William Traves

William Traves – Research Assistant

My research seeks to understand the complex interactions between immune, epithelial, stromal, and neuronal cells toegther with extracellular matrix, contribute to the pathophysiology of chronic lung diseases, particularly severe asthma. I use intact tissue from human paediatric and adult subjects, alongside mouse models of chronic lung diseases to study these processes in their native spatial context. My work combines spatially resolved, high-dimensional imaging with mass spectrometry approaches to investigate tissue organisation, cellular interactions, and extracellular matrix remodelling.

After completing a BSc in Biology at Swansea University in 2020, I moved to London to undertake an MSc in Immunology at Imperial College London, with the research component carried out in the Lloyd Lab. Following this, I remained in the Lloyd Lab to undertake a PhD in Clinical Medicine Research, which I completed in 2025.

Alongside my research, I am actively involved in several professional roles. I serve on the Health and Safety Executive Committee for the National Heart and Lung Institute, am a committee member for the British Society for Immunology London Immunology Group, and act as a Task Force Secretary for the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

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 Publications

  • Emery, H., Traves, W.J., Rowley, A.F. et al. The diarrhetic shellfish-poisoning toxin, okadaic acid, provokes gastropathy, dysbiosis and susceptibility to bacterial infection in a non-rodent bioassay, Galleria mellonella. Archives of Toxicology 95, 3361–3376 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00204-021-03132-x
  • Joulia, R., Puttur, F., Stölting, H., Traves, W.J., Entwistle, L.J. et al. Mast cell activation disrupts interactions between endothelial cells and pericytes during early life allergic asthma. Journal of Clinical Investigation (2024). https://doi.org/10.1172/JCI173676
  • Hewitt, R.J., Puttur, F., Gaboriau, D.C.A., Fercoq, F., Fresquet, M., Traves, W.J. et al. Lung extracellular matrix modulates KRT5+ basal cell activity in pulmonary fibrosis. Nature Communications (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-41621-y
  • Joulia, R., Patti, S., Traves, W.J., Loewenthal, L., Yates, L. et al. A single-cell spatial chart of the airway wall reveals proinflammatory cellular ecosystems and their interactions in health and asthma. Nature Immunology (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41590-025-02161-3
  • Puttur, F., Traves, W.J., Martin, M.G., Di Carmine, S., Fercoq, F., Gaboriau, D.C.A. et al. Epithelial cell-derived lumican modulates extracellular matrix dynamics in early-life airways disease. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (2025). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaci.2025.08.030
  • Hewitt, R.J., Chakravarty, P., Perez-Lloret, J., Banchero, M., Berg, M., Berge, M., Traves, W.J. et al. Single-cell RNA-seq reveals aberrant airway epithelial-immune cell crosstalk in pulmonary fibrosis. Journal of Clinical Investigation (2026). https://doi.org/10.1183/23120541.01273-2025