Research and teaching staff

Academic staff

Dr Jonathan Thomas
Senior Lecturer in Microbial Genomics

Module leader for Forensic Microbiology and Microbial Diagnostics. Co-lead for NTU's sequencing facility. Research interests include genomics, antimicrobial resistance and the evolution and molecular epidemiology of staphylococci, in particular Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis.

Dr Gareth McVicker
Senior Lecturer in Microbiology

Module leader for Introduction to Microbiology and Microbial Metabolism & Genetics. Research interests include mechanisms of plasmid stability in enteric pathogens, with a particular focus on toxin–antitoxin systems in enteroaggregative and enteroinvasive Escherichia coli in addition to other pathovars and species.

Dr Samantha McLean
Senior Lecturer in Microbiology

Course leader for MSc and MRes courses in Biotechnology as well as MSc and MRes courses in Molecular Microbiology. Research interests include investigating the efficacy of novel antimicrobial compounds, the development of antimicrobial medical device materials, biofilms and the interaction of bacterial pathogens with small molecules (reactive oxygen species, reactive nitrogen species, carbon monoxide).

Dr Ben Dickins
Senior Lecturer in Biochemistry

Module leader for Bioinformatics and co-lead for the Undergraduate Research Project Module. Co-lead for NTU’s sequencing facility. Research interests include genomics and phage experimental evolution as well as evolutionary theory and modelling of finite populations.

Dr David Negus
Senior Lecturer in Microbiology

Module leader for Applied Microbiology, and Professional Skills in Microbiology. Research interests include developing the predatory bacterium Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus as a "living antibiotic", the use of bacteriophages and their products as antimicrobials, and bacterial capsule depolymerases.

Dr Jack C. Leo
Senior Lecturer in Microbiology

Module leader for Medical Microbiology. Research interests include bacterial pathogenesis as well as outer membrane proteins and their biogenesis, with a particular focus on autotransporter proteins of Gram-negative bacteria. Current research centres on the structure–function relationship in autotransporters from Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Yersinia enterocolitica.

Dr Jody Winter
Principal Lecturer in Microbiology

Subject leader for microbiology teaching at NTU, and course leader for the BSc and MBiol Microbiology courses. Research interests include Helicobacter pylori virulence, bacterial membrane vesicles, antimicrobial resistance and antimicrobial stewardship.

Dr Michael Loughlin
Principal Lecturer in Microbiology

Learning & Teaching Manager.

Professor Lesley Hoyles
Professor of Microbiome and Systems Biology

Module leader for Bioinformatics and Biomaths, and Advanced Bioinformatics. Research Lead for the AROM theme. Research interests include the human gut microbiome in health and disease, systems biology, host–microbe interactions, microbial lipid metabolism, Coriobacteriia, and Klebsiella oxytoca and its bacteriophages.

Dr Conor Meehan
Senior Lecturer in Microbiology
Microbial bioinformatics, genomics and evolution. Focuses on the molecular epidemiology of microbial pathogens, especially Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

---

Dr Maria Rosa Domingo-Sananes
Senior Lecturer in Microbiology
Teaching for Bioinformatics and Biomaths, Advanced Bioinformatics and Forensic Microbiology. Research focuses on combining systems and evolutionary biology to understand the function, architecture and evolution of biochemical networks and genomes. Approaches include computational analysis, mathematical modelling and experimental evolution. Current interests include the evolution of cell cycle control in eukaryotes and of gene content diversity in microbes (prokaryotes and eukaryotes).

---

Dr Alasdair Hubbard
Lecturer in Microbiology
Main interest is the use of genomics and experimental evolution to understand the development of antimicrobial resistance in clinically relevant bacteria, with a focus on translation from the laboratory to clinical practice. Other research interests include novel mechanisms of antimicrobial resistance and early-stage drug discovery.

---

Dr Bunmi Omorotionmwan
Lecturer in Microbiology
Involved in the teaching of Applied Microbiology, Introduction to Microbiology and Business and Enterprise modules. My research background is genetic engineering of Clostridium for industrial and clinical applications such as improved biofuel production and the development of a spore vaccine platform. My pedagogical research interests explore how new teaching innovations and inclusive assessment can be used to narrow attainment gaps among student groups.

Dr Leanne Timpson
Lecturer in Microbiology
Module Leader for Foundation Year Biology. Lecturing on Applied Microbiology, Professional Skills in Microbiology, and Business and Enterprise modules. I have academic and industrial experience, focusing on the biocatalytic applications of novel enzymes from extremophilic microorganisms. My current scholarly activities are centered around student work-like experience and enhancing student employability skills. I am also interested in exploring links between microbiology and creative disciplines.

Postdoctoral researchers

Fiona Newberry (funded by Diabetes UK)
Anne McCartney (funded by EU Horizon 2020)
Mahboobeh Behruznia (funded by the Academy of Medical Sciences)
Rachel Whelan (NTU Health and Wellbeing)

Technical support

Macsen Fryer

Students

PhD students
Samuel Dawson
Adam Varney
Callum Rimmer (part-time Academic Associate)
James Hall
Pallavi Arya (visiting Clinical Research Fellow)
Sagar Batra
Onnicha Leelastwattanagul
Mohamed Eladawy
Taiwo Adesola Akinyele
Omoyemi Rebecca Ojo
Dooshima Ngulianga Nevkaa​
Caitlin Wildsmith (BBSRC DTP)
Rachael Duodu
Sidra Kashif
Sourav Kumar Das
Chantelle Endeley (BBSRC DTP)
Farah Mahmood (BBSRC DTP)
Milli Wilde (BBSRC DTP)

Placement students
Jordan Shutt-McCabe

MBiol students
Zak Vincent
Daniel Peters
Beth James
Nathan Heslop
​Milly Newton
​
MRes students
Fisentzos Floras
Pooja Bisht
Dominic Lambert
Mia Horton
Gayathri Weerasekarage
​Martyna Cyganek

Former group members

Dr Blessing Oyedemi (2021-2023; African Research Excellence Fund Research Development Fellow)
Dr Stephen Thompson (PhD 2015-2021)
Dr Eden Mannix-Fisher (PhD 2017-2021; NTU Health and Wellbeing Talent Fellow 2021-2022)
Lizzy Roberts (MRes 2021-2022)
Callum Lush (MRes 2021-2022)
Radha Thirunellai Seshadri (MRes 2021-2022)
Jasmin Lawrance (MRes 2021-2022)
Sahar Rasheed (MRes 2021-2022)
Nathan Heslop (placement student 2021-2022)
Roshan Khatri (placement student 2021-2022)
Amy Mensah (MBiol 2021-2022)
Chantell Maware (MBiol 2021-2022)
Victoria Wootton (MBiol 2021-2022)
Vineet Ponnala (MRes 2020-2021)
Karimunnisa Begum Shaik (MRes 2020-2021)
Thomas Smith-Zaitlik (MRes 2020-2021)
Sara Garnett (MRes 2020-2021)
Shohreh Naderisigoli (MRes 2020-2021)
Sree Thota (MRes 2020-2021)
Dr Lolwah Alsharaf (PhD 2017-2021)
Luke Hamstead (MBiol 2020-2021)
Chandrashekar Kurunakaran Achari (MRes 2019-2020)
Anagha Shamsundar Setlur (MRes 2019-2020)
Dean Hill (MBiol 2019-2020)
Simon Barratt (MBiol 2019-2020)
Daniel Russell (MBiol 2019-2020)
Frazer McCuaig (placement student 2019-2020)
Anubrata Ghosh (MRes 2019-2020)