![James McLaren](https://profiles-cardiff.imgix.net/attachments/2511?w=200&h=200&auto=format&crop=faces&fit=crop&q=90")
Dr James McLaren
Senior Lecturer in Immunology
- Available for postgraduate supervision
Overview
My research interests focus on understanding how adaptive immune responses, driven by T cells, respond to virus and bacterial infections and also how pathogenic microorganisms utilise evolved strategies to evade T cells. Furthermore, I have a keen interest in discovering how this type of cellular immunity is regulated by biological signals (cytokines) and how it can destabilise when global immune responses become imbalanced, such as in sepsis.
I am currently involved with "Project Sepsis", a research collaboration across medicine and scientific disciplines that has been established to address an urgent medical need for an accurate, rapid diagnosis that detects the infectious cause underlying the onset of sepsis. Here, a key aim is to deconvolute the immunological mechanisms that drive the suppression of adaptive immunity in sepsis with a view to help improve diagnosis and to inform the design of novel therapeutic interventions.
Publication
2024
- Giannoni, E. et al. 2024. Sepsis shapes the human γδ TCR repertoire in an age- and pathogen-dependent manner. European Journal of Immunology 54(10), article number: 2451190. (10.1002/eji.202451190)
- Davies, K. and McLaren, J. 2024. Destabilisation of T cell-dependent humoral immunity in sepsis. Clinical Science 138(1), pp. 65-85. (10.1042/CS20230517)
2023
- Oruganti, S. et al. 2023. Immune and metabolic markers for identifying and investigating severe Coronavirus disease and Sepsis in children and young people (pSeP/COVID ChYP study): protocol for a prospective cohort study. BMJ Open 13, article number: e067002. (10.1136/bmjopen-2022-067002)
- Shepherd, F. R. et al. 2023. The superantigens SpeC and TSST-1 specifically activate TRBV12-3/12-4+ memory T cells. Communications Biology 6, article number: 78. (10.1038/s42003-023-04420-1)
2022
- Goncharov, M. et al. 2022. VDJdb in the pandemic era: a compendium of T cell receptors specific for SARS-CoV-2. Nature Methods 19(9), pp. 1017–1019. (10.1038/s41592-022-01578-0)
- Pymm, P. et al. 2022. Epitope length variants balance protective immune responses and viral escape in HIV-1 infection. Cell Reports 38(9), article number: 110449. (10.1016/j.celrep.2022.110449)
- Misheva, M. et al. 2022. Oxylipin metabolism is controlled by mitochondrial β-oxidation during bacterial inflammation. Nature Communications 13(1), article number: 139. (10.1038/s41467-021-27766-8)
2021
- Chakraborty, M. et al. 2021. nSeP: immune and metabolic biomarkers for early detection of neonatal sepsis-protocol for a prospective multicohort study. BMJ Open 11(12), article number: e050100. (10.1136/bmjopen-2021-050100)
- Campion, S. L. et al. 2021. Preexisting memory CD4+ T cells contribute to the primary response in an HIV-1 vaccine trial. Journal of Clinical Investigation 131(23), article number: e150823. (10.1172/JCI150823)
- Clement, M. et al. 2021. CD8 coreceptor-mediated focusing can reorder the agonist hierarchy of peptide ligands recognized via the T cell receptor. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 118(29), article number: e2019639118. (10.1073/pnas.2019639118)
2020
- Narayanan, G. A. et al. 2020. The MAIT TCRβ chain contributes to discrimination of microbial ligand. Immunology and Cell Biology 98(9), pp. 770-781. (10.1111/imcb.12370)
- Shepherd, F. R. and McLaren, J. E. 2020. T cell immunity to bacterial pathogens: mechanisms of immune control and bacterial evasion. International Journal of Molecular Sciences 21(17), article number: 6144. (10.3390/ijms21176144)
- Pearson, F. E. et al. 2020. Human CLEC9A antibodies deliver Wilms' tumor 1 (WT1) antigen to CD141+ dendritic cells to activate naïve and memory WT1‐specific CD8+ T cells. Clinical and Translational Immunology 9 (10.1002/cti2.1141)
- Edwards, S. C. et al. 2020. A population of proinflammatory T cells coexpresses αβ and γδ T cell receptors in mice and humans. Journal of Experimental Medicine 217(5), article number: e20190834. (10.1084/jem.20190834)
- Starke, C. E. et al. 2020. SIV-specific CD8+ T cells are clonotypically distinct across lymphoid and mucosal tissues. Journal of Clinical Investigation 130(2), pp. 789-798. (10.1172/JCI129161)
- Brenna, E. et al. 2020. CD4+ T follicular helper cells in human tonsils and blood are clonally convergent but divergent from Non-Tfh CD4+ cells. Cell Reports 30(1), pp. 137-152. (10.1016/j.celrep.2019.12.016)
2019
