Stephen Taylor
@s-taylor.bsky.social
Scientific Lead - Pathogen Immunology at UKHSA Porton.
Microbial Immunology, Correlates of Protection, Functional serology, Vaccines for AMR, Mucosal Immunity, Strain Variation, Biofilms, Complement
*opinions my own and not representative of UKHSA
Microbial Immunology, Correlates of Protection, Functional serology, Vaccines for AMR, Mucosal Immunity, Strain Variation, Biofilms, Complement
*opinions my own and not representative of UKHSA
Having felt a bit smug that in my team mine was the only pension Capita hadn't messed up, I now have to eat my words
Somewhere between 2025 and 2026 statements, they've managed to lose one of my pensions
.. Can't blame that on the previous provider you useless gits!
Somewhere between 2025 and 2026 statements, they've managed to lose one of my pensions
.. Can't blame that on the previous provider you useless gits!
Who could possibly have seen this coming?
Oh wait, EVERYONE 🙄
Pet government outsourcers are a stain on this country
Oh wait, EVERYONE 🙄
Pet government outsourcers are a stain on this country
‘My kids buy me food’: civil service pensioners offered emergency loans as nearly 90,000 face delays
September 11, 2026 at 4:15 PM
Having felt a bit smug that in my team mine was the only pension Capita hadn't messed up, I now have to eat my words
Somewhere between 2025 and 2026 statements, they've managed to lose one of my pensions
.. Can't blame that on the previous provider you useless gits!
Somewhere between 2025 and 2026 statements, they've managed to lose one of my pensions
.. Can't blame that on the previous provider you useless gits!
Reposted by Stephen Taylor
Testosterone is a naturally occurring androgenic hormone, produced by both males and females (in much smaller quantities).
In the XY karyotype, androgens (such as testosterone) are understood to be the primary driver of protein synthesis.
In the XY karyotype, androgens (such as testosterone) are understood to be the primary driver of protein synthesis.
September 3, 2026 at 11:46 AM
Testosterone is a naturally occurring androgenic hormone, produced by both males and females (in much smaller quantities).
In the XY karyotype, androgens (such as testosterone) are understood to be the primary driver of protein synthesis.
In the XY karyotype, androgens (such as testosterone) are understood to be the primary driver of protein synthesis.
Reposted by Stephen Taylor
Invasive meningococcal disease is rising in the U.S. Learn about diagnosis, management, and vaccine updates in the latest clinical progress note.
🔗: https://doi.org/10.1002/jhm.70208
✍️: Drs. Shine and Chung @AlainaShine
🖼️: #VisualAbstract by @ericburnett
#JHM #Hospitalist #vaccinations
🔗: https://doi.org/10.1002/jhm.70208
✍️: Drs. Shine and Chung @AlainaShine
🖼️: #VisualAbstract by @ericburnett
#JHM #Hospitalist #vaccinations
September 3, 2026 at 6:00 PM
Invasive meningococcal disease is rising in the U.S. Learn about diagnosis, management, and vaccine updates in the latest clinical progress note.
🔗: https://doi.org/10.1002/jhm.70208
✍️: Drs. Shine and Chung @AlainaShine
🖼️: #VisualAbstract by @ericburnett
#JHM #Hospitalist #vaccinations
🔗: https://doi.org/10.1002/jhm.70208
✍️: Drs. Shine and Chung @AlainaShine
🖼️: #VisualAbstract by @ericburnett
#JHM #Hospitalist #vaccinations
Reposted by Stephen Taylor
If you’d like to read the report exposing the anti trans people ‘Gender Critical’ movement in the UK - which sadly Amnesty took down after bottling it due to legal threats from the Edinburgh Funder - here it is. Like_a_snowball_final_.pdf - Google Drive
drive.google.com/file/d/1PSsa...
drive.google.com/file/d/1PSsa...
August 5, 2026 at 11:41 AM
If you’d like to read the report exposing the anti trans people ‘Gender Critical’ movement in the UK - which sadly Amnesty took down after bottling it due to legal threats from the Edinburgh Funder - here it is. Like_a_snowball_final_.pdf - Google Drive
drive.google.com/file/d/1PSsa...
drive.google.com/file/d/1PSsa...
Reposted by Stephen Taylor
REMEMBER The guidance coming into effect today doesn't dictate what you're allowed to do as an individual. It for service providers and business owners.
Do not cower in fear, do not reduce yourself, do not isolate, that is one of the intended effects.
Do not cower in fear, do not reduce yourself, do not isolate, that is one of the intended effects.
August 5, 2026 at 8:31 AM
REMEMBER The guidance coming into effect today doesn't dictate what you're allowed to do as an individual. It for service providers and business owners.
