Biography
Jamie is known for his contributions to the understanding the molecular basis underpinning immunity. He’s used structural biology to explain pre-T cell receptor (TCR) self-association in T cell development, and how the TCR specifically recognises polymorphic human leukocyte antigen (HLA) molecules in the context of viral immunity and aberrant T cell reactivity.
He’s unearthed structural mechanisms of HLA polymorphism impacting on drug and food hypersensitivities, as well as “natural killer” cell receptor recognition. He’s pioneered our molecular understanding of lipid-based immunity by T cells, revealing it can differ fundamentally from peptide-mediated adaptive immunity.
Recently, he’s provided a structural basis of how vitamin B metabolites can be presented and recognised by the immune system, revealing a new class of antigen.