- Meckiff, B. J. et al. 2019. Primary EBV infection induces an acute wave of activated antigen-specific cytotoxic CD4+ T cells. Journal of Immunology 203(3), article number: ji1900377. (10.4049/jimmunol.1900377)
- Wong, E. B. et al. 2019. TRAV1-2+ CD8+ T-cells including oligoconal expansions of MAIT cells are enriched in the airways in human tuberculosis. Communications Biology 2(1), pp. -., article number: 203. (10.1038/s42003-019-0442-2)
- Li, N. et al. 2019. Memory CD4+ T cells are generated in the human fetal intestine. Nature Immunology 20, pp. 301-312. (10.1038/s41590-018-0294-9)
- Mayassi, T. et al. 2019. Chronic inflammation permanently reshapes tissue-resident immunity in celiac disease. Cell 176(5), pp. 967-981.e19. (10.1016/j.cell.2018.12.039)
- McLaren, J. et al. 2019. IL-33 augments virus-specific memory T Cell inflation and potentiates the efficacy of an attenuated cytomegalovirus-based vaccinea. Journal of Immunology 202(3), pp. 943-955. (10.4049/jimmunol.1701757)
2018
- Pogorelyy, M. V. et al. 2018. Exploring the pre-immune landscape of antigen-specific T cells. Genome Medicine 10, article number: 68. (10.1186/s13073-018-0577-7)
- Wun, K. S. et al. 2018. T cell autoreactivity directed toward CD1c itself rather than toward carried self lipids. Nature Immunology 19, pp. 397-406. (10.1038/s41590-018-0065-7)
- Culina, S. et al. 2018. Islet-reactive CD8+ T cell frequencies in the pancreas, but not in blood, distinguish type 1 diabetic patients from healthy donors. Science Immunology 3(20), article number: eaao4013. (10.1126/sciimmunol.aao4013)
- Shugay, M. et al. 2018. VDJdb: a curated database of T-cell receptor sequences with known antigen specificity. Nucleic Acids Research 46(D1), pp. D419-D427. (10.1093/nar/gkx760)
- Lissina, A. et al. 2018. Divergent roles for antigenic drive in the aetiology of primary versus dasatinib-associated CD8+ TCR-Vβ+ expansions. Scientific Reports 8(1), article number: 2534. (10.1038/s41598-017-18062-x)
2017
- Culshaw, A. et al. 2017. Germline bias dictates cross-serotype reactivity in a common dengue-virus-specific CD8+ T cell response. Nature Immunology 18, pp. 1228-1237. (10.1038/ni.3850)
- Davey, M. S. et al. 2017. Clonal selection in the human Vδ1 T cell repertoire indicates γδ TCR-dependent adaptive immune surveillance. Nature Communications 8, article number: 14760. (10.1038/ncomms14760)
- Dockree, T. et al. 2017. CD8+ T-cell specificity is compromised at a defined MHCI/CD8 affinity threshold. Immunology and Cell Biology 95(1), pp. 68-76. (10.1038/icb.2016.85)
2016
- Clement, M. et al. 2016. Targeted suppression of autoreactive CD8+ T-cell activation using blocking anti-CD8 antibodies. Scientific Reports 6, article number: 35332. (10.1038/srep35332)
- Pearson, J. A. et al. 2016. Proinsulin expression shapes the TCR repertoire but fails to control the development of low-avidity insulin-reactive CD8+ T cells. Diabetes 65(6), pp. 1679-1689. (10.2337/db15-1498)
2015
- Liuzzi, A. R., McLaren, J. E., Price, D. and Eberl, M. 2015. Early innate responses to pathogens: pattern recognition by unconventional human T-cells. Current Opinion in Immunology 36, pp. 31-37. (10.1016/j.coi.2015.06.002)
- Neller, M. A. et al. 2015. Naive CD8+ T-cell precursors display structured TCR repertoires and composite antigen-driven selection dynamics. Immunology and Cell Biology 93, pp. 625-633. (10.1038/icb.2015.17)
- Petersen, J. et al. 2015. Determinants of gliadin-specific T cell selection in celiac disease. The Journal of Immunology 194(12), pp. 6112-6122. (10.4049/jimmunol.1500161)
- Kloverpris, H. N. et al. 2015. CD8+ TCR bias and immunodominance in HIV-1 infection. The Journal of Immunology 194(11), pp. 5329-5345. (10.4049/jimmunol.1400854)
- Roberto, A. et al. 2015. Role of naive-derived T memory stem cells in T-cell reconstitution following allogeneic transplantation. Blood 125(18), pp. 2855-2864. (10.1182/blood-2014-11-608406)
- Skowera, A. et al. 2015. β-Cell-specific CD8 T Cell phenotype in Type 1 diabetes reflects chronic autoantigen exposure. Diabetes 64(3), pp. 916-925. (10.2337/db14-0332)
- Costa, A. I. et al. 2015. Complex T-cell receptor repertoire dynamics underlie the CD8+T-cell response to HIV-1. Journal of Virology 89(1), pp. 110-119. (10.1128/JVI.01765-14)
2014
- Pearson, J., Thayer, T. C., McLaren, J. E., Miners, K. L., Ladell, K. I., Price, D. and Wong, F. S. 2014. Analysis of the repertoire of insulin-reactive CD8(+) T cells [Abstract]. Immunology 143(S2), pp. 152-152. (10.1111/imm.12406)
- Bengsch, B. et al. 2014. Identification of a TSCM phenotype HCV-specific CD8+T cell response with superior functionality in chronic HCV infection [Abstract]. Hepatology 60, pp. 1071A-1072A., article number: 1815.
