Dr Ian Cooper

Dr Cooper is a Principal Lecturer in Microbiology, within the School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, and is the Course Leader for the BSc (Hons) Biological Sciences degree.

Dr Cooper is research active, and is currently investigating the following areas:

  • the phenomenon of quorum sensing and prevention of biomedical device infection
  • development of novel antimicrobial coatings for biomedical devices
  • the environmental persistence of medically important human bacterial pathogens
  • the isolation of bacteriophages from animal faeces and assessing their host range.

 

Ian-Cooper

How I like to teach

I teach across the BSc (Hons) Biological Sciences, Ecology, and Biomedical Science undergraduate courses. My area of expertise is in microbiology, and I am visible to the students within modules across all three years of study. My research directly informs my teaching at all levels, where my focus on the persistence of antibiotic resistant bacteria in the environment allows me to bridge the gap between clinical and environmental biology, and to develop and deliver a robust and engaging learning programme to the students. My links with academic societies provided me with an oversight of the requirements that industries have of Biological Sciences students, and to embed industry-recognised skills at key stages of the degree framework. I also take a lead in pastoral care; I am the Third (final) Year Tutor for the Biological Sciences degree, as well as being Course Leader. 

Module leadership

  • Level Five: Environmental Microbiology; Human Microbiology & Immunology.
  • Level Six: Zoonoses.

Other modules I contribute to:

  • Level Four: Introduction to Microbiology; Essential Skills for the Biosciences.
  • Level Five: Microbiology; Professional and Career Development.
  • Level Six: Biology Independent Study; Medical Geography; Clinical Microbiology; Biology & Biomedical Projects.
  • Level Seven: Clinical Infection Sciences.

My in-class teaching is supported by a series of online packages. These comprise text books and journal resources, but I also make use of public health documents produced by relevant bodies. For example, reports on infection rates published by the NHS. This allows the sessions to be focused on up to date issues in the biosciences, where we can consider the significance of these data to everyday life and society as a whole.

 

My research interests

My research focuses on cross-disciplinary advancement of microbiology bridging the environmental and clinical fields. My emphasis is on researching the fundamental molecular mechanisms of bacterial adhesion to biomedical materials and environmental substrata, and how human contact with animals and the environment affects the dissemination of bacteria relating to human health. Recently, I have become actively involved in researching potential new classes of antimicrobial, using both organic and inorganic substances.

As recipient (and PI) of the Society for Applied Microbiology Lecturer award (2013-14), I am actively investigating the prevalence of antibiotic resistant E. coli O157 in environmental surface waters and their clonal relativity to E. coli O157 isolates recovered from animal populations, using molecular/genetic typing tools.

To date, my research has established the persistence of E. coli O157 isolates within both animal and river/coastal sediments over a ten-year period. It has also established that the E. coli O157 isolates associated with incidents of human disease represent a distinct group from those present in animal and environmental sources. This work is the culmination of on-going research since 2002. To date, antibiotic resistance typing has identified a number of strains multiply resistant to antibiotics associated with human chemotherapy and animal husbandry veterinary prophylaxis.

Research activity

Current research projects:

Previous research projects:

  • NanoBacterphageSERS (Co-I) - FP7 Academia plus Industry
  • Camstent Ltd – three consultancy projects awarded during 2011-12 (PI, and Co-PI).
  • Biocare (Co-I) - FP7

Research Centres and Groups

Social media

 

Contact me

Dr Ian Cooper
Principal Lecturer

Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences
Moulsecoomb
91¶¶Òõ
BN2 4GJ

Telephone: +44 (0)1273 642082

Email: I.Cooper@brighton.ac.uk

Biography

I completed my BSc (Hons) in Biological Sciences in 2000, and went on the study for my PhD in Environmental Microbiology, which I completed in 2004. I subsequently worked as a postdoctoral researcher from 2005 to 2009, when I changed to a career in lecturing.

Research output

Consultancy

  • The development of antimicrobial coatings for indwelling medical devices such as catheters, stents and heart valves, 2011-13.
  • The treatment of potable water systems in relation to outbreaks of Legionellosis, 2011.

PhD students

NameThesis
Rahaf Issa (2016) Novel molecular mechanisms to improve our understanding of quorum sensing in Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms
Raghu Kothur (2016) Synthesising and testing a range of pillarene-based compounds for use as novel antimicrobial agents against common wound and gastro-intestinal pathogens 
Daire Cantillon (2014 to present) Investigating the molecular pathways involved in granuloma formation by Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
Bastian Schnabel (2014 to present)  
Rihaf Al-Fara (2015 to present) Investigating the molecular mechanisms by which colicins interact with translocator proteins to reach the bacterial periplasmic space.

Roles

Positions of Responsibility within the university

  • Course Leader, BSc (Hons) Biological Sciences
  • Final Year Tutor, Biological Sciences
  • Academic Lead: Zoonotic Disease Research Group
  • Member of the following committees: School Board; School Quality Assessment & Evaluation Forum; PABS Research Strategy Council; Course Examination & Divisional Boards; Safety Committee; University Academic Advisory Board.

External Research Responsibilities

  • I am a grant reviewer for both the BBSRC and MRC research councils.
  • Invited reviewer for fifteen peer-reviewed microbiology & chemical biology journals: Chemical Science (Royal Society of Chemistry); Federation of European Microbiologists; Journal of Materials Science (Materials in Medicine); American Journal of Infection Control; Journal of Immunology and Medical Microbiology; the American Journal of Infection Control; Folia Microbiologica; the Journal of Applied Microbiology; Letters in Applied Microbiology; Science of the Total Environment; the Antonie van Leeuwenhoek Journal of Microbiology; Head & Face Medicine; Water Research; Water Science & Technology; and the International Journal of Environmental Health Research.
  • Member of the following professional bodies: Society for Applied Microbiology, Society for General Microbiology, International Water Association, Society of Biology, Royal Society of Chemistry

Awards

Principle Investigator on the Society for Applied Microbiology Lecturer grant: An Investigation into the persistence of virulent, antibiotic-resistant Escherichia coli O157 within freshwater epilithic biofilms and agricultural animal populations over a ten-year period (awarded 2012).

Undergraduate Project Quorum Prize Scheme Winners for Utilisation of Electron Microscopy, 2011 (student: Mr Oliver Kitt). Investigating the morphological changes of Klebsiella pneumoniae biofilms on biomedical devices after exposure to sub-therapeutic concentrations of antibacterial actives.

Student Into Work Grant, from the Society of Applied Microbiology, 2010. (Student: Mr Christopher Swift) The immunomodulatory effect of Lactobacillus-derived signalling molecules: implications for gut research and "health drink" consumers.

Young Author of the Year in 2003 for the Chartered Institute of Water and Environmental Management, Southeast branch.