Researchers to receive Royal Society Fellowships

News | Posted on Tuesday 6 December 2022

Two researchers from the University of York will receive University Research Fellowships (URFs) from the Royal Society this year.

Dr Laura Clark, of the School of Physics, Engineering and Technology, and Dr Damian Perez Mazliah, of the Hull York Medical School, are to receive the fellowships which the Society awards each year to “outstanding scientists who are in the early stages of their research career and have the potential to become leaders in their field”.

Dr Clark’s fellowship is for her research project “Seeing through the noise – enabling low-dose, high-resolution imaging in the scanning transmission electron microscope”, and Dr Mazliah is conducting research into Protective and pathogenic mechanisms of B cell immunity in Chagas disease.


Dr Laura Clark.

Dr Clark said: “Receiving this fellowship from the Royal Society is a game changer for my research programme. The protected research time it gives me, over an extended period, will allow my growing research group to push beyond the barriers to imaging beam-sensitive materials in the electron microscope. The high-resolution images of materials this work will enable - such as solar cell and battery components - are urgently needed in the work towards net zero.”


Dr Damian Perez Mazliah.

And Dr Mazliah added: “Chagas disease, caused by Trypanosoma cruzi parasites, is the leading cause of infectious heart disease worldwide. Despite affecting more than the estimated number of people suffering from Parkinson's disease or lupus globally, Chagas disease receives little attention from governments.

“This award will allow us to discover underlying immune mechanisms involved in control and progression of Chagas heart disease. Hence, this research will generate foundational knowledge to aid in the production of novel therapies to combat this neglected tropical disease.”