- Kløverpris, H. N. et al. 2014. Programmed death-1 expression on HIV-1-specific CD8+ T cells is shaped by epitope specificity, T-cell receptor clonotype usage and antigen load. AIDS 28(14), pp. 2007-2021. (10.1097/QAD.0000000000000362)
- Gold, M. C. et al. 2014. MR1-restricted MAIT cells display ligand discrimination and pathogen selectivity through distinct T cell receptor usage. Journal of Experimental Medicine 211(8), pp. 1601-1610. (10.1084/jem.20140507)
- Davies, T. S., Li, N., McLaren, J., Hughes, T. R. and Ramji, D. P. 2014. Pro- therogenic actions of interferon-gamma on macrophages in atherosclerosis. Cardiology 128(S1), pp. 278-278. (10.1159/000365062)
- Lissina, A. et al. 2014. The link between CD8+ T-cell antigen-sensitivity and HIV-suppressive capacity depends on HLA restriction, target epitope and viral isolate. AIDS 28(4), pp. 477-486. (10.1097/QAD.0000000000000175)
2013
- Ladell, K. I. et al. 2013. A molecular basis for the control of preimmune escape variants by HIV-specific CD8+ T cells. Immunity 38(3), pp. 425-436. (10.1016/j.immuni.2012.11.021)
2012
- Humphreys, I. R. et al. 2012. Avidity of influenza-specific memory CD8+T-cell populations decays over time compromising antiviral immunity. European Journal of Immunology 42(12), pp. 3235-3242. (10.1002/eji.201242575)
- Doherty, T. M. et al. 2012. A T Cell-inducing influenza vaccine for the elderly: safety and immunogenicity of MVA-NP+M1 in adults aged over 50 years. PLoS ONE 7(10), article number: e48322. (10.1371/journal.pone.0048322)
2011
- McLaren, J. E., Michael, D. R., Guschina, I., Harwood, J. L. and Ramji, D. P. 2011. Eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid regulate modified LDL uptake and macropinocytosis in human macrophages. Lipids 46(11), pp. 1053-1061.
