Dr Burton completed an undergraduate degree in Biomedical Sciences at the University of Southampton, followed by an MSc in Molecular Neurosciences at the University of Bristol. He returned to Southampton to study for his PhD investigating the effect of folic acid intake on the regulation of genes that modulate breast cancer development and how epigenetic regulation plays a role. This established specific interests in the epigenetics of disease and how intervention at different periods of the life-course can modulate disease risk and trajectories. Since successfully being appointed as a postdoctoral fellow in the Epigen research group at Southampton, Dr Burton has worked on a number of research projects with both national and international collaborators, including investigating the links between methylation, adiposity and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in adolescence in collaboration with the University of Western Australia. He has also participated in several large cohort studies investigating the cellular and molecular regulation of sarcopenia, testing novel pharmacological compounds in collaboration with UK-based artificial intelligence industry partner BenevolentAI. Furthermore, he has worked on pioneering projects investigating the regulation of non-coding RNAs in sperm from the PREPARE cohort, characterising for the first time the effects of a dietary intervention on total small non-coding RNA (sncRNA) populations; and in human serum from the Hertfordshire Sarcopenia Study, investigating serum sncRNA profiles of both healthy and sarcopenic older adults for which he was awarded the Academy of Medical Sciences research prize. More recently Dr Burton has also completed projects investigating the single cell and single nuclei transcriptomes of primary myoblasts from older adults with and without sarcopenia.

Dr Burton is an active member of the UKRI funded MyAge network and has previously (2022/23) been awarded both pump priming and proof of concept PI funding through MyAge to investigate the molecular components of sarcopenia. He has recently (April 2024) been awarded a NIHR funded Biomedical Research Centre bridging fellowship to support his academic development, and most recently (May 2024) has been successful in being awarded a MyAge ‘Missing Links’ grant to support his work on muscle dysregulation.

Alongside scientific research Dr Burton is an active member of the Faculty of Medicine Postdoctoral Association, the school of Human Development and Health (HDH) ED&I committee and the recently established HDH research club which he secured funding for in 2023 to support facilitation. In addition, Dr Burton engages in yearly outreach activities supported through the MyAge network and MRC Lifecourse Epidemiology Center to promote the importance of maintaining muscle health and resilience as we age. Dr Burton is also actively involved in teaching and lectures on sncRNA as part of the Gene Regulation third year Undergraduate module in the school of Biological Sciences at Southampton. He has been invited to review research papers for multiple journals including Age and Ageing, Communications Biology, Experimental Physiology and Clinical Sciences.

Dr Burton hopes to continue with research into age associated disease, with a particular focus on sarcopenia, and the discovery of biomarkers predictive of disease risk which can be targeted through nutritional or pharmacological intervention in order to improve health trajectories and well-being.