Professor Paul Moss OBE FMedSci MB.BS PhD FRCPath

Professor Paul Moss

Department of Immunology and Immunotherapy
Deputy Head of College of Medicine and Health
Professor of Haematology
Interim Director of the NIHR Birmingham Biomedical Research Centre

Contact details

Telephone
0121 414 2824
Email
p.moss@bham.ac.uk
View my research portal
Address
Department of Immunology and Immunotherapy
University of Birmingham
Cancer Sciences Building
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT
What is the UK Coronavirus Immunology Consortium?

Paul Moss is Professor of Haematology within the Department of Immunology and Immunotherapy at the University of Birmingham and Deputy Head of the College of Medicine and Health. He is an international figure in translational human immunology and an NIHR Senior Investigator. He was previously Chair of the Infection and Immunity Board at the Medical Research Council and also served as Chair of the Clinical and Translational Research Committee at Cancer Research UK.

Professor Moss led the UK Coronavirus Immunology Consortium (UK-CIC) that brought together leading immunologists from 20 UK universities to understand the immune response to SARS-CoV-2. UK-CIC launched in August 2020 with £6.5 million funding from UKRI and NIHR. It aimed to determine the mechanisms of virus-specific immunity and how these relate to clinical outcome in different patient groups. Published research support by UK-CIC can be viewed online.

He is currently leading the immunity strand of the COVID-19 National Core Studies Programme, initiated by Sir Patrick Vallance in October 2020, that supports research to improve our understanding of immunity against COVID-19.

As well as publishing in leading journals, including Nature, Blood and the European Journal of Immunology, Professor Moss's research has featured in the Financial Times, BBC News and The Economist.

Qualifications

  • M.A. Medical Sciences (University of Cambridge)
  • B.M. B.S. (University of Oxford)
  • Member of Royal College of Physicians UK
  • Fellow of Royal College of Pathologists
  • Ph.D
  • Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences
  • Order of the British Empire (OBE)

Teaching

Teaching Programmes

Teaching Activity

Professor Moss makes substantial contributions to teaching both within the University of Birmingham and beyond. He was previously Programme Director of the Intercalated Bachelor in Medical Sciences (Clinical Sciences) which offered medical students the opportunity to undertake an eight month research project during their undergraduate degree.

Research

Research Themes

Professor Moss’s research programme is based around the immunology of cancer, transplantation and viral infection. His team has an internationally competitive position in cytomegalovirus infection; bone marrow transplantation and cancer immunology. 

Research Activity

Professor Moss’s research is focussed around the application of translational immunological research in the study of human disease. His current research group includes clinical and non-clinical research scientists working on a range of different projects:

The immune response to cancer

The group study the innate, adaptive and stromal response in several human cancers, including leukaemia and lymphoma, as well as pancreatic, ovarian and testicular cancer. Important technologies include flow sorting, CyTOF and single cell RNA-Seq.

Immune control of human viral infection

With over 20 years of contribution within cytomegalovirus infection, the team continue to investigate the mechanisms and impact of chronic viral infection on human health. In recent years, Professor Moss has been making an extensive contribution to research related to the SARS-CoV-2 virus. 

Mechanisms of graft-versus-leukaemia following stem cell transplantation

Stem cell (bone marrow) transplantation can cure chemo-resistant cancer and the team are working with colleagues within the College of Medicine and Health to uncover the mechanisms of this effect.

Additional research is undertaken with Professor Tatjana Stankovic on the genetics of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia and with colleagues within University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust on research using clinical informatics.

Professor Moss's work is supported by research programme grants and collaborations with industry. Several of his discoveries have been taken into clinical trials.

Professor Moss was a member of the UoA1 panel (Clinical Medicine) in REF 2021 and is on the Scientific Advisory Board for the MATWIN cancer open-innovation platform in France. 

Other activities

Clinical Activity/NHS Affiliation

Professor Moss is an Honorary Consultant at the University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust. His primary interests are in haemato-oncology and general haematology and he is the Clinical Service Lead for Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia. He became an NIHR Senior Investigator in 2018.

He is currently Chair of the UK Regenerative Medicine Platform. He is also Chair of the Innovate/MRC Biomedical Catalyst Major Awards Panel.

In addition he has previously held a number of important academic appointments:

  • Chair of the Infections and Immunity Board and member of Strategy Board at the Medical Research Council
  • Chair of the Cancer Research UK (CRUK) Clinical and Translational Research Committee (2008-2012)
  • Member of the Wellcome Trust Clinical Interview Committee

Publications

Recent publications

Article

PHOSP-COVID study collaborative group & ISARIC4C Investigators 2024, 'Accelerated immune ageing is associated with COVID-19 disease severity', Immunity & Ageing, vol. 21, no. 1, 6. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12979-023-00406-z

Dallan, B, Parry, H, Moss, P & Nicoli, F 2024, 'Age differentially impacts adaptive immune responses induced by adenoviral versus mRNA vaccines against COVID-19', Nature Aging, vol. 4, pp. 1121-1136. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43587-024-00644-w

Macdonald, C, Palmateer, N, McAuley, A, Lindsay, L, Hasan, T, Hameed, SS, Hall, E, Jeffrey, K, Grange, Z, Gousias, P, Mavin, S, Jarvis, L, Cameron, JC, Daines, L, Tibble, H, Simpson, CR, McCowan, C, Katikireddi, SV, Rudan, I, Fagbamigbe, AF, Ritchie, L, Swallow, B, Moss, P, Robertson, C, Sheikh, A & Murray, J 2024, 'Association between antibody responses post-vaccination and severe COVID-19 outcomes in Scotland', NPJ vaccines, vol. 9, no. 1, 107. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41541-024-00898-w