- Sexton, K. J., Balharry, D. C., Brennan, P., McLaren, J. E., Brewis, I. A. and Berube, K. A. 2011. Proteomic profiling of human respiratory epithelia by iTRAQ reveals biomarkers of exposure and harm by tobacco smoke components. Biomarkers 16(7), pp. 567-576. (10.3109/1354750X.2011.608855)
- McLaren, J. E., Michael, D. R., Ashlin, T. G. and Ramji, D. P. 2011. Cytokines, macrophage lipid metabolism and foam cells: implications for cardiovascular disease therapy. Progress in Lipid Research 50(4), pp. 331-347. (10.1016/j.plipres.2011.04.002)
2010
- Li, N., McLaren, J. E., Michael, D. R., Clement, M., Fielding, C. A. and Ramji, D. P. 2010. ERK is integral to the IFN-γ-mediated activation of STAT1, the expression of key genes implicated in atherosclerosis, and the uptake of modified lipoproteins by human macrophages. The Journal of Immunology 185(5), pp. 3041-3048. (10.4049/jimmunol.1000993)
- McLaren, J. E. et al. 2010. IL-33 reduces macrophage foam cell formation. The Journal of Immunology 185(2), pp. 1222-1229. (10.4049/jimmunol.1000520)
- McLaren, J. E. et al. 2010. The TNF-like protein 1A-death receptor 3 pathway promotes macrophage foam cell formation in vitro. Journal of Immunology 184(10), pp. 5827-5834. (10.4049/jimmunol.0903782)
2009
- McLaren, J. E., Zuo, J., Grimstead, J. W., Poghosyan, Z., Bell, A. I., Rowe, M. and Brennan, P. 2009. STAT1 contributes to the maintenance of the latency III viral programme observed in Epstein-Barr virus-transformed B cells and their recognition by CD8+ T cells. Journal of General Virology 90(9), pp. 2239-2250. (10.1099/vir.0.011627-0)
- McLaren, J. E. and Ramji, D. P. 2009. Interferon gamma: A master regulator of atherosclerosis. Cytokine & Growth Factor Reviews 20(2), pp. 125-135. (10.1016/j.cytogfr.2008.11.003)
2007
- McLaren, J. E., Rowe, M. and Brennan, P. 2007. Epstein-Barr virus induces a distinct form of DNA-bound STAT1 compared with that found in interferon-stimulated B lymphocytes. Journal of General Virology 88(7), pp. 1876-1886. (10.1099/vir.0.82741-0)
- McLaren, J. E. 2007. Regulation of the STAT1 by the Epstein-Barr virus.. PhD Thesis, Cardiff University.
2006
- White, P. C., Shore, A. M., Clement, M., McLaren, J. E., Soeiro, I., Lam, E. W. and Brennan, P. 2006. Regulation of cyclin D2 and the cyclin D2 promoter by protein kinase A and CREB in lymphocytes. Oncogene 25(15), pp. 2170-2180. (10.1038/sj.onc.1209255)
Articles
- Giannoni, E. et al. 2024. Sepsis shapes the human γδ TCR repertoire in an age- and pathogen-dependent manner. European Journal of Immunology 54(10), article number: 2451190. (10.1002/eji.202451190)
- Davies, K. and McLaren, J. 2024. Destabilisation of T cell-dependent humoral immunity in sepsis. Clinical Science 138(1), pp. 65-85. (10.1042/CS20230517)
- Oruganti, S. et al. 2023. Immune and metabolic markers for identifying and investigating severe Coronavirus disease and Sepsis in children and young people (pSeP/COVID ChYP study): protocol for a prospective cohort study. BMJ Open 13, article number: e067002. (10.1136/bmjopen-2022-067002)
- Shepherd, F. R. et al. 2023. The superantigens SpeC and TSST-1 specifically activate TRBV12-3/12-4+ memory T cells. Communications Biology 6, article number: 78. (10.1038/s42003-023-04420-1)
- Goncharov, M. et al. 2022. VDJdb in the pandemic era: a compendium of T cell receptors specific for SARS-CoV-2. Nature Methods 19(9), pp. 1017–1019. (10.1038/s41592-022-01578-0)
- Pymm, P. et al. 2022. Epitope length variants balance protective immune responses and viral escape in HIV-1 infection. Cell Reports 38(9), article number: 110449. (10.1016/j.celrep.2022.110449)
- Misheva, M. et al. 2022. Oxylipin metabolism is controlled by mitochondrial β-oxidation during bacterial inflammation. Nature Communications 13(1), article number: 139. (10.1038/s41467-021-27766-8)
- Chakraborty, M. et al. 2021. nSeP: immune and metabolic biomarkers for early detection of neonatal sepsis-protocol for a prospective multicohort study. BMJ Open 11(12), article number: e050100. (10.1136/bmjopen-2021-050100)
