Professor Tim Mitchell BSc, PhD, FRCPath

• Fellow of Royal College of Pathologists 2004
• PhD Microbiology 1986
• BSc (Hons) Biological Sciences 1983

Tim Mitchell completed his PhD at the University of Birmingham studying the role of enterotoxin A in the pathogenesis of infections caused by Clostridium difficile. He was then awarded a Wellcome Trust travelling fellowship to study the role of cGMP-dependent protein kinases in the mechanism of action of bacterial toxins at Erasmus University in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Tim returned from the Netherlands to a postdoctoral position in the laboratory of Graham Boulnois at the University of Leicester where he started working with pneumolysin, the pore-forming toxin produced by Streptococcus pneumoniae. On the basis of this work he was awarded a Royal Society University Research Fellowship that allowed him to establish an independent research group at the University of Leicester. The work done during this period defined some of the mechanisms of pore formation by the pneumococcal toxin and its role in the pathogenesis of pneumococcal infection. This led to the development of toxoids that were evaluated as vaccine candidates. In 1996 Tim was appointed to the Chair of Microbiology at the University of Glasgow where he continued work on the pathogenesis of pneumococcal infection and developed approaches to exploit bacterial genomics in these studies. In 2012 he moved to his current position as Professor of Microbial Infection and Immunity at the University of Birmingham.

• BMedSci – Year 1 and 2 – Lectures, small group teaching, project supervisor
• MBChB – Year 2 – Lectures, project supervisor intercalated programme
• MSc Microbiology and Infection - Lectures, project supervisor
• MSc Immunology and Immunotherapy

• Previously supervised 27 PhD students to successful completion
• Currently supervise 5 PhD students

Tim is interested in supervising doctoral research students in the following areas:

• The role of bacterial toxins in the disease process
• Development of vaccines for diseases caused by Gram positive pathogens
• Pathogenesis of pneumococcal infection

If you are interesting in studying any of these subject areas please contact Tim on the contact details above, or for any general doctoral research enquiries, please email: dr@contacts.bham.ac.uk or call +44 (0)121 414 5005.

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

Major research interests concern the investigation of the pathogenesis of bacterial infectious diseases. The molecular study of these processes can be used to design or modify vaccines and improve therapeutic approaches.

The interaction of pathogens with the host is a complex one. Pathogens produce numerous factors that interact with the host during pathogenesis, including capsules, enzymes and toxins. Tim is interested in investigating this interaction by genetic manipulation of the pathogen and the host (via transgenic technology). Recent work has been concerned with disease caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae. Tim has been involved in the study of a number of virulence factors from this organism, including the protein toxin pneumolysin. A detailed structure function study of this protein allowed the identification of several important functional regions of the toxin. Modification of these regions led to the development of a toxoided protein that is now being evaluated as an addition to the human vaccine.

With the availability of the genome sequences of many bacterial pathogens, it is now possible to investigate the pathogenesis of several bacterial infections at the molecular level. Analysis of bacterial genome sequences allows the identification of the basis of important differences between strains that are responsible for altered ability to cause disease. A combination of the use of bacterial mutants, animal models and transgenic animal models allows us to probe the host/pathogen interaction. We can then use this information to assist in the design of new vaccines or therapies.

• Undergraduate external examiner in microbiology:
  • University of Aberdeen 1998-2001
  • University of Bristol 1998-2002
• External examiner for the Masters degree in Medical Microbiology at University of Aberdeen 2009–2013
• Examiner for the Masters Degree in Microbiology and Immunology at University of Nottingham 2010-2014
• External examiner for 33 PhD examinations
• Danish Research Council Panel Member 2011-2014
• Research Council of Norway - Grant Panel Member 2012-2015
• Meningitis UK Grant panel
• Scottish Healthcare Associated Infection Prevention Institute (SHAIPI) - Independent Chair of Management Group