Zhang, X, King, C, Dowell, A, Moss, P, Harper, L, Chanouzas, D, Ruan, X & Salama, AD 2024, 'CD36 regulates macrophage and endothelial cell activation and multinucleate giant cell formation in anti neutrophil cytoplasm antibody vasculitis', Clinical Immunology, vol. 260, 109914. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clim.2024.109914

Verma, K, Croft, W, Margielewska-Davies, S, Pearce, H, Stephens, C, Diaconescu, D, Bevington, S, Craddock, C, Amel-Kashipaz, R, Zuo, J, Kinsella, FAM & Moss, P 2024, 'CD70 identifies alloreactive T cells and represents a potential target for prevention and treatment of acute GvHD', Blood Advances. https://doi.org/10.1182/bloodadvances.2024012909

Verma, K, Croft, W, Greenwood, D, Stephens, C, Malladi, R, Nunnick, J, Zuo, J, Kinsella, FAM & Moss, P 2024, 'Early inflammatory markers as prognostic indicators following allogeneic stem cell transplantation', Frontiers in immunology, vol. 14, 1332777. https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2023.1332777

Abudu, O, Nguyen, D, Millward, I, Manning, JE, Wahid, M, Lightfoot, A, Marcon, F, Merard, R, Margielewska-Davies, S, Roberts, K, Brown, R, Powell-Brett, S, Nicol, SM, Zayou, F, Croft, WD, Pearce, H, Moss, P, Iqbal, AJ & McGettrick, HM 2024, 'Interplay in galectin expression predicts patient outcomes in a spatially restricted manner in PDAC', Biomedicine and Pharmacotherapy, vol. 172, 116283. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopha.2024.116283

Copland, E, Patone, M, Saatci, D, Handunnetthi, L, Hirst, J, Hunt, DPJ, Mills, NL, Moss, P, Sheikh, A, Coupland, CAC, Harnden, A, Robertson, C & Hippisley-Cox, J 2024, 'Safety outcomes following COVID-19 vaccination and infection in 5.1 million children in England', Nature Communications, vol. 15, no. 1, 3822. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-47745-z

Comment/debate

Copland, E, Patone, M, Saatci, D, Handunnetthi, L, Hirst, J, Hunt, DPJ, Mills, NL, Moss, P, Sheikh, A, Coupland, CAC, Harnden, A, Robertson, C & Hippisley-Cox, J 2024, 'Author Correction: Safety outcomes following COVID-19 vaccination and infection in 5.1 million children in England', Nature Communications, vol. 15, no. 1, 5723. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-50151-0

Evans, RA, Dube, S, Lu, Y, Yates, M, Arnetorp, S, Barnes, E, Bell, S, Carty, L, Evans, K, Graham, S, Justo, N, Moss, P, Venkatesan, S, Yokota, R, Ferreira, C, McNulty, R, Taylor, S & Quint, JK 2024, 'Corrigendum to ‘Impact of COVID-19 on immunocompromised populations during the Omicron era: insights from the observational population-based INFORM study’ [The Lancet Regional Health – Europe 35 (2023) 100747]', The Lancet Regional Health - Europe, vol. 44, 101008. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lanepe.2024.101008

Moss, P 2024, 'Ibrutinib reversal of immune exhaustion in CLL', Blood, vol. 143, no. 1, pp. 5-7. https://doi.org/10.1182/blood.2023022243

Letter

Roberts, T, Uwenedi, G, Bruton, R, McIlroy, G, Damery, S, Sylla, P, Logan, N, Scott, S, Lau, M, Elzaidi, A, Plass, S, Mallick, S, Spencer, K, Stephens, C, Bentley, C, Pratt, G, Zuo, J, Paneesha, S, Willett, B, Moss, P & Parry, H 2024, 'Enhancement of Omicron-specific immune responses following bivalent COVID-19 booster vaccination in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia', Blood Cancer Journal, vol. 14, no. 1, 22. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41408-023-00940-5

PHOSP-COVID Collaborative Group, ISARIC investigators, Jackson, T, Broome, M, McArdle, P, Moss, P, Thickett, D, Upthegrove, R, Wraith, D, Aldera, EL, Green, C & McGee, K 2024, 'Large-scale phenotyping of patients with long COVID post-hospitalization reveals mechanistic subtypes of disease', Nature Immunology, vol. 25, no. 4, pp. 607-621. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41590-024-01778-0

Farhat, M, Croft, W, Parry, HM, Verma, K, Kinsella, FAM, Xu, J, Bone, D, McSkeane, T, Paneesha, S, Pratt, G, Moss, P & Zuo, J 2024, 'PD-1 expression contributes to functional impairment of NK cells in patients with B-CLL', Leukemia, vol. 38, no. 8, pp. 1813-1817. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41375-024-02271-1

Review article

Halle-Smith, JM, Pearce, H, Nicol, S, Hall, LA, Powell-Brett, SF, Beggs, AD, Iqbal, T, Moss, P & Roberts, KJ 2024, 'Involvement of the Gut Microbiome in the Local and Systemic Immune Response to Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma', Cancers, vol. 16, no. 5, 996. https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers16050996

View all publications in research portal

Expertise

Cancer 

Immune response to cancer; immunity to viruses and related health problems; evolution in clinical medicine.

SARS-CoV-2 

Immune response; vaccinations.

Media experience

Multiple national and international media have quoted Professor Moss, including BBC News, The Economist, Reuters, The Guardian, and the Financial Times. Professor Moss has also delivered several press meetings through the Science Media Centre regarding the SARS-CoV-2 virus. 

Alternative contact number available for this expert: contact the press office

Expertise

Health

Cancer, including immune response to cancer and evolution in clinical medicine.

Haematology.

SARS-CoV-2.