- Campion, S. L. et al. 2021. Preexisting memory CD4+ T cells contribute to the primary response in an HIV-1 vaccine trial. Journal of Clinical Investigation 131(23), article number: e150823. (10.1172/JCI150823)
- Clement, M. et al. 2021. CD8 coreceptor-mediated focusing can reorder the agonist hierarchy of peptide ligands recognized via the T cell receptor. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 118(29), article number: e2019639118. (10.1073/pnas.2019639118)
- Narayanan, G. A. et al. 2020. The MAIT TCRβ chain contributes to discrimination of microbial ligand. Immunology and Cell Biology 98(9), pp. 770-781. (10.1111/imcb.12370)
- Shepherd, F. R. and McLaren, J. E. 2020. T cell immunity to bacterial pathogens: mechanisms of immune control and bacterial evasion. International Journal of Molecular Sciences 21(17), article number: 6144. (10.3390/ijms21176144)
- Pearson, F. E. et al. 2020. Human CLEC9A antibodies deliver Wilms' tumor 1 (WT1) antigen to CD141+ dendritic cells to activate naïve and memory WT1‐specific CD8+ T cells. Clinical and Translational Immunology 9 (10.1002/cti2.1141)
- Edwards, S. C. et al. 2020. A population of proinflammatory T cells coexpresses αβ and γδ T cell receptors in mice and humans. Journal of Experimental Medicine 217(5), article number: e20190834. (10.1084/jem.20190834)
- Starke, C. E. et al. 2020. SIV-specific CD8+ T cells are clonotypically distinct across lymphoid and mucosal tissues. Journal of Clinical Investigation 130(2), pp. 789-798. (10.1172/JCI129161)
- Brenna, E. et al. 2020. CD4+ T follicular helper cells in human tonsils and blood are clonally convergent but divergent from Non-Tfh CD4+ cells. Cell Reports 30(1), pp. 137-152. (10.1016/j.celrep.2019.12.016)
- Meckiff, B. J. et al. 2019. Primary EBV infection induces an acute wave of activated antigen-specific cytotoxic CD4+ T cells. Journal of Immunology 203(3), article number: ji1900377. (10.4049/jimmunol.1900377)
- Wong, E. B. et al. 2019. TRAV1-2+ CD8+ T-cells including oligoconal expansions of MAIT cells are enriched in the airways in human tuberculosis. Communications Biology 2(1), pp. -., article number: 203. (10.1038/s42003-019-0442-2)
- Li, N. et al. 2019. Memory CD4+ T cells are generated in the human fetal intestine. Nature Immunology 20, pp. 301-312. (10.1038/s41590-018-0294-9)
- Mayassi, T. et al. 2019. Chronic inflammation permanently reshapes tissue-resident immunity in celiac disease. Cell 176(5), pp. 967-981.e19. (10.1016/j.cell.2018.12.039)
- McLaren, J. et al. 2019. IL-33 augments virus-specific memory T Cell inflation and potentiates the efficacy of an attenuated cytomegalovirus-based vaccinea. Journal of Immunology 202(3), pp. 943-955. (10.4049/jimmunol.1701757)
- Pogorelyy, M. V. et al. 2018. Exploring the pre-immune landscape of antigen-specific T cells. Genome Medicine 10, article number: 68. (10.1186/s13073-018-0577-7)
- Wun, K. S. et al. 2018. T cell autoreactivity directed toward CD1c itself rather than toward carried self lipids. Nature Immunology 19, pp. 397-406. (10.1038/s41590-018-0065-7)
- Culina, S. et al. 2018. Islet-reactive CD8+ T cell frequencies in the pancreas, but not in blood, distinguish type 1 diabetic patients from healthy donors. Science Immunology 3(20), article number: eaao4013. (10.1126/sciimmunol.aao4013)
- Shugay, M. et al. 2018. VDJdb: a curated database of T-cell receptor sequences with known antigen specificity. Nucleic Acids Research 46(D1), pp. D419-D427. (10.1093/nar/gkx760)
- Lissina, A. et al. 2018. Divergent roles for antigenic drive in the aetiology of primary versus dasatinib-associated CD8+ TCR-Vβ+ expansions. Scientific Reports 8(1), article number: 2534. (10.1038/s41598-017-18062-x)
- Culshaw, A. et al. 2017. Germline bias dictates cross-serotype reactivity in a common dengue-virus-specific CD8+ T cell response. Nature Immunology 18, pp. 1228-1237. (10.1038/ni.3850)
- Davey, M. S. et al. 2017. Clonal selection in the human Vδ1 T cell repertoire indicates γδ TCR-dependent adaptive immune surveillance. Nature Communications 8, article number: 14760. (10.1038/ncomms14760)
