Professor Ye Htun Oo MBBS, PhD, FRCP

• Fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians, 2017
• PhD in Immunology, 2010
• Member of Royal College of Physicians, 2000
• MBBS with distinctions, 1995

Ye graduated in Medicine from Rangoon, Burma. He underwent general medical training in Scotland, Wales and Bournemouth followed by specialisation in Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Liver Transplantation at the West Midlands Deanery. In 2006 he obtained Medical Research Council clinical research training fellowship to undertake a PhD in the laboratory of Professor David Adams at the University of Birmingham. During his PhD he dissected the recruitment mechanism of regulatory T cells and developed isolation of GMP-grade regulatory T cells to apply as new therapy in autoimmune liver diseases and liver transplantation.

On completing his specialist medical training in General Medicine/Gastroenterology and Hepatology, he secured a Medical Research Council Clinician Scientist Award. Subsequently, he joined his great colleagues in the Liver Medicine clinical team at the Queen Elizabeth Liver Transplant Unit in Birmingham as a Consultant Hepatologist. The work during his MRC funded clinician scientist led to the first in autoimmune liver disease early phase trial on GMP Regulatory T cells homing to the human liver. In recognition of this work he was awarded with Sir Frances Avery Jones Medal from the British Society of Gastroenterology.

In 2019, Ye received Sir Jules Thorn Programme Grant Award to develop and deliver Regulatory T cells therapy in autoimmune liver disease. He also leads the UK drug induced liver injury immunology work stream with his team and AIH Immunology work.

• Biomedical Science BSc
• MBChB
• MSc Immunology and Immunotherapy
  • Liver Immunology
  • Autoimmunity and drug induced liver injury
  • Transplantation immunology
  • Tumor Immunology
• Core Clinical Medical Training

Dr Oo is interested in supervising doctoral research students in the following areas:

• Hepatic immune tolerance
• Dissecting pathogenesis and exploring causative factors of autoimmune liver diseases
• Mechanism of drug induced liver injury
• Developing new GMP cellular therapies in autoimmunity and transplantation
• Gut – Liver axis immunology

If you are interesting in studying any of these subject areas please contact Professor Ye Oo directly, or for any general doctoral research enquiries, please email mds-gradschool@contacts.bham.ac.uk.

For a full list of available Doctoral Research opportunities, please visit our Doctoral Research programme listings.

His research group focus on basic discovery science in autoimmune liver diseases, develop translational cellular therapy and practice precision medicine. Ye and his team explore the underlying immune balance in the early and late stage of autoimmune liver diseases. There is strong evidence suggesting that regulatory T cells are crucial in restoring immune tolerance. His team dissect intrahepatic immune cells cross talk in the context of microenvironment and develop novel assay. Our previous proof of concept clinical trial with GMP Treg (AUTUMN trial) demonstrated that Treg migrate to human liver. Thus, we have now refined our approach to develop and deliver the novel Treg immunotherapy programme in autoimmune liver diseases.

His team also dissect the immune predictors and mechanism of liver injury on Drug Induced Liver Injury especially on Check Points Inhibitors.

In collaboration with British Society of Immunology and College of Medical and Dental Sciences, Ye hosted Discovery to clinical applications of regulatory T cells in autoimmune liver diseases and transplantation in 2019.

Ye and his team also explore new immunological predictors with deep immune phenotype and OMIC profiles for patients’ stratification and developing and delivering personalised medicine.

He leads a supportive, dynamic, productive research team with collaboration across UK, Europe, Japan, Singapore, Australia and USA.

Professor Oo was also the recipient of the Sir Jules Thorn Charitable Trust 2018 Award for his the study 'Development and Delivery of novel regulatory T cell immunotherapy in autoimmune liver disease'. 

Professor Oo and his team had their paper 'Expression of E-cadherin by CD8+ T cells promotes their invasion into biliary epithelial cells' published in the Nature Communications journal in 2024. The study was funded and in collaboration with The Sir Jules Thorn Charitable Trust (2018 annual award winner), a fellowship awarded by the Medical Research Council (MRC), and the NIHR Birmingham Biomedical Research Centre (BRC).

Clinical research activities

• Centre for Rare Diseases Dedicated Autoimmune liver disease clinics
• Specialist autoimmune hepatitis clinic at QE Hospital
• Immune mediated liver injury clinic.
• Post liver transplant clinics.

