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PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR:
Dr Pierre V. Maillard
Dr Pierre V. Maillard obtained his PhD at the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne in Switzerland, where he studied a mechanism of cell-intrinsic defence against retroviruses. During his postdoctoral studies, Pierre pursued his work on innate antiviral defences by first studying the antiviral function of RNA interference in mammals in Zürich at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and then moved to London to explore the interplay between antiviral RNA interference and the interferon system at the Francis Crick Institute. In 2017, Pierre was awarded a Wolfson UCL Excellence Fellowship to establish his independent career in the Division of Infection and Immunity at University College London. In 2020, Pierre was awarded a UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship and a Barts Charity Lectureship to start his group at Queen Mary University of London within the Blizard Institute.
Meet the Team
Dr Raul Y Sanchez David - post doctoral researcher
Raul did his PhD under supervision of Dr Frederic Tangy in the laboratory of viral genomics and vaccination at the Institut Pasteur, Paris. His PhD focused of the sensing of viral RNA by the RIG-I-like receptors and their ability to trigger inflammatory responses. He further was interested in understanding RNA-dependant RNA polymerases from negative-strand RNA viruses and joined the laboratory of Professor Wendy Barclay at Imperial College London studying host restrictions of avian influenza viruses in mammalian cells. Raul joined the Maillard Lab in February 2021 and is currently exploring the role of mammalian antiviral RNAi in restricting virus replication in cells. He is also interested in understanding how these responses restrict mRNA technologies efficiency and assesses strategies for improving gene delivery methods.
Main interests:
* Virology
* mRNA technologies
* Nucleic acid sensing
Email: r.y.sanchezdavid@qmul.ac.uk
Orcid: 0000-0001-7110-0189
Dr Josephine Nemegeer - post doctoral researcher
Josephine did her PhD under supervision of Dr Jonathan Maelfait and Prof. Peter Vandenabeele in the Inflammation research Center-VIB, connected to Ghent University. Her PhD focussed on nucleic acid immunity sensor ZBP1 during viral infections. Continuing the fascination for intracellular antiviral responses, Josephine now switched focus to RNA interference and more particularly the antiviral potential of Dicer.
Main interests:
* Virology
* Nucleic acid immunity
* Confocal microscopy
Email: j.nemegeer@qmul.ac.uk
Orcid: 0000-0003-1688-8924
James Holt - PhD student
James completed an MSc in infection and Immunity at UCL in 2019. His research project involved investigating the role of the HUSH complex in transposable element regulation. He then worked as a research assistant at Dr Helen Rowe’s lab at the Blizard Institute before starting his PhD in October 2020. His PhD is jointly funded by the Rowe and Maillard labs through a Barts Charity award. This project aims to investigate the role of transposable elements in activating RNA interference and interferons in human induced pluripotent stem cells.
As mentioned, James is co-supervised by Dr Helen Rowe, you can find out more about her lab and research HERE.
Main interests:
* Transposable elements
* Innate immunity - RNA sensing
* Epigenetics
Email: j.h.holt@qmul.ac.uk
Hoang Le - Research Assistant
Hoang is from Vietnam and has joined the Maillard Lab as a Research Assistant since February 2024. He completed his Master’s degree at Chonnam National University Medical School in South Korea, specialising in vaccine development, protein engineering and in vivo studies. With three years of experience in immunotherapy and vaccine development, Hoang is eager to learn more and contribute to the ongoing projects focusing on RNAi and antiviral mechanisms. Outside of work, you’ll find Hoang running and he is always up for a good chat about basketball.
Main interests:
* Immunology
* Vaccines
* Translational medicine
Email: h.le@qmul.ac.uk
Lab alumni
MSc and visiting students
Tamador Elamin
MSc Clinical Microbiology
(March-July 2023)
Hafsa Duale
MSc Biomedical Sciences (Medical Microbiology)
(March-July 2022)
Sarah Louise Long
MSc student, QMUL MSc Biomedical Science, Medical Microbiology
(March 2021 – August 2021)
Tamara Lopez-Vidal
MSc student, UCL Infection and Immunity programme
(March 2019 – August 2019)
Tomáš Demeter
MSc student, internship funded by Erasmus
(June 2017 – August 2017)