- Dockree, T. et al. 2017. CD8+ T-cell specificity is compromised at a defined MHCI/CD8 affinity threshold. Immunology and Cell Biology 95(1), pp. 68-76. (10.1038/icb.2016.85)
- Clement, M. et al. 2016. Targeted suppression of autoreactive CD8+ T-cell activation using blocking anti-CD8 antibodies. Scientific Reports 6, article number: 35332. (10.1038/srep35332)
- Pearson, J. A. et al. 2016. Proinsulin expression shapes the TCR repertoire but fails to control the development of low-avidity insulin-reactive CD8+ T cells. Diabetes 65(6), pp. 1679-1689. (10.2337/db15-1498)
- Liuzzi, A. R., McLaren, J. E., Price, D. and Eberl, M. 2015. Early innate responses to pathogens: pattern recognition by unconventional human T-cells. Current Opinion in Immunology 36, pp. 31-37. (10.1016/j.coi.2015.06.002)
- Neller, M. A. et al. 2015. Naive CD8+ T-cell precursors display structured TCR repertoires and composite antigen-driven selection dynamics. Immunology and Cell Biology 93, pp. 625-633. (10.1038/icb.2015.17)
- Petersen, J. et al. 2015. Determinants of gliadin-specific T cell selection in celiac disease. The Journal of Immunology 194(12), pp. 6112-6122. (10.4049/jimmunol.1500161)
- Kloverpris, H. N. et al. 2015. CD8+ TCR bias and immunodominance in HIV-1 infection. The Journal of Immunology 194(11), pp. 5329-5345. (10.4049/jimmunol.1400854)
- Roberto, A. et al. 2015. Role of naive-derived T memory stem cells in T-cell reconstitution following allogeneic transplantation. Blood 125(18), pp. 2855-2864. (10.1182/blood-2014-11-608406)
- Skowera, A. et al. 2015. β-Cell-specific CD8 T Cell phenotype in Type 1 diabetes reflects chronic autoantigen exposure. Diabetes 64(3), pp. 916-925. (10.2337/db14-0332)
- Costa, A. I. et al. 2015. Complex T-cell receptor repertoire dynamics underlie the CD8+T-cell response to HIV-1. Journal of Virology 89(1), pp. 110-119. (10.1128/JVI.01765-14)
- Pearson, J., Thayer, T. C., McLaren, J. E., Miners, K. L., Ladell, K. I., Price, D. and Wong, F. S. 2014. Analysis of the repertoire of insulin-reactive CD8(+) T cells [Abstract]. Immunology 143(S2), pp. 152-152. (10.1111/imm.12406)
- Bengsch, B. et al. 2014. Identification of a TSCM phenotype HCV-specific CD8+T cell response with superior functionality in chronic HCV infection [Abstract]. Hepatology 60, pp. 1071A-1072A., article number: 1815.
- Kløverpris, H. N. et al. 2014. Programmed death-1 expression on HIV-1-specific CD8+ T cells is shaped by epitope specificity, T-cell receptor clonotype usage and antigen load. AIDS 28(14), pp. 2007-2021. (10.1097/QAD.0000000000000362)
- Gold, M. C. et al. 2014. MR1-restricted MAIT cells display ligand discrimination and pathogen selectivity through distinct T cell receptor usage. Journal of Experimental Medicine 211(8), pp. 1601-1610. (10.1084/jem.20140507)
- Davies, T. S., Li, N., McLaren, J., Hughes, T. R. and Ramji, D. P. 2014. Pro- therogenic actions of interferon-gamma on macrophages in atherosclerosis. Cardiology 128(S1), pp. 278-278. (10.1159/000365062)
- Lissina, A. et al. 2014. The link between CD8+ T-cell antigen-sensitivity and HIV-suppressive capacity depends on HLA restriction, target epitope and viral isolate. AIDS 28(4), pp. 477-486. (10.1097/QAD.0000000000000175)
- Ladell, K. I. et al. 2013. A molecular basis for the control of preimmune escape variants by HIV-specific CD8+ T cells. Immunity 38(3), pp. 425-436. (10.1016/j.immuni.2012.11.021)
- Humphreys, I. R. et al. 2012. Avidity of influenza-specific memory CD8+T-cell populations decays over time compromising antiviral immunity. European Journal of Immunology 42(12), pp. 3235-3242. (10.1002/eji.201242575)
- Doherty, T. M. et al. 2012. A T Cell-inducing influenza vaccine for the elderly: safety and immunogenicity of MVA-NP+M1 in adults aged over 50 years. PLoS ONE 7(10), article number: e48322. (10.1371/journal.pone.0048322)
- McLaren, J. E., Michael, D. R., Guschina, I., Harwood, J. L. and Ramji, D. P. 2011. Eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid regulate modified LDL uptake and macropinocytosis in human macrophages. Lipids 46(11), pp. 1053-1061.