Do not cower in fear, do not reduce yourself, do not isolate, that is one of the intended effects.
Do not cower in fear, do not reduce yourself, do not isolate, that is one of the intended effects.
Reposted by Stephen Taylor
The government’s transphobic code of practice is now up and running. But we’re not going to stand still and take it, we're supporting a legal challenge led by a trans person and a trans inclusive organisation. But we can only do this together.
Will you join us?👇
goodlaw.social/ldco
Will you join us?👇
goodlaw.social/ldco
August 5, 2026 at 9:16 AM
The government’s transphobic code of practice is now up and running. But we’re not going to stand still and take it, we're supporting a legal challenge led by a trans person and a trans inclusive organisation. But we can only do this together.
Will you join us?👇
goodlaw.social/ldco
Will you join us?👇
goodlaw.social/ldco
Reposted by Stephen Taylor
Reposted by Stephen Taylor
This👇explains why we’re going backwards; each of these orgs are prepared to sacrifice LGBTQ+ and women’s rights, just to harm trans people.
And they do not give a shit.
And they do not give a shit.
July 10, 2026 at 8:42 PM
This👇explains why we’re going backwards; each of these orgs are prepared to sacrifice LGBTQ+ and women’s rights, just to harm trans people.
And they do not give a shit.
And they do not give a shit.
Anyone else sick of reviewer comments from scientists that have already outsourced their critical reasoning?
If I read "Can't AI do this?" one more time I might have a nervous breakdown. If it could, we'd already be using it 🙄
I worry science is doomed
If I read "Can't AI do this?" one more time I might have a nervous breakdown. If it could, we'd already be using it 🙄
I worry science is doomed
May 10, 2026 at 9:35 PM
Anyone else sick of reviewer comments from scientists that have already outsourced their critical reasoning?
If I read "Can't AI do this?" one more time I might have a nervous breakdown. If it could, we'd already be using it 🙄
I worry science is doomed
If I read "Can't AI do this?" one more time I might have a nervous breakdown. If it could, we'd already be using it 🙄
I worry science is doomed
Weird working under DHSC, the parts I see are decent people with a decent idea of what needs doing....then I see headlines of what other parts of DHSC act like and it's disheartening.
That there are parts of DHSC that choose politics & personal morality over evidence based science, just baffles me
That there are parts of DHSC that choose politics & personal morality over evidence based science, just baffles me
The escalation of language is another piece of the puzzle in governmental opposition to gender affirming care
www.wearequeeraf.com/dhsc-escalat...
www.wearequeeraf.com/dhsc-escalat...
DHSC escalates opposition to puberty blockers for Trans+ kids, calling their use "appalling"
The escalation of language is another piece of the puzzle in governmental opposition to gender affirming care
www.wearequeeraf.com
May 10, 2026 at 3:39 PM
Weird working under DHSC, the parts I see are decent people with a decent idea of what needs doing....then I see headlines of what other parts of DHSC act like and it's disheartening.
That there are parts of DHSC that choose politics & personal morality over evidence based science, just baffles me
That there are parts of DHSC that choose politics & personal morality over evidence based science, just baffles me
Bothers me seeing evidence (no matter perceived "quality") get completely ignored. And the exclusion of actual experts from the conversation is anathema to me.
We don't do this in other scientific fields. We've made health policy on weaker evidence, but with the right experts involved
We don't do this in other scientific fields. We've made health policy on weaker evidence, but with the right experts involved
The review which led to this decision excluded 97% of studies looking at the use of hormones for trans youth 👇
Fears NHS has begun review that could end free Trans+ adult healthcare
NHS England has begun a review into access to hormones being used by Trans+ adults for gender affirming care, whilst also 'pausing' new prescriptions for 16 and 17-year-olds who wish to access this care
www.wearequeeraf.com
March 22, 2026 at 10:31 AM
Bothers me seeing evidence (no matter perceived "quality") get completely ignored. And the exclusion of actual experts from the conversation is anathema to me.
We don't do this in other scientific fields. We've made health policy on weaker evidence, but with the right experts involved
We don't do this in other scientific fields. We've made health policy on weaker evidence, but with the right experts involved
@civilserviceworld.bsky.social Have you ever run a story about how civil service travel cuts are now leading to CS staff being put in danger? If not, you probably should.
You'll find no shortage of examples I think. Dread to think what bad event it will take for action to finally be taken
You'll find no shortage of examples I think. Dread to think what bad event it will take for action to finally be taken
March 6, 2026 at 12:06 AM
@civilserviceworld.bsky.social Have you ever run a story about how civil service travel cuts are now leading to CS staff being put in danger? If not, you probably should.
