Dr Melissa Haines

Dr Melissa Haines is currently an NIHR academic clinical lecturer alongside training as a specialist registrar in infectious diseases and medical microbiology at the University Hospitals of Leicester.

In 2005 Melissa completed an undergraduate degree in natural sciences at the University of Cambridge, immediately followed by a PhD in microbiology concluding in 2009 which focused on genomic/pathogenicity islands within E. coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, as well as testing the in vivo virulence of pathogenicity island deletant mutants of Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

After completing the PhD Dr Haines spent a year and a half in industry working as a technical support advisor. In 2010 Dr Haines commenced medical school at Warwick University and began working as an NHS doctor in 2014.

During medical training Dr Haines was successful in securing a position as an NIHR Academic Clinical Fellow (ACF) at the University of Leicester under Professor Martha Clokie, which commenced in 2016.

This research project focused on developing a phage therapy cocktail against antimicrobial-resistant bacteria, resulting in the development of a potentially therapeutic phage cocktail against antimicrobial-resistant ESBL clinical isolates of E. coli and Klebsiella.

Dr Haines’ field of interest is exploring research that aims to combat antimicrobial resistance, primarily the use of phage therapy as a tool against antimicrobial-resistant bacterial infections.

Dr Haines’ academic clinical lectureship will involve exploring the feasibility of the use of phage therapy within the UK.

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5788-1211