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The Welsh Lymph Node Research Hub
The Cardiff University Welsh Lymph Node Research Hub is breaking new ground by studying lymph node function directly.
Leveraging ultrasound-guided, minimally invasive fine-needle aspiration (FNA) and core sampling, our centre can facilitate high-resolution, single-cell multi-omic mapping. By exploring the cellular landscape directly inside the lymph node, our goal is to accelerate discoveries that can revolutionise drug and therapy development. Our targeted research addresses critical public health priorities, including:
"This funding provides a unique opportunity to build a sustainable research network, strengthen collaborations with scientists across the UK, and establish a Welsh Lymph Node Research Hub at Cardiff University. Our goal is to accelerate discoveries in immunology that can benefit patients across a range of medical conditions."
Dr Lucy Jones, Clinical Senior Lecturer & Cardiff University Lymph Noce Resarch Hub Lead
The Cardiff University Hub is embedded within a thriving, collaborative ecosystem that blends discovery science with rapid clinical translation:
Cardiff University is a world-class, Russell Group institution recognised as the highest-ranked university in Wales. Renowned for its intensive research ecosystem, 90% of its projects are officially classified as "world-leading" or "internationally excellent" placing it in the UK's top 20 for overall research quality.
The Welsh Lymph Node Research Hub operates in lockstep with key research groups within the Division of Infection and Immunity.
The Department of Medical Microbiology merges pathogen genomics with clinical practice, bridging the gap between mechanistic insights and patient care. Powered by a world-class translational research portfolio, our team specialises in experimental medicine, targeted infection therapeutics, and pioneering vaccinology, spanning first-in-human mechanistic insights to later-phase clinical trials. Our unique partnership model unites active clinician-scientists and academic staff at a shared interface, supported by funding from UKRI, the Welsh Government, and the Office for Life Sciences, alongside global industrial partners. Our core research focuses on critical interventions against global health threats across six key pillars:
Utilising a systems-biology approach to understand complex immune mechanisms. SIURI's expertise in handling large-scale data and investigating chronic inflammation, immune-therapy and immune-mediated diseases provides the foundation for LEGACY's multi-omic and single-cell sequencing workflows.
The WKRU brings world-class expertise in translational renal science, molecular pathology, and patient-focused care to the LEGACY network. By integrating WKRU’s multi-centre clinical pipelines and dedicated public and patient involvement (PPIE) framework with LEGACY’s multi-site consortium, we create a powerful synergy. This collaboration ensures that cutting-edge renal research is backed by standardized operational excellence and deeply embedded public engagement across the UK.
In the Viral Immunology research team, we combine molecular virology and cellular immunology expertise to understand how viruses interact with host immunity. Focussing primarily on human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) alongside some SARS-CoV-2 work, we carry out virological studies into virus entry, tropism, dissemination, and manipulation of the host cell. We also generate reagents permitting researchers to work in vitro with viruses that more accurately recapitulate clinical strains, including generating the International Reference strain for HCMV. Our immunological interests cover the ways that complex viruses like HCMV manipulate host immunity to enable lifelong carriage and have identified over half of the ~20 known mechanisms by which HCMV modulates NK cell function. We also study ways of circumventing these mechanisms through exploiting the ability of non-neutralising antibodies to activate NK and other immune cells, including the generation and engineering of enhanced antibodies against novel viral antigens. Our environment benefits from strong existing pipelines with NHS Wales, Public Health Wales, and the Welsh Government, ensuring our research has a direct line to patient impact.
As a co-leading institution of the national network, Cardiff University acts as a critical gateway for regional strategic development and specialized training in immunology.
"We are delighted to be a part of this exciting initiative that drives forward our understanding of the immune system and how it can both protect us and harm us. Recognising the importance of lymph nodes across both infectious and chronic disease and across the whole life course is vital."
Professor Kerenza Hood, Dean of Research & Innovation, College of Biomedical & Life Sciences
By collaborating across the network—alongside our co-leads at Oxford and Newcastle—the Cardiff Hub is ensuring that Wales plays a leading role in the next generation of global vaccine design and therapeutic discovery.
If you are a researcher or industry partner interested in collaborating with the Welsh Lymph Node Research Hub, please get in touch:
Dr. Barbara Szomolay is a Senior Lecturer within the Division of Infection and Immunity and the Systems Immunity Research Institute at the Cardiff University School of Medicine.
An interdisciplinary researcher specialising in systems immunology and mathematical biology, Dr. Szomolay’s research focuses on uncovering the organisational principles of cell signaling, T-cell antigen recognition, and host-pathogen interactions. Her work bridges experimental immunology and computational modelling to understand complex immune dynamics, ranging from cellular immunity in viral and bacterial infections to immunometabolic changes associated with ageing and chronic inflammatory conditions.
At Cardiff University, she is actively involved in advancing translational research, network collaborations, and innovative data-driven approaches to improve our understanding of immune responses and disease pathogenesis.
Helen Falconer is a key member of the Research Governance team at Cardiff University, playing a vital role in supporting the institution's vibrant research community. With expertise in research ethics, regulatory compliance, and governance frameworks, she works closely with academics, clinical researchers, and professional services to ensure that all research activities conducted across the university meet the highest ethical, legal, and institutional standards.
Her work focuses on guiding researchers through complex regulatory requirements, facilitating robust ethical review processes, and upholding research integrity. By fostering a culture of compliance and best practice, Helen helps safeguard the welfare of participants and data integrity while enabling high-impact, world-class research at Cardiff University.
Robert Andrews is a member of the management board of ELIXIR-UK, a national organisation of 31 UK universities and institutes bringing together life science data and resources from across UK and Europe. He has co-led the ELIXIR-UK FAIR Data Steward Fellowship, co-leads an (inter)national, grassroots Data Stewardship Club with 58 UK member institutions and has recently become a BioFAIR Fellow funded by the UKRI to promote FAIR in UK’s life sciences.
Expertise: T cell biology (CD8+ T cells, CD4+ T follicular helper cells, MAIT cells, gamma delta T cells); T cell receptor (TCR) profiling and TCR-peptide MHC interactions; T cell immune responses to viral infection (e.g. HIV, CMV, dengue); Adaptive immune responses to bacterial infection (e.g. Staphylococcus aureus); T cell-based immune evasion (e.g. bacterial "superantigens"); Natural Killer cell responses to bacterial infection; Sepsis
Research type: Pre-clinical human/mouse; Human clinical studies (observational)
Skill sets: Tissue culture (cell lines, human primary cells - e.g. PBMCs); T cell cloning; Flow cytometry; Real-time qPCR; RNA sequencing (bulk & single cell); TCR sequencing; Lentiviral-based gene transduction.
Our research program focuses on the development and implementation of advanced biotechnologies to characterize anatomically localized and systemic adaptive cellular immune responses against globally relevant pathogens, such as HIV-1 and SARS-CoV-2. Our laboratory is fully equipped with the necessary expertise and infrastructure to enable high-dimensional immunophenotyping and live infectious cell sorting for downstream ‘omics applications using a CL3-housed FACSDiscover S8. We also have interests in post-acute infectious syndromes, such as long COVID and ME/CFS.
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