Job description

Post title and post number Clinical Lecturer in – 49509

Organisation advertising School of Immunity and Description College of Medical and Dental Sciences

Post number 49509

Full-time/Part-time Full Time

Duration of post Fixed term for 6 years or 6 months after completion of CCT

Post is open to: Internal and external candidates

Grade Clinical

Salary £31,301 to £54,199 a year

Terms and conditions Clinical Staff

Closing date 20 September 2013

Details As the meets the requirements in respect of exempted questions under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, any applicants for this post who are offered employment will be subject to a Disclosure and Barring Service check from the Disclosure and Barring Service before the appointment is confirmed. This will include details of cautions, reprimands or final warnings as well as convictions. Medical clearance from the University’s Occupational Health Service will also be required.

Job Summary Applicants are invited for the post of Clinical Lecturer in Infection in the School of Immunity and Infection at the College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham. This post has been designed specifically to stimulate interest in the academic aspects of this subject and will provide excellent experience and training leading to FRCPath and Certificate of Completion of Training (paid On-call experience is included). The successful applicant will be fully funded to obtain a PhD from the University of Birmingham. The post provides excellent clinical experience and training for a career in clinical academic medicine. Research in infection at the University of Birmingham given high priority, the University of Birmingham Global Initiative having been launched in 2010. This initiative included the appointment of new posts in both virology and bacteriology.

This is a new post created by collaboration between the Public Health England and the University of Birmingham to strengthen academic medical microbiology in the field of public health. The post is funded by the PHE but the post holder will be a full- time employee of the University of Birmingham. The post offers an exciting opportunity for an ambitious and inquisitive medical microbiologist to obtain first rate experience and training in both academic and clinical microbiology, with an emphasis on public health microbiology. The post holder will principally divide their time between the College of Medical and Dental Sciences working in the newly created Institute of Microbiology and Infection and the PHE Public Health Laboratory Birmingham which is situated on the Birmingham Heartlands NHSFT Site.

This is a seven year post (depending on previous experience in clinical microbiology) allowing sufficient time during the postholder’s University allocated time to undertake a PhD registered with the University of Birmingham (applicants who already have a PhD are also eligible to apply). The clinical period of training will enable the post holder to acquire Fellowship of the Royal College of Pathologists (FRCPath) by examination and gain a CCT in Medical Microbiology. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to train in an academic research environment supported by excellent research facilities (proteomics, genomics and containment facilities for work with micro-organisms up to and including containment level 3). Full molecular microbiology facilities are also available at the PHE Public Health Laboratory Birmingham together with access to clinical services and diagnostic and reference specimens from patients across the West Midlands. Established research strengths within infection at the College of Medical and Dental Sciences include antimicrobial resistance, bacterial genomics, pathogenicity and immunological mechanisms in the regulation of mycobacterial susceptibility and infection.

Main duties - Academic Teaching The Lecturer will contribute to teaching on the MBChB course and the intercalating students in consultation with the academic leads in this area, Profs Hawkey & Piddock and Head of School, Professor Janet Lord.

Research The Lecturer will be expected to become actively involved in research that builds on the existing strengths of academics staff within the School of Immunity and Infection. It is expected that the appointee will register to undertake a PhD if not in possession of a PhD.

Under the direction of his or her academic, (Peter Hawkey, Laura Piddock) or other principal investigators as appropriate he/she will:

 Establish and undertake the experiments and gain sufficient research data and experience that will facilitate a higher degree (PhD) or to further his/her career in Academic Medicine.  Undertake prescribed research tasks and collection of research data through a variety of research methods, in accordance with his/her chosen programme of research related to the research strengths of academic staff within the School.  Analyse scientific study data and write up the results of the programme of study for submission of a thesis for the award of a PhD or other publications in peer reviewed journals to further his/her academic career.  Prioritise tasks within an agreed work schedule to ensure that projects are delivered in a timely fashion.  Suggest and contribute to the development of research techniques, models and methods in collaboration with colleagues.  Contribute to writing bids for funding.  Disseminate research findings using appropriate and effective means of communication.  Provide guidance to other staff and students on own specialist area via media such as publication, research seminars etc.  Contribute to the production of research reports and publications.  Attend infection research group meetings, seminars and PhD student seminars.

CLINICAL Clinical Microbiology training will be delivered as a as Specialty Trainee in Medical Microbiology at PHE Public Health Laboratory Birmingham based at Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust (HEFT). The Clinical Lecturer will be seconded to the University Hospital Birmingham and Birmingham Children’s Hospital for experience in some specialist areas not available at HEFT and to provide maximal clinical experience as determined by the Specialty Training Committee.

Clinical training to the level required for the CCT in Medical Microbiology will follow the curriculum and assessment programme detailed in the RCPath Medical Microbiology Curriculum (currently the 2010 version; from www.rcpath.org.uk). The RCPath oversees and documents training to the CCT on behalf the GMC. The Clinical Lecturer will therefore be required to register as a Specialty Trainee with the RCPath.

