Denise Fitzgerald, PhD
Principal Investigator
Denise undertook her B.Sc. in Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics at University College Dublin (1996-2000) where she went on to pursue her PhD in Immunology under the mentorship of Prof. Alan Baird (2000-2004).
During this time Denise developed a keen interest in CNS demyelinating diseases and in 2004, she moved to Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia to pursue postdoctoral training in MS research. In 2009, Denise moved to Queen’s University Belfast to start her own independent Multiple Sclerosis research group where she is currently Professor of Neuroimmunology. Although she has less time for experimental work than she used to, she still dons the lab coat for photos!
Michelle Naughton, PhD
Research Fellow
Michelle completed a B.Sc. in Chemistry and an M.Sc. in neuropharmacology and assisted research on modulation of the glial scar before pursuing a PhD in myelination at the University of Galway, Ireland. She joined Denise’s team in 2016 and set up clinical studies and collaborations investigating the positive and negative contribution of immune cells to MS neuropathology, including leading a study into the therapeutic potential of a novel target for immune cell-mediated myelin repair.
In 2020, she received a European Spatial Biology Grant to investigate lymphoid-like structures in MS through digital spatial profiling of the whole human transcriptome. Since 2022, she has joined the Treatment Advisory Committee for the UK MS Society Octopus clinical trial. This work involves horizon-scanning for a multi-arm, multi-stage clinical trial to advance therapeutics for progressive multiple sclerosis (MS). In her free time, she loves nature walks and the occasional run.
Nira De La Vega Gallardo, PhD
Research Fellow
Nira completed an MSc in cell and gene therapy in UCL and a PhD in the field of regenerative neurobiology in the Fitzgerald lab at QUB. She is currently a research fellow working in collaboration with Sangamo Therapeutics, testing CAR-Treg in pre-clinical models of myelin regeneration.
In her free time Nira enjoys escape rooms, philately, cross stitching, videogames and tabletop RPGs, notably dungeons & dragons.
Rosana Penalva, PhD
Research Fellow
Rosana completed her Lic. in Biological Sciences at the UBA, Argentina and her PhD in Neurochemistry at the MPI of Psychiatry in Germany. Her interest in Neuroscience led her to perform postdoctoral research in psychiatric disorders, sleep-wake cycle regulation and neurodegeneration in laboratories at the MPI (Germany), UCB-Lyon1 (France) and QUB (Northern Ireland).
She first joined the newly-established Fitzgerald lab at QUB in 2009 to study the regenerative role of immune cells in CNS remyelination and returned in 2016 to continue working in the field. Her current project involves investigating the impact of circadian rhythm components in myelination and remyelination.
Jessica White, PhD
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Jess completed a BSc in Biology and an MSc in Neuroscience before joining Denise’s group at QUB to pursue a PhD in Neuroimmunology (2019-2023). She is currently a Postdoctoral fellow working on mechanisms of T cell-mediated myelin regeneration and has a particular interest in T cell-glia interactions. She is also working in collaboration with Dr Eoin McEvoy’s lab at the University of Galway on the mechanobiology of Treg in MS (2023-2024).
In her free time, Jess loves to read, draw/paint, play video games, and do sudoku for fun!
Adam Rollo
Research Technician
Adam Rollo received his BSc (Hons) in Applied Pharmacology at Queen Margaret University, followed by an MRes in Biomedical Sciences (Integrative Mammalian Biology) at The University of Glasgow, where he investigated collagen mutations in haemorrhagic stroke. He has just completed the laboratory work for his PhD at the Wellcome-Wolfson Institute for Experimental Medicine, QUB, working under the supervision of Professor Tim Curtis. During his PhD, he investigated the role of transient receptor potential channels in the pathogenesis of diabetic macular oedema. His general research interests include the neurovascular unit, inflammation, ion channels, neuroimmunology, and neurovascular physiology.
Adam joined the Fitzgerald group in 2023, and is working alongside Nira on the Sangamo Therapeutics project, working with pre-clinical models of myelin regeneration.
During his free time he enjoys coding, going to the pub, playing guitar, cooking, and travelling.
Ashleigh McMullan
Research Technician
Ashleigh is working as a Research Technician alongside Professor Denise Fitzgerald and Dr Michelle Naughton investigating the eye as a window to brain inflammation in Multiple Sclerosis. She previously completed her MSc in biomedical science with Ulster University, while studying and assisting research into congenital heart disease in the US at Indiana University. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with friends and trying out new restaurants.
Muhammad Qasim
Visiting Researcher – Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Qasim completed an MSc in Mathematics from COMSATS Islamabad, Pakistan, and a PhD in Biomechanics from Rovira i Virgilli University, Spain. His interest in bioengineering applications led him to undertake postdoctoral research in Computational and In-Vitro Immune Cell Mechanobiology, McEvoy Group at the University of Galway, Ireland. Currently, he is working as a visiting researcher at Fitzgerald Lab, QUB, as part of the HEA North-South project. His primary focus lies in characterizing T cell mechanobiology using in-vitro models. Using this experimental data, he is developing chemo-mechanical finite element models of immune cell remodeling. This project will provide new fundamental insight into the dependence of regulatory T cell induction on physical forces and advance current understanding of tissue regeneration in Multiple Sclerosis.
Other lab members:
Key Current External Collaborators
Dr Alerie Guzman de la Fuente (Institute for Health and Biomedical Research of Alicante)
Dr Rachael Kee (Belfast Health and Social Care Trust)
Dr Gavin McDonnell (Belfast Health and Social Care Trust)
Dr Stella Hughes (Belfast Health and Social Care Trust)
Dr Owain Howell (Swansea University)
Prof Adrian Liston (University of Cambridge)
Prof Anna Williams (University of Edinburgh)
Dr Eoin McEvoy (University of Galway)
Prof Paul Murray (University of Limerick)
Past Lab Members
Dr Aoife Griffin – Research technician
Dr Alerie Guzman de la Fuente – ECTRIMS Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Dr Andrew Young – Postdoctoral research fellow
Dr Marie Dittmer – Postdoctoral research fellow
Dr Daniel Crooks – Research technician
Dr Katie Mayne – PhD student
Dr Rachael Kee – Clinical PhD student
Dr Georgios Eleftheriadis – PhD student
Dr Frances Evans – PhD student
Dr Eimear Linehan – PhD student
Dr Thomas O’Hagan – PhD student
Melanie Cranston – Research assistant
John Falconer – Research technician
Jill Moffat – Research assistant
Johnny Moffat – Volunteer
Rachel Hassan – MPhil student
Dr Angela McClurg – Postdoctoral research fellow
Dr Craig Ledgerwood – Postdoctoral research fellow
Dr Samara Fleville – MRes student