Certain infections, evade immune detection by resembling the body’s own tissues. This characteristic makes it difficult to design effective vaccines that generate protective immunity without also triggering harmful autoimmune responses. Deborah’s research focuses on understanding how the body responds to these challenging infectious threats and harnesses this knowledge to improve vaccine design.
Deborah has pioneered research into B cells – important cells that produce antibodies which are critical for immune defence. Her work demonstrated how B cells can safely adapt to these infectious threats by refining the antibodies they produce to effectively target the threat while minimising the risk of autoimmunity. Her work has also focused on uncovering the molecular pathways that underpin this process. By bridging fundamental immunology with vaccine development, Deborah’s research provides a framework for designing new vaccines that can overcome these challenges.