Delivery of training will be planned and assessed in the manner followed by Specialty Trainees in Medical Microbiology in the W Midlands Deanery, which is consistent with the GMC’s requirements. The Deanery’s Training Programme Director for Medical Microbiology will agree the scope and duration of clinical training periods with the Clinical Lecturer’s Academic Supervisor; this will be communicated to the Clinical Lecturer’s clinical Educational Supervisor.

The clinical educational supervision and assessment arrangements for the Clinical Lecturer will be: 1. a named Educational Supervisor 2. an induction at the start of each clinical placement 3. an Educational Plan (clinical) agreed with the Educational and Academic Supervisor at the start of each training year 4. an interim report on progress towards the Educational Plan prepared by the Educational Supervisor (from Clinical Supervisor’s reports) at 6 months into each training year 5. an interim appraisal with the Educational Supervisor at 6 months into each training year 6. an Annual Review of Competence Progression (ARCP) at the end of each training year

The Clinical Lecturer will perform the workplace-based assessments required by the curriculum. These must be documented on the RCPath’s Learning Environment for Pathology Training (LEPT). Entry to Year 1 Assessment and the FRCPath examinations will follow the curriculum and examination regulation requirements.

Clinical Job Plan It is envisaged that the post holder will spend discrete blocks of time at both the University and HEFT. The precise length being determined by the requirements of the post and the nature of the research project and teaching commitments, depending on the postholder’s previous experience in clinical microbiology. The anticipated programme will be an initial 2 year block of clinical microbiology followed post PhD by another 2 years advanced clinical microbiology. It is anticipated that the PhD OOP will be for 3 years full time.

The post holder will be fully integrated into the training programme at PHE Public Health Laboratory Birmingham with attendance at teaching and supervised ward rounds as shown on the timetable as well as all West Midlands regional training days and lectures.

Heartlands Hospital has one of the largest sexual health services in the Midlands and participation in joint microbiology/GUM clinics is available together with expertise in HIV therapy in conjunction with Dr Ras Smit, Consultant Virologist. The regional Infectious Diseases Unit is based at Heartlands Hospital with 4 adult and 2 paediatric Infectious Disease Consultants. This unit also provides the Infectious Diseases (ID) component of The Centre for Defence Medicine. Exposure to extensive expertise in a range of complex ID, military and other imported/tropical infections is available on the HEFT site.

HEARTLANDS HOSPITAL: Ward Round/Meeting Timetable Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday AM 0930 Clinical 0930 Thoracic 0930 Antibiotic 0930 HIV Handover Ward round Ward Round Multidisciplinary meeting

1100 Bench 1100 Bench 1100 Bench 1100 Bench 1030-1200 Round Round Round Round Infectious Diseases MDT

PM 1300 Laboratory 1300 Infectious 1230 Infection 1300 Medical Lecture – Diseases Control Clinical internal/external Meeting Operational Meeting speaker Meeting

1400 Critical 1400 Critical 1400 Critical 1400 Critical 1400 Critical Care Unit Round Care Unit Care Unit Care Unit Care Unit Round or Round or Round Round 1400 Virology Haematology Handover MDT

PhD training Those candidates undertaking a PhD will be integrated into the University of Birmingham Graduate School. All candidates are allocated two supervisors and a mentor for pastoral care and personal development. A formal annual review involving a written report and interview by an independent expert panel informs progression to the next stage of study and ensures timely progression to writing up for final year students. For clinical students the Wellcome Trust clinical Research facility, directed by Prof Lorraine Harper, provides specific orientation and training for young clinicians embarking on a research orientated clinical career and training modules covering clinical research governance. Presentation skills are developed through the Breakfast seminar programme where all year 2 and 3 candidates present their ongoing work to an audience of staff and students.

PUBLIC HEALTH MICROBIOLOGY TRAINING – PHE Throughout the clinical training programme specific rotations in Health Protection will be undertaken in the following subspeciality areas providing front-line experience in Public Health Microbiology:

Epidemiology  Local Health Protection Unit – to provide specialist training in TB epidemiology as well as general experience with Dr Philip Monk at Leicester.  CDSC (Epidemiology) at Colindale, internship.

Reference and Specialist Microbiology The Public Health Laboratory Birmingham (PHLB) is one of three reference centres for mycobacteriology and provides molecular diagnosis and typing (including whole genome sequencing (WGS)) Short secondments to other laboratories reference or otherwise is encouraged if relevant to the clinical or research training at a national/international level together with a substantial research programme financed by DOH, UK CRC and PHE as well as project work and clinical liaison.  PHLB is also part of the national Clostridium difficile Ribotyping Network (CDRN) and is the only laboratory other than Leeds that undertakes MLVA (Multilocus variable number tandem repeat analysis) typing. Both practical and theoretical training will be provided in this subject.  PHE microbiology services Colindale: an attachment to the Antibiotic Resistance Monitoring & Reference Laboratory. (ARMRL) in relation to the post holders research project will be arranged if possible.  PHE Food, Water and Environment Laboratory at Good Hope Hospital.