- Sexton, K. J., Balharry, D. C., Brennan, P., McLaren, J. E., Brewis, I. A. and Berube, K. A. 2011. Proteomic profiling of human respiratory epithelia by iTRAQ reveals biomarkers of exposure and harm by tobacco smoke components. Biomarkers 16(7), pp. 567-576. (10.3109/1354750X.2011.608855)
- McLaren, J. E., Michael, D. R., Ashlin, T. G. and Ramji, D. P. 2011. Cytokines, macrophage lipid metabolism and foam cells: implications for cardiovascular disease therapy. Progress in Lipid Research 50(4), pp. 331-347. (10.1016/j.plipres.2011.04.002)
- Li, N., McLaren, J. E., Michael, D. R., Clement, M., Fielding, C. A. and Ramji, D. P. 2010. ERK is integral to the IFN-γ-mediated activation of STAT1, the expression of key genes implicated in atherosclerosis, and the uptake of modified lipoproteins by human macrophages. The Journal of Immunology 185(5), pp. 3041-3048. (10.4049/jimmunol.1000993)
- McLaren, J. E. et al. 2010. IL-33 reduces macrophage foam cell formation. The Journal of Immunology 185(2), pp. 1222-1229. (10.4049/jimmunol.1000520)
- McLaren, J. E. et al. 2010. The TNF-like protein 1A-death receptor 3 pathway promotes macrophage foam cell formation in vitro. Journal of Immunology 184(10), pp. 5827-5834. (10.4049/jimmunol.0903782)
- McLaren, J. E., Zuo, J., Grimstead, J. W., Poghosyan, Z., Bell, A. I., Rowe, M. and Brennan, P. 2009. STAT1 contributes to the maintenance of the latency III viral programme observed in Epstein-Barr virus-transformed B cells and their recognition by CD8+ T cells. Journal of General Virology 90(9), pp. 2239-2250. (10.1099/vir.0.011627-0)
- McLaren, J. E. and Ramji, D. P. 2009. Interferon gamma: A master regulator of atherosclerosis. Cytokine & Growth Factor Reviews 20(2), pp. 125-135. (10.1016/j.cytogfr.2008.11.003)
- McLaren, J. E., Rowe, M. and Brennan, P. 2007. Epstein-Barr virus induces a distinct form of DNA-bound STAT1 compared with that found in interferon-stimulated B lymphocytes. Journal of General Virology 88(7), pp. 1876-1886. (10.1099/vir.0.82741-0)
- White, P. C., Shore, A. M., Clement, M., McLaren, J. E., Soeiro, I., Lam, E. W. and Brennan, P. 2006. Regulation of cyclin D2 and the cyclin D2 promoter by protein kinase A and CREB in lymphocytes. Oncogene 25(15), pp. 2170-2180. (10.1038/sj.onc.1209255)
Thesis
- McLaren, J. E. 2007. Regulation of the STAT1 by the Epstein-Barr virus.. PhD Thesis, Cardiff University.
- Shepherd, F. R. et al. 2023. The superantigens SpeC and TSST-1 specifically activate TRBV12-3/12-4+ memory T cells. Communications Biology 6, article number: 78. (10.1038/s42003-023-04420-1)
Teaching
Teaching:
- MET921 - MSc Applied & Experimental Clinical Immunology
- MBBCh degree SSC Year 2: Interactive Immunology and Infectious Diseases - Lecturer and practical contributor
- MBBCh degree SSC Year 1: Literature Review
- MBBCh degree Year 1 Platform for Clinical Science (PCS): Applied Immunology - Academic Tutor
- MBBCh degree personal tutor
Student appraising:
- PhD student appraiser and panel chair
- PhD and MSc student examiner
Biography
My research career began in 2004 with a Ph.D. in the laboratory of Professor Martin Rowe and Dr. Paul Brennan at Cardiff University. During this time, my research focused on dissecting how Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) dysregulates key antiviral mechanisms (interferon signaling) during B-cell transformation. This research sparked my interest in cytokine modulation of adaptive immunity. From here, I undertook my first post-doctoral position, under the supervision of Dr. Dipak Ramji at Cardiff University, where I studied how cytokines manipulate the formation of macrophage-derived foam cells. Foam cell formation is a key process in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis and heart disease and I determined that interleukin-33 (IL-33) could inhibit macrophage foam cell formation, which was a novel discovery at the time.
In 2010, I was awarded a Wellcome Trust Value in People (VIP) Fellowship to join the laboratory of Professor David Price at Cardiff University to expand my interests in viral immunology and cytokine biology. Here, I focused on performing high-tech approaches (polychromatic flow cytometry, advanced T cell receptor sequencing) to understand how antigen-specific T cell immune responses are mobilized in humans and mice during virus (HIV, cytomegalovirus, EBV, dengue virus) infection, microbial colonisation, inflammation and disease. During this fellowship and beyond (2010-2018), I have made some significant contributions to the immunological field, including a number of high-impact publications (Cell, Nature Immunology, Science Immunology, Immunity, Journal of Experimental Medicine), and have been invited to give lectures on this research at conferences, biotech companies and academic institutions in the UK and Australia. Additionally, I expanded my interests in cytokines (e.g. IL-33) by examining how they regulate T cell immunity during virus infection in vivo.
