Academics

Welcome

Your clicks are over and you are welcome here.  I hope you find something of interest. Do get in touch with me if you wish.

Research Interests

The B lymphocyte is my favourite cell type because its natural variation and selection constitute a microcosm of Darwinian evolution within the human body.  Other white blood cells intrigue me too. They inhabit the blood and all the very widely scattered lymphoid tissues. B cells perpetually patrol the body seeking occasions to be provoked into cell replication and maturation. Normally dormant, a single B cell when suitably stimulated can very rapidly divide to form dozens or hundreds of mature antibody-forming cells. This takes a few days.
I'm interested in the first few minutes of this transition, when the earliest signals cross the lymphocyte's outer membrane and send messages to the nucleus to activate particular genes. Calcium ions form an important part of this signalling cascade. Under resting conditions calcium cannot pass through the membrane, but on receipt of the right signal they fleetingly flood across. By a fluorescence-based technique the consequent rise in intracellular calcium in individual fresh lymphocytes can be measured, hundreds at once. Some of them wink rather like lighthouses.  Our research group classifies their winking habits using a novel research instrument we've developed over the last three years, the Cell Population Array Imager.  We characterise populations of lymphocytes according to their calcium patterns, some very persistent, others oscillatory, others just fly-by-nights. We collaborate with Dr Stephen Payne, Engineering Fellow at Keble, in this analysis.  See the HuntLab page for more details of this and other projects, and for my full bibliography.

Teaching and teaching-related occupations

I have tutored all three undergraduate years, in the areas of molecular and cell biology, general pathology and immunology.  I continue to teach 2nd years and 3rd years.  I contributed two chapters to the 3rd edition of a standard immunology textbook, Janeway and Travers' "Immunobiology" and I have published reviews of a number of other student textbooks.  I am studying for the Diploma in Learning and teaching in Higher Education at the University's Learning Institute.

In 2012 I have been given an award for Excellence in Teaching by the Medical Sciences Division.

Recent Publications

• Omilusik K, Priatel JJ, Chen X, Wang YT, Xu H, Choi KB, Gopaul R, McIntyre-Smith A, Teh HS, Tan R, Bech-Hansen NT, Waterfield D, Fedida D, Hunt SV, Jefferies WA., 'The ca(v)1.4 calcium channel is a critical regulator of T cell receptor signaling and naive T cell homeostasis' in Immunity, 35 (2011), 349 - 360
• Hunt, S.V., 'Perspectives from B cell immunology: fact and fancy' in Int J Clin Pharmacol Ther, 47 Suppl 1 (2009), S86-99
• Kotturi MF, Hunt SV, Jefferies WA., 'Roles of CRAC and Cav-like channels in T cells: more than one gatekeeper?' in Trends in Pharmacological Science, 27 (2006), 360 - 367
• Payne SJ, Arrol HP, Hunt SV, Young SP, 'Automated classification and analysis of the calcium response of single T lymphocytes using a neural network approach' in IEEE Trans Neural Networks, 16 (2005), 949 - 958

Academic Biography

• Senior Dean, Keble College (2008 - 2012)
• Chair, Audit Subcommittee of Education Committee, Medical Sciences Division (2008 - 2012)
• Studied for Diploma for Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, IAUL, Oxford University (2001 - 2002)
• Visiting Fellow, Biomedical Research Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver (1998)
• Fellow and Tutor in Immunology, Keble College in charge of Medicine and Physiological Sciences University Lecturer in Immunology (1988 - 2012)
• Eleanor Roosevelt Travelling Fellow of the American Cancer Society. Dept of Pathology, Stanford University (1981 - 1982)
• Senior Research Fellow in Immunology, Keble College; University Lecturer in Immunology (1974 - 1988)
• Junior Research Fellow, Merton College Oxford (1971 - 1974)
• Senior Scholar, St Cross College Oxford (1969 - 1971)
• Voluntary Service Overseas, Science Teacher, Antigua (1967 - 1968)
• Open Scholar in Biochemistry, Trinity College Oxford (1963 - 1967)