Outbreak Management  Involvement and training in outbreak management and support with particular emphasis on molecular typing delivered from PHLB.  Attachment to Environmental Health Officers involved in outbreak management

Infection Control PHLB is the ribotyping laboratory in CDRN for the West and East Midlands as well as developing and applying multilocus variable number tandem repeat report analysis (MLVA) to outbreaks in that region supported by the DOH and PHE – project work and clinical liaison.  Further infection control training with both the trust and community infection control team including the preparation of portfolio based data related to a specific outbreak(s).

Trainees will also be expected to attend other clinical meetings (e.g., West Midlands Medical Microbiology Regional Group meeting) outside the department as advised by their educational supervisor.

The PHE will provide specific bioinformatics training in using Bionumerics software. Attendance at the Wellcome Trust Genomics and Clinical Microbiology 1 week course at the Sanger Centre and the annual PHE Genomics Proteomics Conference, PHE Microbiology Services Colindale will be supported by the PHE if the trainee desires.

Research skills training Academic staff within the School of Immunity and Infection have access to excellent core facilities and technologies to equip staff and students with the practical skills to enable high quality experimental work from the outset of their studies and beyond. Formal training is available in core microbiology and molecular biology methods and staff and students also have access to advanced research techniques/ technologies including  Containment Level 3 facilities  Facilities for automated detection of killing of bacteria by antimicrobials  Mutation detection and gene expression  A bespoke pan-Salmonella gene expression microarray based on the Agilent platform.  C. elegans and live imaging (Nikon TE2000 with Prior automated stage and full environmental control)  Birmingham Advanced Light Microscopy facility, including the state-of-the-art A1R confocal (one of only three such instruments in the country)  purification facilities  Mass spectrometry  NMR  Functional Genomics facility (including a number of WGS platforms)  Quantitative real time PCR This training is provided through expert led “hands on” training sessions and provides the opportunity to acquire skills additional to those specific to their research project that add value to their future employability.

Generic research and transferable skills: These include health and safety matters, ethical procedures for human and translational research, data handling and statistics, information retrieval and writing and presentation skills. They are incorporated into the first or Foundation Year through the College Graduate School programme which is followed by all those carrying out a PhD. In addition, the University Staff Development Unit provides courses for the development of teaching skills for staff and students that are available to both graduate students and postdoctoral staff. The School also supports a high quality seminar programmes with national and international speakers which all students and postdoctoral trainees are expected to attend. An annual Centre Research Day and an annual College Research and Enterprise Gala event provide additional opportunities for students and postdoctoral staff to present their work as posters or talks.

Clinical Academic training The College of Medical and Dental Sciences, has identified the need to further develop its support for the training and career development of its clinical academic staff. To this end the College has appointed a Head of Clinical Academic Training and a committee at the appointment, support, management, training and development of clinical academic staff who now have  Formal academic and education supervision and mentors who ensure that clinical and academic training are jointly overseen.  If appropriate the individual can undertake formal Mres modules to enhance their research training prior to registration for PhD  An informal peer-peer mentoring scheme organised by junior clinical academics to support self development  Workshops to improve their skills in career planning  Their own seminar programme where clinical academics can present their research and are able to network with senior clinical academics  Social functions specifically aimed at facilitating networking and collaboration  Help with identifying and supporting Fellowship opportunities and with grant applications

Postgraduate There is a deanery led programme of regular Postgraduate Regional teaching sessions in microbiology. These are attended by junior staff from most centres in the West Midlands. The Lecturer will be expected to contribute to the programme which includes the following sessions: journal clubs, updates, lectures from junior staff, case presentations, consultant presentations and guest speakers.

On-call Responsibilities During the training programme the trainee will be provided with opportunity to gain experience in the provision of out of hours the medical microbiology service at Heartlands Hospital. The on-call commitment is funded by the PHE at band I A.

Assessment and appraisal Trainees will be expected to undertake workplace-based assessment throughout the entire duration of their training in medical microbiology. These will take the form of: • Case-based Discussion (CbD) • Directly Observed Practical Skills (DOPS) • Multi Source Feedback (MSF) • Evaluation of clinical events (ECE)

Evidence of competence will be based on these assessments, the portfolio in LEPT, appraisals and educational supervisor’s reports. Trainees must undergo an annual review of competence programme (ARCP) at which the evidence of their competence and progress as listed above must be presented.

Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications & Experience Required

Essential  Full General Medical Council registration  Excellent communication skills  Strong desire to develop a career in academic clinical microbiology Desirable  Part 1 fellowship of Royal College of Pathologists.  Experience of laboratory science  Previous experience in Microbiology at Specialist Registrar level  Publication of an article in a medical or scientific journal.  Presentation of research at a national or international conference.

Communication

Contact // Purpose/skills required  Professors Hawkey and Piddock, other PIs in Immunity & Infection and members of bacteriology and virology research groups (including WMPHL)// Planning experiments and reporting on tests carried out  Clinicians and Scientists in the IBR // Learning specialised techniques from group  Hospital patients and relatives, patients at the hospital // Clinical care of out-patients and in-patients at HEFT with interaction with relevant consultant staff.

