Barbara Clough

Dr. Barbara Clough is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Institute of Microbiology and Infection (IMI) within the College of Life and Environmental Sciences at the University of Birmingham. She works in Dr. Eva Frickel’s laboratory, focusing on the cell intrinsic immune response to intracellular pathogens, particularly Toxoplasma gondii, using high-content fluorescent microscopy and advanced analytical techniques. Her research explores interferon gamma (IFNg)-mediated host defense mechanisms and the interplay between host cells and pathogens.

Barbara holds a PhD in Parasitology from the National Institute for Medical Research, London, and a BSc in Medical Cell Biology and Biochemistry from the University of Liverpool. She is also a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA). Her career spans post-doctoral fellowships at St Mary’s Hospital Medical School and the Francis Crick Institute, where she contributed to studies on malaria pathogenesis and host-parasite interactions.

Her research interests include innate immunity, host-pathogen interactions, and the application of artificial intelligence for analyzing host-pathogen systems. She supervises undergraduate and postgraduate students in Biochemistry and Microbiology programs and teaches within the MSci and MSc curricula.

Barbara’s work integrates cutting-edge microscopy, proteomics, and computational tools to uncover mechanisms of immune defense against pathogens like Toxoplasma and Salmonella. Her contributions include defining roles for guanylate-binding proteins (GBPs) in pathogen control and elucidating ubiquitination pathways in IFNg-driven immunity.