Vaccines produce immunity by activating innate immune receptors on antigen presenting cells to elicit an inflammatory response - reshaping global disease. Surprisingly, nobody knows how many receptors, cells or how much of an inflammatory response is required for the safe and effective vaccination or what range of activity leads to an adverse response. In small molecule pharmacology, safety is determined by dosing - often modulated on a per patient basis. In contrast, vaccines are rarely modulated per patient and dosage is typically fixed. To improve safety and prevent adverse events, I will present work on our methods to improve immune responses via materials and chemical tools.
Speaker:
Aaron Esser-Kahn was born and raised in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. He may tell you that he is from Detroit, but he is not. He attended the Cranbrook educational community from grades K-12. He traveled west to study chemistry at the California Institute of Technology where he first developed a taste for boundary breaking research in the Tirrell Lab. The Esser-Kahn lab’s current research areas focuses on immuno-engineering and adaptive materials.
This is part of UNSW Australian Centre for NanoMedicine (ACN) Monthly Seminar Series. For more information, please contact acn@unsw.edu.au
