Marga Dominguez-Villar is an Associate Professor in Immunology in the Department of Infectious Disease at Imperial College London. She obtained her PhD from the University of Cadiz (Spain) and her postdoctoral training from both Harvard Medical School and Yale School of Medicine. Her laboratory investigates the mechanisms that control innate and adaptive immune responses in human disease, with a particular focus on T cell responses and regulatory T cell function/dysfunction in autoimmune and infectious diseases. 

I am a PhD student in the Dominguez-Villar lab. Previously a medical student, I realised during an intercalated MSc in Immunology that I wanted to dedicate myself entirely to research. Here in the MDV lab, I study the role of autocrine TNF in the maintenance of Treg identity in homeostasis and in multiple sclerosis. Outside of work, I love to read fiction, go bouldering or exercise with friends, learn about art and philosophy, and express my creativity in writing. 

I am currently a PhD student in the Dominguez-Villar lab. I carried out my undergraduate studies in Biochemistry at the University of Birmingham before completing my Master’s degree in Immunology at Imperial. My MSc project focused on the effect of hyperglycaemia on the human monocyte response to influenza infection also in the Dominguez-Villar lab.  My PhD project is now funded by Diabetes UK where I have expanded my focus to look at the monocyte response to respiratory viral infection in individuals with type 1 diabetes. Outside of the lab I enjoy running and reading.

I am a PhD student in the MDV Lab. My project is about metabolic regulation of microRNA in autoantigen specific T cells in Type 1 Diabetes. I am part of the MRC Multisci DTP programme at Imperial College London, which includes a 1 year MRes before starting the PhD. Before this, my first rotation was about leveraging CRISPR-dCasRx to block microRNA target interaction in β cells. Outside lab, I enjoy swimming and cooking, and I love winter sports, especially skiing and ice skating.

I am a postdoctoral research associate in the Dominguez-Villar lab. Prior to joining the group, I completed my BSc in Biochemistry at The University of Exeter, followed by an MSc in Applied Bioscience & Biotechnology at Imperial College London. After a year working with viral vectors at a company in Oxford, I decided to undertake a PhD at King’s College London in the Immuno-Oncology field. As a postdoc in the Dominguez-Villar lab, I am working on a Helmsley Trust-funded research project focused on understanding the immunological mechanisms behind genetic protection against type 1 diabetes. In my free time I love swimming, especially in the sea when I am home in Cornwall!

As a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Dominguez-Villar lab, I am working on a project funded by the Multiple Sclerosis (MS) society UK, investigating the mechanisms of follicular regulatory T cell defects underlying and contributing to MS.

I did my PhD at the Gulbenkian Institute for Molecular Medicine, in Portugal. My work focused on understanding the contribution of resistance and disease tolerance mechanisms in infection, using a murine model of sepsis. Before my PhD, I worked as a research assistant, contributing to a study that aimed at understanding the heterogeneity of follicular regulatory T cells across tissues and in human autoimmunity. Outside the lab, I love to read, watch movies, cook, and travel.

As a Postdoctoral Researcher in Margarita Dominguez-Villar group, I focus on characterizing immune-metabolic changes associated with oral insulin treatment and T1D onset, as part of the POInT clinical trial. I hold a PhD in Immunology by University College London, a MSc in Pharmacology, and a BSc in Biotechnology. During my PhD I studied the impact of long-term paHIV infection in adolescents/young adults, finding associations with accelerated immune ageing (via telomere biology), high immune activation/proliferation, and increased thymic activity. Outside of the lab I love soaking up the sun, doing outdoor sports, travel and photography.

I’m undertaking my PhD as part of the MultiSci MRC DTP programme between the MDV lab, Pantazis lab (Bioengineering, Imperial College), and Salem lab (Diabetes, King’s College). In my project, I’m using a bioengineered chip model combining blood vessels, immune cells and pancreatic islets to characterise the role of the mechanosensitive Piezo1 channel in T1D-relevant CD8+ T cell cytotoxicity. I’ve completed an MSc in Integrated Immunology at the University of Oxford and worked as a Research Assistant, first at Novo Nordisk and then at the MDV lab. In my free time, I’m either cycling around Richmond Park or painting with acrylics.

I am a final-year BSc Medical Biosciences student at Imperial College London, carrying out my research project in the MDV Lab. My work focuses on investigating epitope recognition by T cells in type 1 diabetes. Outside the lab, I am an avid sportsperson who enjoys running, bouldering, padel, and strength training. 

I am currently doing an MRes in Biomedical Research as part of the MultiSci MRC DTP programme. I am

carrying out a 6-month project in the MDV lab, investigating the different roles of chemokine receptors in CD4+ T cells. Outside the lab, I love swimming, yoga, and reading.