Dr Tom Bird

Tom completed his PhD at Victoria University of Wellington (VUW) under the supervision of Associate Professor Davide Comoletti in 2025. His thesis focussed on identifying and characterising novel neuronal protein interactions. In particular, he elucidated the structures and in solution behaviours of an understudied family of receptors with implications in neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease.

After completing his PhD thesis, Tom has worked as part of the RNA platform at VUW, before moving to the Malaghan Institute as a postdoctoral fellow in the Connor Laboratory. His current research as part of the vaccine programs of the RNA platform aims to design, purify and structurally characterise recombinant viral proteins to better assess the immune responses generated by the novel vaccines under development.

As part of this work, he will also establish a new protein production facility at the Malaghan Institute. The long term goal of this work is to provide protein-based reagents to all laboratories at the Institute, aiding their research into how the immune system responds to disease and potential new treatments.