Esther Jones

Esther graduated with a first class honours degree in Biosciences with Industrial Placement from Durham University, before moving to Oxford to commence her DPhil in Molecular and Cellular Medicine.

Immunology was the module she most enjoyed during her undergraduate degree and prompted her to undertake an immunology-based industrial placement year, where she supported the company in custom-polyclonal antibody production and validation. Returning to complete her final year, she wrote a literature review entitled “LL-37 – the double edged sword in skin therapy,” which investigated the role of LL-37 antimicrobial peptides in innate immunity, their potential for causing autoimmunity (e.g. in psoriasis) and their prospective use in wound healing for severe skin-ulcer cases.

Here at the Kennedy Institute, under the supervision of Professor Lynn B. Dustin and Professor Christopher Buckley, she will explore mechanisms of autoimmunity in Sjögren’s syndrome and Rheumatoid Arthritis diseases. She will focus on mechanisms of B cell inflammation, the role of autoantigens and how this increases the risks of developing B cell lymphomas (MALT-type) in these patients.

Outside of her DPhil, Esther is an active member of both the Oxford University Cross Country Club (OUCCC) and the community choir at University College.