You'll find no shortage of examples I think. Dread to think what bad event it will take for action to finally be taken
You'll find no shortage of examples I think. Dread to think what bad event it will take for action to finally be taken
Can someone in #AMR help me out here....... What is the point of a pre-op appointment happening months before a surgery?
Do hospitals think that it's impossible to acquire a Staph colonosation in those 5 months?
Just not getting the post-open infection reduction plan here
Do hospitals think that it's impossible to acquire a Staph colonosation in those 5 months?
Just not getting the post-open infection reduction plan here
March 2, 2026 at 2:24 PM
Can someone in #AMR help me out here....... What is the point of a pre-op appointment happening months before a surgery?
Do hospitals think that it's impossible to acquire a Staph colonosation in those 5 months?
Just not getting the post-open infection reduction plan here
Do hospitals think that it's impossible to acquire a Staph colonosation in those 5 months?
Just not getting the post-open infection reduction plan here
Reposted by Stephen Taylor
Stanley Plotkin had a major hand in the development of a number of vaccines in use today; he designed the rubella vaccine. He remembers the world before widespread use of vaccines & knows what's coming as vaccine policy is rewritten & vaccine confidence is eroded. www.statnews.com/2026/03/02/s...
A titan of vaccine development sees his field’s achievements slip away
Stanley Plotkin, the 93-year-old "godfather of vaccines," is watching his field’s achievements slip away.
www.statnews.com
March 2, 2026 at 2:18 PM
Stanley Plotkin had a major hand in the development of a number of vaccines in use today; he designed the rubella vaccine. He remembers the world before widespread use of vaccines & knows what's coming as vaccine policy is rewritten & vaccine confidence is eroded. www.statnews.com/2026/03/02/s...
Who could possibly have seen this coming?
Oh wait, EVERYONE 🙄
Pet government outsourcers are a stain on this country
Oh wait, EVERYONE 🙄
Pet government outsourcers are a stain on this country
‘My kids buy me food’: civil service pensioners offered emergency loans as nearly 90,000 face delays
‘My kids buy me food’: civil service pensioners offered emergency loans as nearly 90,000 face delays
Government to lend up to £10,000 to worst-affected new retirees as minister admits there is ‘unacceptable’ backlog
Newly retired civil servants say they are struggling to pay bills and buy food because delays at their pension scheme have left them without an income for months.
Pensioners have reported being forced to borrow money from family to pay for food and heating, with some saying they feared losing their homes because they could not afford their rent or mortgage. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
January 29, 2026 at 2:38 PM
Who could possibly have seen this coming?
Oh wait, EVERYONE 🙄
Pet government outsourcers are a stain on this country
Oh wait, EVERYONE 🙄
Pet government outsourcers are a stain on this country
Well whatever the hell Meta have done to the Windows version of Whatsapp has made it a really awful programme.
Well done 👏
Is there anything online that isn't getting worse and worse with the endless fiddling?
Well done 👏
Is there anything online that isn't getting worse and worse with the endless fiddling?
December 21, 2025 at 10:12 PM
Well whatever the hell Meta have done to the Windows version of Whatsapp has made it a really awful programme.
Well done 👏
Is there anything online that isn't getting worse and worse with the endless fiddling?
Well done 👏
Is there anything online that isn't getting worse and worse with the endless fiddling?
Gonna use this every time i'm asked what AI can do for my team 😅
Amazing work by Claude...which can't read a clock.
December 11, 2025 at 12:22 PM
Gonna use this every time i'm asked what AI can do for my team 😅
I for one am shocked* to find out Capita have fucked up the civil service pension handover.
Some of the lucky few in our team who could actually register are finding incorrect data
*not shocked
Some of the lucky few in our team who could actually register are finding incorrect data
*not shocked
December 4, 2025 at 11:47 PM
I for one am shocked* to find out Capita have fucked up the civil service pension handover.
Some of the lucky few in our team who could actually register are finding incorrect data
*not shocked
Some of the lucky few in our team who could actually register are finding incorrect data
*not shocked
Yes we all know that Daily Mail journo's aren't the sharpest tools in the box, but this headline about pertussis infections (which in the article they do call a bacteria) is really irking me
November 27, 2025 at 10:57 PM
Yes we all know that Daily Mail journo's aren't the sharpest tools in the box, but this headline about pertussis infections (which in the article they do call a bacteria) is really irking me
Absolutely this.
Wife and I were fully expecting to get hammered in the budget and have no problem with it.
Just be bold and open and raise income tax FFS (but protect the lower earners!)
Wife and I were fully expecting to get hammered in the budget and have no problem with it.
Just be bold and open and raise income tax FFS (but protect the lower earners!)
