Timothy Rutland Walsh

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Prof
Timothy Rutland Walsh
OBE
CitizenshipAustralian
OccupationResearcher
Known for

Timothy Rutland Walsh

OBE is a professor working at the University of Oxford. He is a specialist in antimicrobial resistance
. Walsh is the Oxford Institute of Antimicrobial Research (IOI) Director of Biology. His work at IOI involves developing new
antibiotics to use in animals, to replace use of human antibiotics. His IOI work also involves screening many chemicals to find new antimicrobials that overcome or impede antimicrobial resistance. Also he is involved in documenting the large scale effects of antibiotic resistance in low to middle income countries, such as China, Pakistan Bangladesh, Brazil and several African countries.[1][2]

Early life

Timothy Walsh was born in England but migrated to Tasmania when he was a teenager. His father was a biologist and mother an accountant. He studied at the University of Tasmania and earned a degree in medical laboratory science. He then worked at the Royal Hobart Hospital in the lab as a microbiologist whilst undertaking a master's degree in immunology and microbiology in University of Tasmania.[3]

Walsh continued moved back to the UK and completed a PhD at

β-lactamases. [3]

After his PhD Walsh worked at the

UK Medical Research Council in London, in the protein structure unit, and then in 1997 started teaching at the University of Bristol. In 2006 he started work at the Cardiff University as a professor with a title of chair in Medical Microbiology and Antibiotic Resistance.[3]

Discoveries

His research determined that a large proportion of ants, cockroaches, flies, moths and spiders were carrying extended spectrum cephalosporin and carbapenem resistant baccteria.[4]

Prof. Walsh was the discoverer of New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase 1 NDM gene[3] and the mobil colistin resistance (MCR) gene. He also codiscovered the mobile tigecycline-resistance genes designated tet(X3) and tet(X4).[5]

The naming of New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase 1 caused controversy due to the highlighting of New Delhi in the name of a gene and its association with medical tourism.[6][7]

As a result of Walsh and his colleague's findings, colistin in animals was banned in China in 2017.[8]

Qualifications

Walsh received a DSc from Bristol University in 2022[9] and received an OBE for services to microbiology and international development in the Queen's New Years Honours in 2020.[10]

Positions

Walsh is the

Gates Foundation project.[11][12]
He is also director of BALANCE (comparing the clinical and economic burden of AMR in Adults);[13] and AVIAR (Arthropods as vectors of infection and AMR).[14]

References

  1. ^ "Professor Timothy Rutland Walsh DSc OBE". www.biology.ox.ac.uk.
  2. PMID 35927336
    .
  3. ^ .
  4. ^ "New research provides compelling evidence of connection between AMR surgical-site infections and arthropods". Mirage News.
  5. S2CID 256704595
    .
  6. .
  7. .
  8. .
  9. ^ Walsh, Timothy Rutland (2022). "DSc - Timothy Rutland Walsh". University of Bristol.
  10. ^ Lane, Ellis (27 December 2019). "Gloucestershire's New Year's Honours list in full". GloucestershireLive. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  11. PMID 35427523
    .
  12. ^ University of Tasmania (10 November 2023). "University Alumni Award winners' far-reaching impacts". University of Tasmania.
  13. ^ "BALANCE Meeting Delegates | Ineos Oxford Institute". www.ineosoxford.ox.ac.uk.
  14. ^ "The AVIAR study | Ineos Oxford Institute". www.ineosoxford.ox.ac.uk.