The life course of human immune responses to influenza infection and vaccination

Humans experience repeated challenges by influenza A antigens over their lifetime via natural exposure and vaccinations, with the result of each challenge dependent on the history of previous challenges.

During this award, I will combine an existing serological cohort (FluScape) with mathematical methods to precisely describe this lifelong interaction of humans with an evolving virus. Samples collected from the FluScape cohort span multiple time points for the same individuals across two distinct antigenic clusters. Serological assays will be used to measure the antibody strength in these samples against a panel of historical strains of influenza, allowing extension of an existing antibody kinetics model. The model will give answers to key research questions around optimal repeat vaccination schedules for different age groups. I will also refine the model to incorporate data from novel assays that directly measure the frequency of specific clonal B cells.