Academic Environment The Lecturer will build on the existing themes of Infection and microbiology research at the University of Birmingham and HEFT/UHBFT, under the direction of Profs Hawkey and Piddock and other PIs within the School of Immunity and Infection (University of Birmingham) or other University groups as appropriate. The emphasis is to ‘bridge’ basic research with the clinic, whilst addressing challenges in public health bacteriology and obtaining a PhD degree. It is anticipated that the successful candidate will have interests related to existing Research Groups based within the School of Immunity and Infection. These are:

Research at the Public Health England Public Health Labroatory Birmingham at Heartlands Hospital Since the appointment in 2001 of Professor Hawkey to the Chair of Clinical and Public Health Bacteriology, a network for teaching and research in infection has been established at both Heartlands Hospital and the University of Birmingham. The appointment of Dr Katie Hardy as Senior Clinical Scientist/Lecturer has further strengthened the academic collaboration with UoB. Public Health Laboratory Birmingham at Heartlands Hospital already has a well-established reputation for diagnostic and reference level virology for a wide range of viruses. The Laboratory is also one of the Regional Centres for Mycobacteriology for the UK (Mycobacteriology Lead Dr Grace Smith) The other three Centres are in Newcastle, London and Cardiff.. A recent initiative has led to the development of to a variety of molecular methods as well as methods for the molecular detection of viruses and mycobacteria in specimens. These are now being applied to clinical and public health practice. The comparatively high rates of in some parts of the Midlands mean that the Centre has good quantities of material for both research and audit studies. The training opportunity afforded here for microbiological work in mycobacteriology is probably unrivalled within the UK. Through a successful UKCRC grant led by Oxford and a recently awarded Health Innovation Challenge Fund with Oxford world class research on TB molecular epidemiology is being undertaken (co-ordinated by Dr Grace Smith). Professor Hawkey and Dr Hardy are leading a research thread in the newly established NIHR Surgical Reconstruction and Microbiology Research Centre to define the molecular epidemiology of S. aureus infection in trauma patients in order to devise better control interventions. In addition, there has been a development programme for molecular methods for typing hospital pathogens with a particular focus on MRSA, Clostridium difficile and multi-resistant Gram-negative bacteria, supported by Department of Health and PHE. The Heartlands Laboratory collaborates closely through Professor Hawkey with the Antimicrobial Agents Research Group at the University of Birmingham. There is an active department of infectious diseases with four adult and two paediatric consultants and two clinical immunologists.

The Institute of Microbiology and Infection (IMI) The Institute was established at the University of Birmingham in late 2011. Bacteriologists from both the College of Medical and Dental Services and Life and Environmental Sciences are to be co-located from July 2012 in a fully refurbished floor of the Biosciences building. This brings laboratory facilities, researchers and clinicians into close daily contact increasing opportunities for collaboration and training. Full details of the IMI activities can be found at http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/research/activity/microbiology-infection/index.aspx

Hawkey Research Group Professor Hawkey currently has three PhD students, one post doctoral research fellows, and 3 doctoral clinical scientists funded by the PHE. As a plant pathologist turned medical microbiologist, Hawkey’s research focuses on antimicrobial resistance and epidemiology and the control of hospital acquired infections. His work on the molecular evolution of antimicrobial resistance genes, most recently on novel extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBLs) has identified one of the most important genes that has become widespread recently across the world (CTX-M-14) and led to a collaborative NERC grant with the University of Warwick which identified the origin and circulation of antimicrobial resistance genes from the natural environment into the hospital and back into the natural environment. Several major surveillance programmes are underway to investigate MRSA and ESBLs and the team has developed a potentially widely applicable method for sub-dividing epidemic MRSA strains. Hawkey has applied molecular technology such as SIRU to the molecular typing of hospital acquired pathogens such as MRSA. His team also leads the U.K. Mycobacterium tuberculosis typing effort using VNTR typing, and recently received funding to develop a scheme to type Clostridium difficile. Hawkey has substantial international collaborations particularly with Chinese and European groups on antimicrobial resistance. He has a visiting Chair in Medical Microbiology at China South Central University, Changsha, PRC. Current research aims to refine, develop and apply rapid molecular typing systems particularly for MRSA and Clostridium difficile and demonstrate how these reduce cross infection. A substantial project supported by the Department of Health, to evaluate a rapid molecular method of identification of carriers of MRSA and a financial evaluation with the University of Warwick has been completed. This project has been extended until 2012 in order to develop and apply similar techniques to Clostridium difficile. In the last two years rapid molecular techniques for precise genotyping of particular ESBL genes have been developed and these will be applied in tracing the movement of these genes both in the hospital and in the general environment with particular interest in the agricultural and sewage / water supply areas. Professor Hawkey’s research group focuses predominantly on the evolution of extended-spectrum β-lactamases and has spent some considerable time developing and refining methods for the detection of single nucleotide polymorphisms. The use of denaturing HPLC analysis of PCR products for the detection of point mutations in antimicrobial resistance genes have been developed and applied to the molecular epidemiology of antibiotic resistance genes. Current research within the group focuses strongly on the molecular evolution and global epidemiology of the CTX-M ESBLs. The group also has described novel tandem DNA sequences for molecular typing of Staphylococcus aureus and is evaluating techniques for the rapid detection of MRSA supported by the Department of Health, which has been extended to include Clostridium difficile. In addition to studying the molecular epidemiology of ESBLs and MRSA, the influence of co-selection and the occurrence of novel antibiotic resistance genes in the rhizosphere are being studied in both the hospital and the natural environment through a joint collaboration with Professor Elizabeth Wellington at the University of Warwick, this work being funded by NERC.

