As a child, Misty Jenkins, a young Gunditjmara woman from western
Victoria, was fascinated by the way the human body works and how it
manages to protect itself from infectious diseases yet succumbs to
viruses. She later became interested in a career in scientific
research after discovering that Aboriginal Australians have some of
the poorest health conditions in the world and are susceptible to
so many infectious diseases.
Misty successfully pursued her career goal and is currently
completing a PhD with Nobel Laureate Professor Peter Doherty and Dr
Stephen Turner at the University of Melbourne. She has been
researching T cells, which are white blood cells responsible for
fighting infection. Her research will help in the design of better
vaccines, targeting pandemic influenza or HIV.
'Killer T cells are able to recognise when our body is infected
and are able to specifically destroy virus-infected cells. They do
this by acting like a soldier: the killer T cells throw grenades at
their target. I have been examining what sort of grenades they
throw, and how many. We have shown that the cells need to have
divided a few times before they switch on their killing molecules,
and they produce many different types of ‘grenades’.
With this sort of knowledge, we can design T cell vaccines that
promote the right sort of immunity, which will be potent and
specific against the invading virus.'
Earlier in 2006 Misty applied for funds from the CRC for
Aboriginal Health International Program, funded by the Office of
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health, after being invited
to present her research during a plenary session of the Keystone
Symposia conference, Viral Immunity: From Basic Mechanisms to
Vaccines.
Her research presentation generated a lot of excitement and
interest as it discusses some of the mechanisms that contribute to
the T cell killing function.
'This knowledge enables us to understand how killer T cells are
generated and will aid the design of T cell mediated vaccines. The
feedback I received was that this study has provided valuable
insights into T cell immunity. I feel that I made a valuable
contribution towards the conference and also I found the experience
extremely rewarding for my career. I was able to interact with the
world’s leading immunologists and talk about my research with
them. This experience is essential for a young scientist to
increase network opportunities and receive feedback about my
research. I was offered multiple academic appointments at the
conference, which means I am currently deciding where I will be
employed next year. Attending the conference gave me enormous
opportunities to further promote myself, my research and the CRC
for Aboriginal Health, which was appropriately acknowledged during
the plenary session.
'I would like to thank the CRC for Aboriginal Health very much
for supporting my opportunity to attend the Keystone Symposia
through your Indigenous International Program. It was a valuable
opportunity and one which has helped shaped my future career.'
From CRCAH Annual
Report 2005/2006
Misty is now pursuing post-doctoral work at
Oxford University in England, following the completion of her
PhD.
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