Current projects

AUtologous Treg infUsion in autoiMmuNe liver disease patients (AUTUMN) (2016-2024)

The immune system is designed to protect the human body against disease. It consists of different cells, including antibodies and white blood cells, which destroy foreign substances that enter the body. Among the white blood cells, there are T cells, which recognise and destroy pathogens. However, in autoimmune diseases, the immune system mistakenly attacks the body's own tissues. In autoimmune hepatitis, T cells specifically attack liver cells, causing liver inflammation. Recent research suggests that anti-inflammatory T regulatory cells (Tregs) could control the tissue damage caused by these attacking T cells. This study aims to understand the function of Tregs in autoimmune hepatitis by labelling them with a radioactive substance. This clinical trial could enhance our knowledge of immune cells and potentially lead to the therapeutic use of Treg cells in treating autoimmune hepatitis.

Sir Jules Thorn Programme grant (2019-2024)

Naomi Richardson and Grace Wootton are developing and delivering GMP-regulatory T cell therapy for the devastating liver disease, Primary biliary cholangitis (PBC), where the immune system attacks the liver leading to biliary tissue destruction, scarring and eventually liver failure. Currently there is no curative therapy in PBC. Pre-clinical studies have indicated that regulatory T cells can prevent or reverse autoimmune diseases, and this study will examine whether Treg therapy may offer a new cellular therapy and could lead to the development of a personalised approach to treating patients.

Trans Bio Line - Drug Induced Liver Injury Consortium Immunology (2020-2023)

Natalia Krajewska and Amber Bozward are dissecting the immune subsets of drug induced liver injury as immunological predictors in collaboration with Professor Aithal at Nottingham Digestive Centre. Ye is also a co-investigator on EASL check point inhibitor induced liver injury (CHILI) Registry Grant.

Medical Research Foundation Grant (2021-2024)

Scott Davies and Ye are dissecting Treg biology in autoimmune hepatitis in collaboration with his colleague, Dr Trivedi.

GSK collaborative work (2020-2022)

Amber (2021 STEM for Britain prize winner) and Ye are dissecting the single cells gene signatures in chronic liver diseases and normal livers in collaboration with GSK.

Juan Rhodes Fellows (2021-2024)

In collaboration with Professor Pietro Invernizzi in University of Milano, Ye hosts a Juan Rodes fellow, Dr Vincenzo Ronca to dissect the immune-pathogenesis mechanism of PBC.

In collaboration with Professor Makoto Miyara in Paris, he shares a Juan Rodes academic fellow, Mr Atif to dissect immunometabolism and epigenetics of regulatory T cells.

Children Liver Disease Foundation

In collaboration with Professor Deirdre Kelly and Professor Wraith, Ye supervise Dr Warner to explore paediatric autoimmune liver disease.

Australian Surgical Fellowship

In collaboration with Mr Perera, Ye supervise Mr Angus Hann to explore transplantation tolerance.

European Reference Network (ERN) RARE-LIVER Centre

Birmingham is a centre for ERN-Rare Liver and Ye leads ERN-Rare Liver programme on behalf of University of Birmingham and UHB NHS Foundation Trust.

MediMedBio collaborative work (2021-2023)

Rémi Fiancette and Ye explore the role of CPI in chronic liver diseases and liver cancer.

QEHB charity project grant (2020-2024)

Naomi, Grace and Amber are developing and delivering GMP-Treg trials in autoimmune liver diseases with the support from QEHB Charity on GMP equipment (MACs Quant Tyto)

UK-Autoimmune Hepatitis (UK-AIH) deep immunophenotyping

(NIHR Rare Disease Translational Research Collaboration). In collaboration with Newcastle University, Birmingham is an immunology lead for UK-AIH

• Scientific Director – Advanced Cell Therapy Facility (2019-)
• Royal College of Physician (London) Fellow
• Royal College of Physician (Edinburgh) Member
• BSG guidelines development member on autoimmune hepatitis
• Editor – New Insights on Liver Transplant and Tolerance, Frontiers in Immunology
• Editor – Liver Immunology (Frontiers in Immunology)
• Editor –Canadian Liver journal
• Trans Bio Line Drug Induced Liver Injury Immunology lead
• International autoimmune hepatitis group member
• BASL member
• BSG member
• EASL member
• AASLD Autoimmune Special Interest Group member
• BASL Autoimmune Special Interest Group member
• UK-AIH Founding member &Scientific Committee member
• ERN Rare Liver Lead – University of Birmingham and UHB NHS Foundation Trust