Alexandra Sanchez-Martinez
About
My research project
Improving vacccination in older adultsThe population of older adults is growing dramatically, especially in low and middle-income countries. With age, the immune system defects (e.g., immunosenescence) alter the capacity to eliminate pathogenic infections and respond effectively to vaccines. Adjuvants improve the immune response induced by vaccination; consequently, designing and testing novel adjuvants and elucidating their mechanism of action becomes imperative to develop more effective vaccines, particularly for older adults. Therefore, we aim to investigate the mechanism of action of multiple adjuvants during immunosenescence using in vitro and in vivo animal models and in vitro human primary cell models.
Supervisors
The population of older adults is growing dramatically, especially in low and middle-income countries. With age, the immune system defects (e.g., immunosenescence) alter the capacity to eliminate pathogenic infections and respond effectively to vaccines. Adjuvants improve the immune response induced by vaccination; consequently, designing and testing novel adjuvants and elucidating their mechanism of action becomes imperative to develop more effective vaccines, particularly for older adults. Therefore, we aim to investigate the mechanism of action of multiple adjuvants during immunosenescence using in vitro and in vivo animal models and in vitro human primary cell models.
Research
Publications
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is associated with considerable healthcare burden; as such, prevention and treatment of RSV have long been considered a priority. Historic failures in RSV vaccine development had slowed the research field. However, the discovery of the conformational change in the RSV fusion protein (F) has led to considerable advancements in the field. The RSV pharmaceutical landscape has drastically changed in recent years with successful trials of both vaccines and second-generation mAbs leading to licensing and roll-out of these agents in several countries. RSV preventative and therapeutic measures will likely have a significant impact on RSV-related morbidity and mortality. However, there are still gaps in the protection that these immunizations offer that should be addressed. Many unanswered questions about RSV infection dynamics and subsequent disease should be a focus of ongoing research. This review discusses the currently licensed RSV pharmaceuticals and others that have recently progressed to clinical trials.