Grant: CIHR Fellowship

Despite being identified 90 years ago, influenza virus remains one of the most dangerous respiratory pathogens worldwide. Each year, circulating influenza strains mutate to evade pre-existing immunity and kill ~400 000 people. In addition, unique strains occasionally jump from animals (pigs, birds) to cause "flu" pandemics, which can take substantially more lives. Currently, vaccines for influenza are strain-specific (they target viral regions that often mutate between strains) and provide unpredictable and variable protection. In addition, influenza can easily develop resistance against existing antiviral drugs. Thus, despite significant research, humans remain under the constant burden of seasonal infections, threat of pandemics, and are poorly prepared to treat influenza infections once they begin. My research program in the laboratory of Dr. Patrick Wilson at Weill Cornell Medicine aims to address part of this preparedness gap by searching for rare molecules which can directly protect from, and inform vaccine design against, many different influenza strains: broadly-protective antibodies. My work will use cutting edge technology ("LIBRA-seq") to isolate and assess "memory B cells" from organ-donor lungs, and surgically-removed tonsils from children and adults. In particular, we will study cells specific for parts of influenza which do not easily mutate. We will then use the unique genetic information from these cells to produce their antibodies in the laboratory. Having enriched antibodies which appear to be "broadly-reactive", we will test each for its true ability to provide protection against a wide array of influenza strains. Using this approach, we aim to identify broadly-protective antibodies which can be developed as clinical treatments against influenza, and can provide information critical to designing next-generation "universal" influenza vaccines, all while improving our understanding of how children and adults respond differently to infection.