fall within the three over-riding themes of our research in translational bacteriology: drug discovery and research; vaccines and immunomodulatory agents; and genomic epidemiology and molecular diagnosis of bacterial infection.
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