Infection & Immunity

Leishmania Laboratory

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Research Overview | Research Divisions | Online Resources | Collaborative Research

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Cancer & Haematology | Molecular Genetics of Cancer | Immunology | Infection & Immunity
Autoimmunity & Transplantion | Genetics & Bioinformatics | Structural Biology

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The group was started in 1980 and has a typical breakdown of a 1-2 PhD students, 3-4 post doctoral fellows and 2 research assistants. These are aided by an animal technician and two support wash-up and preparation technicians. Institute-wide services are provided for histology, hybridoma production, tissue and microbial culture media, graphics, computing and bioinformatics and isotopes and radiolabeling.

Our work is highly collaborative and our closest associates outside our Division are:

Warren Alexander from Cancer and Hematology, Simon Foote from Genetics and Bioinformatics and Ken Shortman from the Immunology Division

I see my role as the scientific coordinator of the Leishmania program and the gold prospector, looking for new opportunities and having a “first go” to test new ideas before handing them over to prospective students and post doctoral fellows.

Recent Publications

• Current Staff Members
• Alumni
• Leishmaniasis
  • Attachment and Infection
  • The genetic basis of host susceptibility to disease
  • The role of cytokines and their regulation in determining the disease phenotype
  • The Mannose biosynthetic pathway and its enzymes as novel drug targets

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The current members of the lab are:

• Denise Bullen, PhD student: The role of the suppressor of cytokine signaling-1 in leishmaniasis and malaria.
• Colleen Elso, PhD student: Mapping host genes for susceptibility to leishmaniasis.
• Beena Kumar, post doctoral fellow: Characterization of the mice congenic for leishmaniasis susceptibility genes.
• Tony Davis, post doctoral fellow: Enzymes in the mannose biosynthetic pathway, potential drug targets against leishmaniasis.
• Lukasz Kedzierski, post doctoral fellow: The function of the Leucine Rich Repeats in Proteophosphoglycan and the Parasite Surface Antigen-2.
• Tracey Baldwin, research assistant: Studies on the proteophosphoglycan as a virulence factor and immunomodulator.
• Joan Curtis is the Senior Technical Officer, in effect the lab manager in charge of the day to day affairs of the lab and maintenance of cell and parasite cultures, equipment and reagent stocks. In addition, Joan works closely with me in exploring new areas and establishing new techniques.
• Lynn Buckingham is our expert animal technician coordinating and supervising all aspects of work with animals.

From Left: Colleen Elso, Joan Curtis, Emanuela Handman, Lukasz Kedzierski, Beena Kumar, Tracey Baldwin, Denise Bullen & Tony Davis.