Professor Claudio Mauro MSc PhD FHEA

• Abilitazione Scientifica Nazionale (ASN) a Professore di I Fascia (Italy), 2023
• Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA, UK), 2016
• PhD in Molecular Oncology and Endocrinology, University of Naples Federico II (Italy), 2007
• Medical Biotechnology Degree (combined 5 year BSc and MSc programme, 1st class Honours), University of Naples Federico II (Italy), 2002
• Classical Humanities High School Diploma, Virgilio Institute, Lecce (Italy), 1997

Professor Mauro graduated from the University of Naples “Federico II” in Italy with a combined 5-year BSc and MSc degree in Medical Biotechnology in 2002 followed by a PhD in Molecular Oncology and Endocrinology in 2007.

• During his PhD (2002-07) he studied the pro-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic response controlled by the NF-kB family of transcription factors. In these studies he discovered novel mechanisms of activation of NF-kB downstream of TNF receptors and upon endoplasmic reticulum stress as well as the contribution of NF-kB activity to thyroid tumourigenesis (Biochem Biophys Res Comm 2003, J Biol Chem 2004, J Biol Chem 2006a, J Biol Chem 2006b, J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2008).
• During his post-doc (2007-11) – supported in part by a Foundation Fellowship awarded from the Italian Association for Cancer Research – he worked both at the University of Chicago in the USA and Imperial College London at the identification of the molecular mechanisms linking inflammation and metabolism in the adaptive immune system and in cancer (Proc Natl Acad Sci 2010, Nat Cell Biol 2011).
• In 2011 he moved to the William Harvey Research Institute at the Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry at Queen Mary University of London, where he focused on the investigation of the metabolic control of immune cell effector functions and the implications of the metabolic dependence of immune responses in inflammatory conditions. Through this work he obtained a prestigious Intermediate Basic Science Research Fellowship from the British Heart Foundation in 2012 (until 2019) alongside other competitive research grants, and published a number of papers in the field (e.g., Mol Cell Proteomics 2015, PLoS Biol 2015, Trends Biochem Sci 2016, Eur J Immunol 2016, Cell Metab 2017 [commentary: Dietary fat inflames CD4+ T cell memory in obesity; press release: Obesity leads to harmful activation of the immune system], Nat Commun 2017, Immunity 2017).
• In 2018 he joined the Institute of Inflammation and Ageing at the University of Birmingham as a Professorial Research Fellow in Metabolism and Inflammation to lead a group of scientists working on basic and translational aspects of immunometabolism (e.g.  Cell Metab 2019 [press release: Researchers find potential new target for treatment of inflammatory disease], Cardiov Res 2020 [commentary: Omega-3s are a traffic light for T cells: lipid metabolites and membrane-related events at the crossroads of inflammation], Nat Rev Immunol 2020, Biochem Pharmacol 2022, iScience 2022, Clin Transl Med 2023 [press release: Obesity turning arthritic joint cells into pro-inflammation ‘bad apples’], Nat Immunol 2024 [press release: Harnessing B cells could fight cancer or autoimmune diseases by targeting mitochondrial metabolism]).
• In 2020, he was promoted to Professor of Metabolism and Inflammation (watch his Inaugural Lecture).
• In 2022, he was awarded a prestigious British Heart Foundation Senior Basic Science Research Fellowship.

Professor Mauro has supervised the following individuals during their MSc, PhD or during their post-doc. The next position of past members of the group is noted in brackets:

If you are interested in studying any of these subject areas please contact Professor Claudio Mauro directly, or for any general doctoral research enquiries, please email mds-gradschool@contacts.bham.ac.uk.

For a full list of available Doctoral Research opportunities, please visit our Doctoral Research programme listings.

The research in the Mauro’s group focuses on the interconnections between metabolic and inflammatory pathways and how systemic and cellular metabolic alterations in diseases with an inflammatory component lead to aberrant immune cell responses, which favour both the establishment and the propagation of inflammation. In particular, they investigate the mechanisms of metabolic control of T cell-mediated immune responses, including migration, differentiation and cytokine production in physiology and under metabolic stress.