Professor Hawkey is advisor to the World Health Organisation Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring initiative and has visited extensively in the South East Asia Regional organisation area for WHO. He is a member of ARHAI, the PVL working party for the PHE, NEQAS scientific advisory board, and is chairing the DoH working party on the diagnosis, management and control of C. difficile infections and the VLA/ ARHAI sub-committee on ESBLs.

Financial support for the research of both Professors is from charities, national government bodies and pharmaceutical companies. To augment the research of the group short term contracts are often undertaken with the pharmaceutical industry. These collaborations are particularly fruitful not just in terms of providing additional funding to facilitate research, but also for providing novel molecules to study.

The group has a number of close connections and collaborates with leading researchers at other universities and institutions from the academic centres in UK, other European countries, USA, Canada and China and have resulted in a number of joint publications. Collaborations also include consultant microbiologist colleagues in local hospitals in the West Midlands and elsewhere in the UK.

The team routinely uses state of the art advanced molecular techniques such as Denaturing HPLC (WAVE) analysis of PCR products (3 platforms available at WMPHL), whole genome DNA sequencing and microarray facilities (the latter available at the University of Birmingham Genomics Laboratory only).

Antimicrobial Agents Research Group This research team was set-up in March 1987 at the University of Birmingham by Professor Laura Piddock. The main aims of the research are to elucidate the mechanism of action of new antibiotics and to determine the mechanism(s) of resistance of new agents (see http://www.infection.bham.ac.uk/ARG/staff/lpiddock.html and http://www.infection.bham.ac.uk/arg/piddockgroup.html) The Piddock group comprises 12 people including 4 post-doctoral research fellows and 3 post-graduate research students, MSc and undergraduate project students. The Piddock team researches how bacteria develop resistance to antibiotics. This is a growing problem, as more strains of bacteria become resistant to the drugs that were primarily developed more than 40 years ago. Their research focuses on how antibiotic resistance arises, and defining and characterising mechanisms of resistance that have a clinical relevance. They are also exploring the role of antibiotic resistance mechanisms in the ability of the organism to colonise, survive and cause infection in their host. Laura is particularly interested in the systems that allow transport of antibiotics into and out of bacteria. Adaptations to these systems occur in bacteria and cause multiple drug resistance. Although this work has many applications, the Piddock team has made particularly detailed studies of food borne organisms such as Salmonella species, Campylobacter sp and the Streptococcus pneumoniae. Laura Piddock receives support for her research from the MRC, BBSRC, Defra and Public Health England. Two grants are international collaborations, one with Canadian researchers, and the other with those from Singapore. She is a member of an EU Cost Action project, led by Jean-Marie Pages. Since 1985 Laura has successfully supervised 19 PhD projects. She currently supervises four postgraduate students. Laura has received various awards and made contributions to professional societies, for example · 2000, elected Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology. · 2001-2005, Recipient of Bristol Myers Squibb Unrestricted Grant in Infectious Diseases · 2004-2005, Co-chair 2nd Gordon Conference on Multi-Drug Efflux. · 2004 - 2010, Member of MRC Infections and Immunity Board. · 2004 - 2007, Member of Council for the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy · 2009 - Present, President of the British Society of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy

Mark Webber is an independent research fellow whose main research focus is investigating the evolution of antibiotic resistance as a consequence of biocide exposure in Salmonella. Webber was awarded a BBSRC David Phillips Fellowship at the beginning of 2007 to investigate mechanisms of resistance to the commonly used biocide triclosan. The Webber research group currently includes one PDRF, one technician and one PhD student as well as various short term visiting students and other researchers. Webber’s team are currently using contemporary high- throughput sequencing technologies to investigate the evolution of multidrug resistance in Salmonella, novel resistance mechanisms are being investigated using an integrated combination of genomic, proteomic, metabolomic and transcriptomic approaches. Webber’s group currently enjoy support from the BBSRC (David Phillips fellowship and project grant funding), Royal Society and University of Birmingham (MRC DTA studentship). Other research interests include mechanisms of biofilm formation in Salmonella (PhD studentship), characterisation of transferable beta- lactam resistance (co-supervisor of PhD student shared with Prof Piddock.

Webber is an Editor for the Journals of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy and Medical Microbiology as well as acting as an expert advisor for various funding agencies; Webber was co-chair of the “Antimicrobial Resistance Mechanisms workshop” in 2009 and will repeat this role in 2010.

