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Sunday May 18, 2025

Congratulations to Erica Stewart
2024 ASI Travel Awardee

We warmly congratulate
Erica Stewart
winner of the 2024 ASI Travel Award (Postdoctoral)

 

I am an immunologist and vaccinologist interested in studying the immune responses to mucosal vaccines, especially after respiratory delivery. I underwent my PhD training from 2019 to 2023 at the University of Sydney as part of Professor Jamie Triccas’s lab. In my doctoral studies we were interested in characterising the immune mechanisms behind the success of a new vaccine adjuvant, Advax.

Following the completion of my PhD, I have worked as a postdoctoral researcher in the lab of Professor Warwick Britton at the Centenary Institute in Sydney. Currently, I’m working with others in our team to develop a new intranasal COVID-19 vaccine that we hope could be able to reduce viral transmission and so reduce the emergence of new SARS-CoV-2 variants. Alongside mucosal immune responses, I am passionate about diversity and inclusion in STEM and have taken an interest in understanding research commercialisation and translation, which I have learnt more about through participation in programs such as ON-Prime provided by CSIRO.

Dr Kia Ferrell (left) and Dr Erica Stewart (right) attending European Congress of Immunology Conference 2024.

This ASI award provided me the opportunity to attend the European Congress of Immunology in Dublin in September of this year. I am so grateful that I was able to attend and watch inspirational lectures from Nobel Prize winners such as James P. Allison (USA), who pioneered checkpoint inhibitor therapy for melanoma patients, and hear from world leaders speaking on topics I normally wouldn’t have the opportunity to learn about such as the interactions between the immune system and microbiome early in life (Petter Brodin, Sweden). Attending ECI was an eye-opening experience to witness the European immunology research community in action. I learnt first-hand the differences in communication, collaboration, and research methodologies employed in Europe as compared to the Australian context I am familiar with. I also had a great time meeting with representatives from several companies from around the world and I was exposed to new technologies and techniques I otherwise would not have known about. Overall, it was an invaluable experience and career highlight that I will appreciate for many years to come.

Author: Erica Stewart

Disclaimer: The views expressed are those of the author/s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of ASI