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Prof Timothy SC Hinks

Prof Timothy SC Hinks

Research groups

The Hinks Lab

The Oxford severe asthma MDT and research nurse team

The Oxford severe asthma MDT comprises a team of clinicians, nurses, a specialist pharmacist and an administrator providing integrated clinical research with secondary/tertiary severe asthma care to the Thames Valley (population 2.5 million).

Prof Timothy SC Hinks

BMBCh MA (Cantab) MRCP PhD


Wellcome Trust Fellow & Honorary Consultant

  • Associate Professor and Wellcome Trust Career Development Fellow, Respiratory Immunology, Nuffield Dept of Medicine
  • NIHR Oxford Biomedical Research Centre Senior Research Fellow
  • Honorary Consultant, Oxford Special Airway Service, Respiratory Medicine, Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust

Investigating immune responses in asthma and lung infections

Research Interests

My group investigate the immunopathogenesis of airway diseases and pulmonary infections. We have a specific focus on the roles of unconventional T cells subsets in the mucosal immunology of the airways in driving inflammation during chronic airways infection, and gene expression and epigenomics of specific asthma phenotypes.

After a background in translational research in T cell immunodiagnostics in tuberculosis I have been funded by fellowships from the Wellcome Trust, Academy of Medical Sciences and National Institute of Health Research to study novel T cell subsets in the airways in human asthma and more recently the roles of mucosal associated invariant T (MAIT) cells in ex vivo and murine models of infection with Haemophilus influenzae, Legionella and Influenza virus. Our recent work has defined novel functions for MAIT cells in tissue repair, identified mechanisms of macrolides in airways diseases and generated a new two-compartment model of asthma pathology. 

Our goal is to apply single cell, spatial and classical immunological approaches to better understand the immunopathogenesis of asthma, to help develop new therapies.

Funding

Research groups

Current positions

Postdoctoral Scientist

Currently we have a position open for a postdoc - focusing on defining the mechanisms by which bacteria subvert mucosal immunity to establish a niche within the airways. If you are interested, please get in touch by email to find out more. 

Innate T cells in airways disease

Scanning electron micrograph of peripheral blood TCR Va7.2+ T cells interacting with primary human airway epithelial cells in air liquid interface culture.

Pulmonary spatial transcriptomics

Spatial transcriptomics using MERSCOPE from murine lung parenchyma (A,B) and human bronchial biopsy tissue.

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