• One key area of their research is how small metabolites, like lactate, which accumulates locally in the inflamed tissue or systemically during acute and chronic inflammation, can impact the fate of the immune-inflammatory response via induction of  intracellular metabolic rewiring with immediate effect on broad range human diseases.
• Another important aspect of their research is how fatty acids can impact the outcomes of an immune response, with repercussions on obesity-related diseases.

Overall, their studies indicate that interfering with metabolic pathways (i.e., lipid, glucose and oxidative metabolism) alters immune cell effector functions and can be exploited for therapy.

Their main research outputs are:

• 70 total publications: h-index=36; citations=5,310 (Google Scholar).
• Best research articles: 1) Nat Cell Biol 2011 (1^st author); 2) Immunity 2015 (co-author); 3) Cell Metab 2017 (1^st, corresponding and lead author); 4) Immunity 2017 (co-author); 5) Cell Metab 2019 (last author); 6) Nat Immunol 2024 (2^nd last author).
• Best 2^nd tier research articles: 1) PNAS 2010 (co-1^st author); 2) PNAS 2013 (3^rd author); 3) PNAS 2015 (2^nd last author; commentary: Soothing touch of CD31 protects endothelium during cellular immune responses) ; 4) Plos Biol 2015 (last author); 5) PNAS 2016 (co-author); 6) Nat Commun 2017 (2^nd last and corresponding author); 7) Nat Commun 2020 (co-author); 8) Clin Transl Med 2023 (3^rd last author).
• Best senior author research articles: 1) Plos Biol 2015 (last author); 2) Cell Metab 2017 (1^st, corresponding and lead author); 3) Nat Commun 2017 (2^nd last and corresponding author); 4) Cell Metab 2019 (last author); 5) Cardiov Res 2020 (last author); 6) Biochem Pharmacol 2022 (joint last author); 7) Nat Immunol 2024 (2^nd last author).
• Best review/commentary articles: 1) Trends Biochem Sci 2016 (last author); 2) Nat Rev Immunol 2021 (last author); 3) Trends Edocrinol Metab 2022 (last author); 4) Nat Immunol 2024 (last author); 5) Nat Rev Cardiol 2024 (2^nd author); 6) Trends Biochem Sci submitted (last author); 7) Immunity invited, in preparation (last author).

Professor Mauro research is embedded in the Institute of Inflammation and Ageing, Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences, Institute of Metabolism and Systems Research, Centre of Membrane Proteins and Receptors (COMPARE), Centre for Neurogenetics Research, and Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) Sarcopenia and Multi-morbidity, Thrombo-Inflammation and Women's Metabolic Health Units.

Professor Mauro is also active on engaging the public and the students communities:

• Article in the Daily Telegraph on living healthier longer (further discussed here open access)
• Interview with Time Pie on Inflammageing
• Interview on how to successfully pursue a PhD and Jobs after PhD

Editorial Board Member

• Clinical and Experimental Immunology (current)
• British Journal of Pharmacology (current)

External Committees

• Arthritis Research UK Foundation Fellowships (2019)
• Nutrition-responsiveness of the immune system (NUTRIMMUNE)” international call of the Joint Programming Initiative “a Healthy Diet for a Healthy Life” (JPI HDHL)  (2022)
• Wellcome Trust CDA and Discovery Awards Immunology Panel (2023)
• UKRI Future Leaders Fellowships (2023 - current)

• Versus Arthritis Early Detection and Targeted Treatments, "Discovery" Panel (2024)

Internal Committees

• REF2021 Committee, Institute of Inflammation and Ageing (Co-Lead - Outputs) and MDS (2020-21)
• BHF Accelerator Award Grant Committee (2020-2023)
• Research Strategy Committee (Co-Lead), Institute of Inflammation and Ageing (2021-2023)
• BHF Strategy Group (current)
• PGR Committee, Institute of Inflammation and Ageing (current)
• Research Strategy Committee, Institute of Inflammation and Ageing (current)
• Executive Committee, Institute of Inflammation and Ageing (current)

Entrepreneurship 

• Lmito Therapeutics Scientific Advisory Board Member (current)
• Solute Guard Therapeutics (SGTx) CSO and Founder (launching June/July 2024)