Contact
Biography
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Biography and research focus
I was appointed as the first National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) Academic Clinical Fellow (ACF) in Gastroenterology in the University of Nottingham where I also joined the clinical training scheme in Gastroenterology and General Medicine in November 2006. My subsequent Wellcome Trust Clinical Fellowship allowed me to complete a PhD in the molecular immunology of Clostridioides difficile infection in March 2013. I held the position of NIHR Academic Clinical Lecturer/Assistant Professor from 2013-2017 which was further supported by an Academy of Medical Sciences Starter Grant for Clinical Lecturers and a subsequent Hermes Fellowship.
Following the award of an Anne McLaren Fellowship (AMF) in April 2017, I was appointed as an Associate Professor and Honorary Consultant in Gastroenterology in July 2017. I received a permanent tenured academic contract with the University of Nottingham from May 2021. My main research interests are in understanding the pathophysiology of infection and inflammation of the gut-brain-axis, and in deciphering mechanisms of action of faecal microbiota transplantation (FMT). Here, we utilise a combination of human in vitro gut and brain models (stem-cell derived intestinal organoid culture models, brain and colon-on-chip, neuronal and intestinal epithelial cell lines), zebrafish and murine models. I have expertise in the preclinical development of novel antimicrobials, refined microbial-based therapeutics, and microRNA-based drugs for the treatment of gut dysbiosis-related disorders, including IBD, CDI, cystic fibrosis, and neurodegenerative diseases. I lead and co-ordinate multiomics-based studies with several UK, Indian-and North American labs and I am currently developing One Health- and wastewater-based epidemiological approaches to better understand population health and transmission of infectious diseases in East Africa and India, where my team use a combination of genomic, metagenomic, metabolic and pharmacological readouts to track infectious diseases. Our research is currently funded by the MRC, Cystic Fibrosis Trust, BBSRC, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
I have a keen interest in medical education where I have a British Medical Association book award and I have co-authored 4 Oxford University Press Handbook titles. I am a past Consultant Advisor for Takeda and Chain Biotechnology in areas related to C. difficile and microbiome therapeutics. I am also a member of the British Society of Gastroenterology Gut Microbiota for Health Expert panel.
Main collaborators in faecal microbiota transplantation and metagenome research
Dr Adam Blanchard, University of Nottingham
Prof Dina Kao, University of Alberta
Prof Magdy El-Salhy, University of Bergen
Dr Christos Polytarchou, Nottingham Trent University
Dr Benjamin Mullish, Imperial College London
Dr Anna Seekatz, Clemson University, USA
Main collaborators in microRNA-based therapeutics and novel antimicrobials
Dr Pratik Gurnani, University College London
Dr Christos Polytarchou, Nottingham Trent University
Prof Cameron Alexander, University of Nottingham
Prof Weng Chan, University of Nottingham
Dr Robert Atterbury, University of Nottingham
Dr Zheying Zhu, University of Nottingham
Main collaborators in neurodegenerative diseases and stroke research
Dr Diana Garcia del Barco Herrera, Center of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Havana, Cuba
Prof C. Saravana Babu, JSS College of Pharmacy, Mysuru, India
Dr Aslihan Ugun-Klusek, Nottingham Trent University
Main Collaborators in cystic fibrosis research
Prof Alan Smyth, Queen's University Belfast
Prof Chris Van der Gast, Northumbria University
Professor Karen Robinson, University of Nottingham
Dr Rob Wilkinson, University of Nottingham
Dr Nick Hannan, University of Nottingham
Main collaborators in studying the influence of host and bacterial factors on toxicity and survival in patients receiving immunotherapy for blood cancer or who have haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis
Dr Mark Bishton, University of Nottingham
Main collaborators in protein microarray research
Prof Paddy Tighe, University of Nottingham
Main overseas collaborators in One Health and infectious diseases research
Dr Rajpal Singh Kashyap, Central India Institute of Medical Sciences, Nagpur, India
Dr Tarun Bhatnagar, ICMR National Institute of Epidemiology, Chennai, India
Dr Sudipti Arora, Dr B. Lal Institute of Biotechnology, Jaipur, India
Prof C. Saravana Babu, JSS College of Pharmacy, Mysuru, India
Dr Kelly Elimian, University of Benin, Nigeria
Mr Michael Opere, Kibabii University, Kenya
Dr Edward Acheampong, University of Ghana
Expertise Summary
C. difficile infection - adaptive immune responses to C. difficile toxins A and B in varied patient groups (University of Nottingham)
- Developmental ELISA and ELISPOT assays
- Protein microarray assays
- Antigen-specific flow cytometry
- In vitro gut models including primary intestinal organoids and organ-on-chip technology
Novel anti-C. difficile antimicrobials (University of Nottingham)
- LY256: a novel and potent antibiotic for treating C. difficile infection
- MicroRNA-based nanoformulations for treating IBD and C. difficile infection
Mechanisms of action of faecal microbiota transplantation (University of Nottingham, Nottingham Trent University, Imperial College London, University of Alberta, University of Bergen)
- Specific focus on immunometabolic and epigenetic factors
Faecal metagenomics (University of Nottingham, Central India Institute of Medical Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, University of Zagreb)
- Metagenomics reveals impact of geography, antibiotics and acute diarrhoeal disease on the gut microbiome of Central Indian populations
- GAME-COSMIC Study
- Deciphering gut microbiome-glycomic-immune system interactions in health and disease: a meta-omics study
Global Health Research
- Tropical infectious diseases
- Neglected pathogens
- Wastewater-based epidemiology
Medical Education publishing:
- Oxford Handbook of Clinical Examination and Practical Skills. Thomas J, Monaghan T. Pub: Oxford University Press, Oxford. June 2007.
- 2 ed. published July 2014.
- "Highly commended" at BMA Medical Book Awards 2015
- Oxford Handbooks Clinical Tutor Study Cards: Medicine. Monaghan T, Thomas J. Pub: Oxford University Press, Oxford. September 2011
- Oxford Handbooks Clinical Study Cards: Surgery. Monaghan T, Thomas J, Humes D. Pub: Oxford University Press, Oxford. September 2011
- Oxford Handbooks Clinical Study Cards: Practical Procedures. Thomas J, Monaghan T, Thompson A. Pub: Oxford University Press, Oxford. September 2011.
Teaching Summary
Trust Lead for undergraduate teaching in Gastroenterology and Hepatology
AP2 lecture teaching on infective colitis and gastrointestinal infections
Co-lead for BMedSci module: Functional Medical Disorders (MEDS/3107) - lectures on IBS: a gut-microbiota-brain axis disorder
Supervision of undergraduate BMedSci students and examiner for BMedSci dissertations
Supervision of 7 Ph.D. students and one international MSc student
Tutor for 8 FFP and AP2 medical students
Research Summary
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