Heather Machado

Our lab studies the somatic evolution of the adaptive immune system to address crucial questions in cancer immunology and immune ageing. In cancer, we seek to elucidate the timing and dynamics of the immune response to tumours, how chronic inflammation remodels the immune system to facilitate cancer progression, and the action of immunotherapies on T-cell clonotypes. We aim to use these studies to enhance cancer treatment and patient outcomes. Our work on immune ageing delves into the genomic and phenotypic characteristics of T-cell immunosenescence and their implications for disease progression. Combining cutting-edge techniques in single-cell multiomics and phylogenetic lineage tracing, our research strives to understand how immune and non-immune cells co-evolve and contribute to cancer progression and ageing.

[2023] H. E. Machado, N. F. Øbro, N. Williams, S. Tan, A. Z. Boukerrou, M. Davies, M. Belmonte, E. Mitchell, E. J. Baxter, N. Mende, A. Clay, P. Ancliff, J. Köglmeier, S. B. Killick, A. Kulasekararaj, S. Meyer, E. Laurenti, P. J. Campbell, D. G. Kent, J. Nangalia, A. J. Warren, Convergent somatic evolution commences in utero in a germline ribosomopathy. Nat Commun. 14, 5092 (2023).