Contact information
Research groups
Alex Mentzer
Dr
Clinical Research Fellow
Research
My research is focussed upon identifying the genetic factors responsible for the observed variation in response to all commonly used vaccines. This is important because a substantial proportion of individuals do not respond to vaccines such as those against measles and hepatitis B virus and it is known that human genetic variation is the main reason for this failure. We have developed a multi-national consortium entitled VaccGene which will use powerful modern genetic approaches to incorporate data from many thousands of individuals which will help identify the genetic variants associated with the variation in vaccine response and vaccine failure.
I qualified in Medicine from University College London in 2008 and my background is as a trainee in General Medicine with a focus on Infectious Disease. I gained significant experience in coordinating and undertaking large complex human genetic studies working with Professor Chris Mathew at King’s College London before joining the Hill laboratory in 2012.
Supervisor: Professor Adrian Hill
Collaborators:
Professor Georg Holländer, Department of Paediatrics, University of Oxford, UK
Professor Alison Elliott, MRC/Uganda Virus Research Institute, Uganda
Dr Manj Sandhu, Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, UK
Professor Shabir Madhi, Respiratory and Meningeal Pathogens Research Unit, South Africa
Professor Phil Cooper, St George’s Medical School, UK
Professor Bill Petri, University of Virginia, USA
Dr Branwen Hennig, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
Key Publications
Mentzer AJ, O'Connor D, Pollard AJ, Hill AV; Searching for the human genetic factors standing in the way of universally effective vaccines; Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 2015;370(1671). pii: 20140341
Mentzer A and Jacobs M; A mass in the liver; BMJ 2013; 346:f2036
Wellcome Trust Case-Control Consortium; Host-microbe interactions have shaped the genetic architecture of inflammatory bowel disease Nature 2012;491(7422):119-24
Mentzer A, Perry M, Fitzgerald N, Barrington S, Siddiqui A, Kulasegaram R; Is it all cerebral toxoplasmosis?; Lancet 2012; 379(9812):286
Mentzer A, Karalliedde J, Williams H, Guzder R and Kulasegaram R, Backache with fever: a unique presentation of advanced HIV infection, J AIDS and Clin Research 2010; 1:104
Wellcome Trust Case Control Consortium, Genome-wide association study of CNVs in 16,000 cases of eight common diseases and 3,000 shared controls, Nature 2010;464(7289):713-20
Recent publications
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Neutrophils and emergency granulopoiesis drive immune suppression and an extreme response endotype during sepsis.
Journal article
Kwok AJ. et al, (2023), Nat Immunol
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The P323L substitution in the SARS-CoV-2 polymerase (NSP12) confers a selective advantage during infection.
Journal article
Goldswain H. et al, (2023), Genome Biol, 24
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Rapid escape of new SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variants from BA.2-directed antibody responses.
Journal article
Dijokaite-Guraliuc A. et al, (2023), Cell reports, 42
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Variation in ERAP2 has opposing effects on severe respiratory infection and autoimmune disease.
Journal article
Hamilton F. et al, (2023), Am J Hum Genet
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Acute changes in myocardial tissue characteristics during hospitalization in patients with COVID-19
Journal article
Shanmuganathan M. et al, (2023), Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine, 10