In 2018, I was recruited as a Lecturer in Systems Immunity at Cardiff University to apply my expertise in T cell profiling during infection for “Project Sepsis”, a new research collaboration that has been established to address an urgent medical need to accurately diagnose sepsis and to develop novel therapeutic interventions. In 2023, I was promoted to Senior Lecturer and my research interests currently focus around understanding how T cells respond to bacterial and viral infections and also how these mircro-organisms utilise strategies to evade T cells
Honours and awards
- Cardiff University SIURI Rutherford Travel Fund Grant (2018)
- British Society of Immunology Travel Award – 41st Annual International Herpesvirus Worksop, Madison, WI, USA (2016)
- Cardiff University Morgan E Williams Fund award (2016)
- Cardiff University WM Thomas Fund award (2016)
- 1st prize for best presentation at Cardiff University I3-IRG annual meeting (2007)
- Travel Fellowship - 12th Biennial conference of the International Association for Research on Epstein-Barr Virus and Associated Diseases, Boston, MA, USA (2006)
Professional memberships
- Member of the British Society of Immunology
Academic positions
- 2023-present: Senior Lecturer in Immunology, Division of Infection & Immunity, Cardiff University, UK
- 2018-2023: Lecturer in Systems Immunity, Division of Infection & Immunity, Cardiff University, UK
- 2011-2018: Research Associate, Division of Infection & Immunity, Cardiff University, UK
- 2014: Visiting Scholar, Vaccine Research Center, NIAID, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20982, USA
- 2010-2011: Wellcome Trust Value in People Research Fellow, Cardiff University, UK
- 2007-2010: British Heart Foundation Research Associate, School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, UK
Committees and reviewing
Committees and grant reviewing:
- Grant reviewer, Medical Research Council
- Grant reviewer, Academy of Medical Sciences
- Grant reviewer, Agence Nationale de la Recherche (France)
- Grant reviewer, Swiss National Science Foundation
- Grant panel, Wellcome Trust/Cardiff University ISSF
- Grant reviewer/panel, UKRI Harmonised Impact Acceleration Account
- ECR Expert Panel. Oxford Open Immunology
Journal reviewing:
- Journal Reviewer, Advanced Science
- Journal Reviewer, European Journal of Immunology
- Journal Reviewer, Frontiers in Immunology
- Journal Reviewer, Frontiers in Virology
- Journal Reviewer, iScience
- Journal Reviewer, International Journal of Molecular Sciences
- Journal Reviewer, Journal of Immunology
- Journal Reviewer, Lancet EBioMedicine
- Journal Reviewer, Nature Communications
Editorial board:
- Section Editor, Journal of Immunology
- Editorial board, Frontiers in Genetics
- Editorial board, Frontiers in Medicine
Supervisions
I am interested in supervising PhD students with a strong interest in T cell immunology in the areas of:
- Virus-specific T cell immunity
- Bacterial-driven T cell immune evasion
- Cytokine-driven modulation of adaptive immunity
- Mechanisms of immune suppression during sepsis
Current supervision
Kate Davies
Research student
Past projects
- Katherine Stanswood (2022) - MSc Applied and Experimental Clinical Immunology (dissertation project) - "Immunophenotyping mechanisms of T cell dysfunction during the onset of sepsis"
- Annie Bird (2022) - MSc Bioinformatics (dissertation project) - "Revolutionising cellular phenotyping: Transcript and protein profiling using single-cell multi-omics sequencing"
- Lucy Sheikh (2023) - MSc Applied and Experimental Clinical Immunology dissertation project - "Immunophenotyping dysfunctional antimicrobial T cell immunity during sepsis"
Engagement
- Active contributor to Cardiff University Science in Health: Live week
- Contributor to Learned Society of Wales & Seren Network Outreach Pilot Project 2018
Contact Details
McLarenJE@cardiff.ac.uk
+44 29207 44431
Sir Geraint Evans Cardiovascular Research Building, Room 2/04, University Hospital of Wales, Heath Park, Cardiff, CF14 4XN
+44 29207 44431
Sir Geraint Evans Cardiovascular Research Building, Room 2/04, University Hospital of Wales, Heath Park, Cardiff, CF14 4XN
Research themes
Specialisms
- Immunology
- Cellular immunology
- Infectious diseases
- T cell immunity