Bacterial Pathogenesis and Genomics, Prof Ian Henderson This group was set up in 2001. The main aims of this group are to understand the biogenesis and mechanism of action of secreted bacterial in mediating disease. The group currently consists of 4 postdoctoral fellows, 2 PhD students, 1 technician and a variable number of Masters and undergraduate students. Support for these individuals is derived from the MRC, BBSRC and the EU. Prof. Henderson is currently Reviews Editor for FEMS Microbiology Letters, and chair of the Prokaryotic Division of the Society for General Microbiology and in the past has been an editor for Microbiology and a member of the Microbiology Panel of the Science Foundation Ireland granting body. Current work in the Henderson lab focuses on the biogenesis and function of the Autotransporter family of proteins specifically investigating members of this family occurring in E. coli, Salmonella sp. and Pseudomonas sp. Additionally, the group utilises structural and biophysical approaches to understand the biogenesis of outer membrane components and how these components influence antibiotic resistance and can be exploited to develop novel strategies for combating infection. Members of the team, through collaborations with an international network of colleagues, study phylogenetics of bacteria via genome sequencing in an effort to understand the genetic requirements for bacterial mediated disease. Finally, in collaboration with members of the Centre for Immune regulation we study bacterial-immune system interactions focussing mainly upon Salmonella infections with a view to the design of novel vaccines.

Bacteriology within the Institute of Microbiology and Infection In the Institute of Microbiology and Infection, the overarching strategy of the staff is to understand microbial processes at all levels, from molecules to the whole organism, and to maintain the School as an international centre of molecular microbiology research. The director is Professor Ian Henderson and deputy, Professor Laura Piddock. Most research is concerned with prokaryotes, but theme members also have interests in viruses. The School boasts one of largest clusters of molecular microbiologists in the UK, with 13 PIs, 28 postdocs and 29 PhD students. Full details on the webpage at http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/research/activity/iimicrobham/index.aspx. In brief, eight areas are covered:

Bacterial Motility Prof Charles Penn Molecular biology and functional genomics of bacterial foodborne pathogens

Bioenergy and Environmental Microbiology Dr Jan-Ulrich Kreft Cooperation and communication of microbes in biofilms, metabolic division of labour, individual-based modelling, systems biology Prof Lynne Macaskie Bioremediation, biomineralization, immobilized cells and biofilms

Gene Regulation and Genetic Processes Prof Steve Busby Prokaryotic gene regulation Prof Jeff Cole Bacterial and biochemistry Dr Eva Hyde Protein structure, function and kinetics: Use of biophysical techniques to optimise nitroreductase activity for cancer gene therapy and to examine DNA binding proteins Dr Steve Minchin Transcription initiation in E. coli and the regulation of the rat connexin32 promoter in hepatocytes. Prof Chris Thomas Bacterial plasmid replication, stability & transfer; polyketide synthesis

Infection and Pathogenesis Prof Gurdyal Besra The cell wall of Mycobacterium tuberculosis: A focus for new drug targets and vaccines Dr Apoorva Bhatt Lipid Metabolites of mycobacteria : pathways to and role in virulence Prof Jeff Cole Bacterial physiology and biochemistry Dr Robin May The evolution and molecular basis of host-pathogen interactions Prof Charles Penn Molecular biology and functional genomics of bacterial foodborne pathogens Prof Chris Thomas Bacterial plasmid replication, stability & transfer; polyketide synthesis

Molecular Structures Prof Steve Busby Prokaryotic gene regulation Dr Tim Dafforn How do protein fibres form? Dr Klaus Fütterer X-ray crystallography of bacterial cell wall synthesis and of the regulation of the eukaryotic actin cytoskeleton. Dr Eva Hyde Protein structure, function and kinetics: Use of biophysical techniques to optimise nitroreductase activity for cancer gene therapy and to examine DNA binding proteins Prof J Baz Jackson Understanding the structure and mechanism of action of the membrane protein, transhydrogenase Prof Chris Wharton Enzyme mechanisms, infrared spectroscopy, antibiotic resistance, DNA repair Dr Scott White Structural Biology of Proteins, Enzymes and Macromolecular Complexes Dr Peter Winn Understanding Cellular Organisation at the Atomic Level

Stress Response of Bacteria Prof Steve Busby Prokaryotic gene regulation Prof Jeff Cole Bacterial physiology and biochemistry Dr Pete Lund Bacterial and archaeal stress response, chaperones and in vivo protein folding

Systems Biology of Bacteria Prof Steve Busby Prokaryotic gene regulation Dr Jan-Ulrich Kreft Cooperation and communication of microbes in biofilms, metabolic division of labour, individual-based modelling, systems biology Dr Pete Lund Bacterial and archaeal stress response, chaperones and in vivo protein folding Prof Charles Penn Molecular biology and functional genomics of bacterial foodborne pathogens Prof Chris Thomas Bacterial plasmid replication, stability & transfer; polyketide synthesis

The Cell Envelope Prof Gurdyal Besra The cell wall of Mycobacterium tuberculosis: A focus for new drug targets and vaccines Dr Apoorva Bhatt Lipid Metabolites of mycobacteria : pathways to biosynthesis and role in virulence

The organisation

The University of Birmingham is a thriving and dynamic institution that combines over a century of heritage with one of the most compelling and ambitious agendas in higher education. Ranked amongst the world’s top 100 institutions, the University is structured to promote faster decision making and to enable it to capitalise on its academic range and financial strength. The University is organised into five academic colleges, with a University Executive Board, led by our Vice-Chancellor, Professor David Eastwood.