I’m not saying I won’t moan about it when the time comes to pay, but I think the Govt should raise my income tax because I am profoundly worried about the state of public services.
November 14, 2025 at 11:05 AM
Absolutely this.
Wife and I were fully expecting to get hammered in the budget and have no problem with it.
Just be bold and open and raise income tax FFS (but protect the lower earners!)
Wife and I were fully expecting to get hammered in the budget and have no problem with it.
Just be bold and open and raise income tax FFS (but protect the lower earners!)
Looking to Science Bluesky for a bit of help....... we're failing to find anti-mouse reagents that are specific for SIgA and normal serum monomeric IgA. (also need them for anti-human too)
Does anyone know of any?
🧪
Does anyone know of any?
🧪
October 29, 2025 at 9:01 PM
Looking to Science Bluesky for a bit of help....... we're failing to find anti-mouse reagents that are specific for SIgA and normal serum monomeric IgA. (also need them for anti-human too)
Does anyone know of any?
🧪
Does anyone know of any?
🧪
Reposted by Stephen Taylor
Imagine we could travel back in time ⏪⌛️to explore the world of bacterial pathogens before humans discovered and industrialised antibiotics
We just did that to study the history of #AMR spread @science.org
doi.org/10.1126/scie...
If you like time travel & biology, this 🧵is for you👇
We just did that to study the history of #AMR spread @science.org
doi.org/10.1126/scie...
If you like time travel & biology, this 🧵is for you👇
Pre- and postantibiotic epoch: The historical spread of antimicrobial resistance
Plasmids are now the primary vectors of antimicrobial resistance, but our understanding of how human industrialisation of antibiotics influenced their evolution is limited by a paucity of data predati...
doi.org
October 6, 2025 at 10:42 AM
Imagine we could travel back in time ⏪⌛️to explore the world of bacterial pathogens before humans discovered and industrialised antibiotics
We just did that to study the history of #AMR spread @science.org
doi.org/10.1126/scie...
If you like time travel & biology, this 🧵is for you👇
We just did that to study the history of #AMR spread @science.org
doi.org/10.1126/scie...
If you like time travel & biology, this 🧵is for you👇
I do despair at the decisions Wes Streeting is making and the one-sided advice he (and the govt generally) seems so keen to take.
Not just on this topic, but on others too tbf
Not just on this topic, but on others too tbf
New Podcast Episode: The Gender Clinic Files Part 1
In this episode:
How Wes Streeting used out of date information
A look at the centuries-long waiting list
How newer clinics are doing much more with less, compared to the old GIC system.
And more!
whatthetrans.com/ep141/
In this episode:
How Wes Streeting used out of date information
A look at the centuries-long waiting list
How newer clinics are doing much more with less, compared to the old GIC system.
And more!
whatthetrans.com/ep141/
October 6, 2025 at 9:52 AM
I do despair at the decisions Wes Streeting is making and the one-sided advice he (and the govt generally) seems so keen to take.
Not just on this topic, but on others too tbf
Not just on this topic, but on others too tbf
After a meeting of the excellent MOVE consortium today, and the Wellcome/Novo Nordisk Mucosal Immunity conference last week, think i'm on a 1-man mission to convince everyone that complement should be in all immune assays.
Hope people aren't sick of hearing it.. because i'm not stopping 😅
Hope people aren't sick of hearing it.. because i'm not stopping 😅
October 1, 2025 at 8:29 PM
After a meeting of the excellent MOVE consortium today, and the Wellcome/Novo Nordisk Mucosal Immunity conference last week, think i'm on a 1-man mission to convince everyone that complement should be in all immune assays.
Hope people aren't sick of hearing it.. because i'm not stopping 😅
Hope people aren't sick of hearing it.. because i'm not stopping 😅
Where is all this background push for pathogen stocks for CHIM studies to be GMP?
It'll kill the field because it's unaffordable. GMP doesn't guarantee a robust bacterial stock, many requirements are surprisingly lax. Is it just CROs sensing an opportunity to corner a market?
It'll kill the field because it's unaffordable. GMP doesn't guarantee a robust bacterial stock, many requirements are surprisingly lax. Is it just CROs sensing an opportunity to corner a market?
October 1, 2025 at 8:11 PM
Where is all this background push for pathogen stocks for CHIM studies to be GMP?
It'll kill the field because it's unaffordable. GMP doesn't guarantee a robust bacterial stock, many requirements are surprisingly lax. Is it just CROs sensing an opportunity to corner a market?
It'll kill the field because it's unaffordable. GMP doesn't guarantee a robust bacterial stock, many requirements are surprisingly lax. Is it just CROs sensing an opportunity to corner a market?