Eilidh Carrington is a Senior Scientific Collaborator in the Viral Immunology lab at Swiss TPH. A molecular parasitologist by training, she has applied her meticulous laboratory skills to numerous projects for well over a decade.
Originating from the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, her interest in molecular biology has taken her around the British Isles to Glasgow for her BSc, London for her MSc and Liverpool for her PhD. She joined the Malaria Gene Regulation lab at Swiss TPH in Basel in 2016 for her Postdoc and spent almost seven years investigating antigenic variation and gene regulation of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum. In 2023, she joined the Molecular Immunology lab at Swiss TPH, where she developed an mRNA vaccine targeting the malaria parasite surface protein PfCyRPA.
A member of the Viral Immunology lab since January 2026, Eilidh is currently establishing a phage immunoprecipitation sequencing (PhIP-Seq) pipeline for multiplexed serological surveillance of vector-borne diseases. She is generating a T7 phage display library displaying peptides from the important tick-borne diseases Borrelia spp and tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) and the four serotypes of the mosquito-borne Dengue virus. This phage library is combined with patient serum samples, from which antibodies recognising library members are immunoprecipitated and pooled for sequencing. Thus, allowing serological detection of these diseases while providing insight into the specific antigen epitopes involved. Our results will provide valuable epidemiological data on vector-borne diseases and identify epitopes for diagnostic development.
Outside the lab, Eilidh is instilling her love of wildlife and nature into her son, while delighting in rediscovering the world through his eyes. She enjoys spending time with her family and travelling the world in search of wildlife and sports.
Interests
- Travelling
- Baking
- In a former life, reading and listening to music
- Cow spotting