Central to our agenda is the development of the University’s five-year strategic plan ‘Shaping Our Future: Birmingham 2015’, that builds upon an existing and ambitious programme of change, ‘Sustainable Excellence’, developed to establish Birmingham as a leading global university.

The strategic plan is based around five mutually supportive goals: enhancing research power; providing students with a distinctive, high-quality experience; sustaining and utilising financial strength; enhancing performance as an engaged university; and becoming the destination of choice amongst our peers. The confidence of the University’s ambition is, in part, underpinned by one of the strongest financial positions in the UK HE sector. The University is currently forecasting a turnover of £460 million for the financial year 2011/2012 and carries significant cash surpluses with no borrowings. This is enabling it to invest in high- quality research and to enhance still further the educational experience for its students, as well as to continue to improve its estate and infrastructure, despite the prevailing economic conditions.

Over 90% of Birmingham’s research was rated as world leading or of international quality in the 2008 UK Research Assessment Exercise (RAE). With world-leading activity across a range of subjects, it remains one of the UK’s most broadly-based research-led universities.

The University’s cultural and intellectual assets include the Shakespeare Institute at Stratford-upon-Avon, the Barber Institute of Fine Arts on campus and the Ironbridge Institute in Shropshire. The University also boasts the internationally renowned Lapworth Museum of Geology and Winterbourne House and Garden, a unique Edwardian heritage attraction that is home to over 6,000 plant species from around the world. In total the University’s economic value to its region is £780 million.

Founded in 1900 and believed to be the UK’s first redbrick university, Birmingham established a new model for higher education, breaking away from the Oxbridge tradition. Through the foresight of our founders we have inherited one of our greatest assets – our beautiful parkland campus, which is currently undergoing a £175 million enhancement programme that includes the new Bramall Music Building, a new sports centre containing the city’s first 50m swimming pool and a proposed library development to provide outstanding facilities for students and researchers alongside an open access cultural hub with facilities available to the public.

The University was founded through philanthropy and fundraising. This is just as important today. Birmingham’s ‘Circles of Influence’ campaign has raised over £60 million since its launch in 2009 and continues to provide funding for five priority areas – Health and Lifestyle; Children and Young People; Heritage, Culture and Sport; Student Support; and Innovation and Immediate Impact.

With 28,000 students from 150 countries, the quality of the student experience offered at the University of Birmingham remains of paramount importance. The University is one of the leading members of the Russell Group in terms of the size of its graduate school and the quality of its student experience as shown by the National Student Survey. As well as high-quality teaching, students also enjoy an enriched experience through other activities such as sport, for which Birmingham is ranked second in the UK.

As Birmingham seeks to extend its global footprint further it is investing in its international strategy, having established overseas offices in India, China and Brussels. These new offices are developing existing contacts and forging new partnerships with academic colleagues and businesses across the Asia Pacific Region and into Australasia. Birmingham is also building strategic partnerships in North America (notably Chicago) and through its membership of Universitas 21.

The city of Birmingham

Birmingham is a major European centre and the second city of the United Kingdom. It is a city of business and ballet, canals and world-class concerts, jewellery and jazz, historical interest and cosmopolitan atmosphere. Birmingham is also the ideal base for exploring one of Britain’s most fascinating regions for tourism, being within an hour’s drive of Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwick, the Potteries, and the Cotswolds.

The new heart of Birmingham is symbolised by Symphony Hall, considered one of the greatest concert venues in the world. Symphony Hall forms part of the impressive International Convention Centre, which overlooks attractive canals at the hub of the UK’s canal network. This setting is a very suitable venue for the CBSO, the globally respected symphony orchestra. At the magnificent Hippodrome Theatre is the internationally renowned Birmingham Royal Ballet, adding further cultural depth to the city. Apart from London’s West End, Birmingham boasts the highest concentration of live theatre in the UK, including regular tours by the major opera companies.

The City Museum and Art Gallery houses the world’s finest collection of Pre- Raphaelite paintings, alongside a major collection of Old Masters, Modern and Contemporary pictures. The Barber Institute of Fine Arts houses one of the best UK university collections of Impressionist and Renaissance art. The restored Gas Hall Gallery has international touring exhibitions, while the Halcyon and Ikon galleries feature innovative contemporary works. National landmark sites abound, including the National Indoor Arena, the National Exhibition Centre, National Motorcycle Museum, National Car Heritage Museum and the National Sealife Centre.

The iconic Bullring Centre is the largest dedicated shopping facility in Europe. Sports and recreation are well served; the city offers international Test cricket, top-flight football, International Championship golf and top-class rugby. The International Convention Centre and National Indoor Arena have spawned a whole new Downtown area at the centre of the city. The National Exhibition Centre, on the outskirts to the city, remains one of the largest exhibition facilities in Europe.

Birmingham is at the crossroads of the UK’s motorways. From Birmingham International Airport, more than a dozen different airlines operate scheduled services to 60 destinations worldwide. The University is the only mainland UK university to have its own railway station, while 50 million passengers a year use Birmingham New Street Station, which will be at the centre of the proposed high speed rail network. London is 90 minutes away by shuttle service, with trains every 20 minutes until the evening. There is a high standard of all types of private accommodation, with high-quality affordable family housing in several attractive residential suburbs. Public parks and large domestic gardens are a special feature of this greenest of European cities. Quality public and private schools are widely available, with several consistently rated in the top 10 on examination performance in annual league tables of England and Wales.

The College of Medical and Dental Sciences

The University’s structure is one of Colleges and Schools, and the College of Medical and Dental Sciences contains five Schools that cover the whole range of pre-clinical and clinical disciplines:

• School of Cancer Sciences • School of Clinical and Experimental Medicine • School of Dentistry • School of Health and Population Sciences • School of Immunity and Infection

The principal base of the College lies immediately between the main campus of the University and the new Queen Elizabeth Hospital, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust. Other key NHS Trust buildings on the same campus include Birmingham Women's NHS Foundation Trust and the Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust’s Barberry Hospital which is part of the National Centre for Mental Health – Birmingham.

Research

The College of Medical and Dental Sciences is the largest of the University’s five Colleges and, with over 800 researchers and in excess of £66M research funding per year, it represents a major international centre for biomedical research.

Our overall research objective is to develop and promote excellence in basic and clinical science with an ultimate goal of delivering improvements in human health. We take pride in a truly translational pipeline, delivering cutting edge clinical trials and patient studies, underpinned by cell and molecular biology research on both model organisms and humans.

Strategically, our research encompasses seven major internationally-renowned research domains:

 Cancer  Genetics and Development  Health and Population Sciences  Cardiovascular, Respiratory and Neurological Sciences  Endocrinology and Metabolism  Dentistry  Immunity and Infection

Importantly, each domain is allied to a range of clinical specialties through which the College links its basic research to translational endpoints.

We have great pride in our interactions with local NHS environment, most obviously exemplified through ‘Birmingham Health Partners’, an exciting collaborative platform between the University, Birmingham Children’s Hospital and University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust (UHBFT) that will enable rapid movement from laboratory discovery to patient benefit, fostering new therapeutic and healthcare innovations by creating a truly integrated environment for researchers and clinicians.

Education

Each year the College trains 374 medical students including the Graduate Entry course (105 medical students are able to intercalate on a choice of programmes after the second, third or fourth year of their course), 75 dental students, 21 biomedical materials science students, 96 medical science students and 104 nursing students.

2013 also sees the introduction of a new undergraduate Pharmacy programme that will initially recruit 70 students per year. Medical student teaching takes place at all hospitals in Birmingham, but has recently expanded into many of the hospitals in the Black Country.

There are also approximately 475 postgraduate taught students and 382 research students in the College, managed by a cross-College Graduate School. The College has excellent library and reference facilities including the newly refurbished Barnes library and Doug Ellis Learning Hub.

Programmes and Facilities

The College has encompassed some major developments, expansion and improvement to its facilities, education delivery and research activity in recent years.

This includes a £35m Institute of Biomedical Research, a state-of-the-art £11.8m Wolfson Centre for Medical Education and a prosectorium facility for anatomy teaching incorporating 10 ventilated tables and high tech AV teaching aids. The College has also created a new £1m phantom head teaching laboratory facility within the School of Dentistry.

Among the most recent investments is refurbishment of the Medical School building foyer and Barnes library providing impressive visitor and student services facilities. To further our research strengths the College developed the state-of the-art Advanced Therapies Facility which includes a new purpose built HTA-compliant biorepository (Human Biomaterials Resource Centre),Cell and Gene Therapy Pharmacy, and commercial spin out laboratory. Alongside these developments, the NIHR/Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Facility (CRF) received the largest award renewal in the UK of £12.8 million from the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) to support its activity and to strengthen its current expansion. The College also launched the Health Research Bus, a mobile clinical research facility funded via Birmingham Science City. This was the first of its kind and a great development for clinical research in the College.

The collaboratively-funded NIHR Institute for Health Research Surgical Reconstruction and Microbiology Research Centre was developed in 2011, which combines clinical practice in the battlefield and innovation in medical research to benefit all trauma patients.

In 2012, the College secured high quality laboratory and clinical research facilities within the new University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust (UHBFT) Queen Elizabeth Hospital, through our Centre for Translational Inflammation. It houses a number of national and international centres including the MRC-ARUK Centre for Musculoskeletal Ageing, ARUK Centre for Experimental Medicine (BEAT RA), the NIHR Translational Research Partnership in Joint and Related Inflammatory Diseases and the Healing Foundation Burns Research Centre.

In 2012 government funding was also announced for the development of a £24m Institute of Translational Medicine in Birmingham in collaboration with UHBFT, bringing Birmingham into the forefront of international translational medicine research. The institute will help progress the very latest scientific research findings from the University into enhanced treatments for patients across a range of major health issues including cancer and liver disease.