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Women in Immune Science Award

Recognizing The Accomplishments of Women in Immune Science

At Adaptive, we’re committed to promoting the work and accomplishments of women scientists across the field of Immune Science-driven medicine. We believe more perspectives and diversity not only helps us as a company but also advance immune-driven medicine as a whole, improving millions of lives along the way.

To make this mission a reality, we are awarding the immunoSEQ Women in Immune Science (WISE) Award. Our scientific committee will select one applicant to receive a $15,000 grant to use for sequencing to assist in their research. Research proposals for our 2023 award must be submitted by June 30th, 2023, to be considered. The award winner will be announced in August, 2023.

Ready to submit a project proposal?

2022 Award Recipients

G Goyal Headshot SQ 200x200
GIRIJA GOYAL, PHD, HARVARD UNIVERSITY – WYSS INSTITUTE FOR BIOLOGICALLY INSPIRED ENGINEERING

Research Summary: Animal models are not predictive of human clinical trials, but they were the only way to study the efficacy of vaccines in inducing a primary human B- and T-cell response. We have recently published a primary human lymph node organ chip (LN chip) which relies on blood derived cells to mimic lymphoid follicle formation and can mimic recall IgG response and CD8 response to influenza and COVID, as well as IgG induction against naïve antigens. With this support, we will compare the T- and B-cell repertoire on the LN chip to the in vivo repertoire and identify clones that expand in response to vaccination. This will allow to us to understand the limits of the system and mechanisms underlying successful vaccination and donor variability.

K.Lowe Headshot Sq 200x200
KATIE LOWE, PHD, DEPARTMENT OF RHEUMATOLOGY, COLLEGE OF MEDICINE AND PUBLIC HEALTH, FLINDERS UNIVERSITY

Research Summary: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) affects approximately 1% of the population worldwide, but due to the huge variability in RA biology upon patient presentation and a lack of clinical guidelines directing the application of treatment, current treatments for RA are based on a best guess scenario, which results in insufficient remission for many patients. Cellular infiltration of synovial tissue (ST) is a hallmark of RA and different patients exhibit synovial tissue infiltrated by different cell types. One reason behind this variation may be the differing antigenic triggers within the joint, which cause differing immune cell infiltration in different patients. This project aims to investigate the hypothesis that TCR diversity differs between RA patients with extensive lymphoid infiltrated ST and patients without lymphoid dominant ST infiltration. A more detailed analysis of TCR diversity, in patient subgroups will improve our knowledge of disease progression and may provide an improved understanding of treatment response.

2021 Award Recipient

Ana M. Bolivar MS PhD Candidate University Of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Circle
ANA M. BOLIVAR, MS, PHD CANDIDATE, UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS MD ANDERSON CANCER CENTER

Research Summary: Lynch Syndrome (LS) is the most common inherited cancer syndrome, which affects >1 million Americans, and constitutes the perfect model to understand DNA mismatch repair deficient (dMMR) carcinogenesis, which underlies 15% of all colorectal cancers. Approximately 70% of LS patients develop cancer at young ages despite intense screening (colonoscopies, endometrial biopsies, etc.). Therefore, it is urgent to identify more effective screening methods. Using the immunoSEQ Assay, the aim of this project is to gain insights into the role of T cells during dMMR carcinogenesis, as well as to provide research around an early detection method in the identification of cancers in at-risk LS patients undergoing surveillance.

2020 Award Recipient

Inimary Toby UDallas Circle
2020 AWARD WINNER
INIMARY TOBY, PHD, UNIVERSITY OF DALLAS, TX

Research Summary: Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) affects approximately 190,600 individuals per year in the United States, with mortality up to 45%. Localized inflammatory processes are detectable during ARDS, with previous studies indicating that T cells contribute to an aberrant response, which leads to excessive tissue damage and eventually ARDS. Using the immunoSEQ Technology, we hypothesize that there are populations of responder and non-responder T-cell receptors amongst individuals diagnosed with ARDS, which can be tracked and leveraged to gain insights into the adaptive immune repertoire of ARDS. We believe these TCRs could serve as ARDS biomarkers and that understanding these would enable us to identify CDR3 sequence patterns associated with ARDS.

WISE APPLICATION


Thank you for your interest in our WISE Award program. The program supports women, and those identifying as women, in science pursuing exciting research projects in immunology and other related fields with potential implications towards advancement in immune-driven medicine. Each year our goal is to select a qualifying applicant to receive a $15,000 immunosequencing grant to assist with their research. The grant may be applied toward any of Adaptive’s immunoSEQ® Assay products. In addition, our expert scientific advisors will provide experimental design and data analysis consultation. If you have any questions about the application process or would like to discuss your project or experimental design with one of our Scientific Liaisons, please contact scientificservices@adaptivebiotech.com.

To apply for our WISE Award, complete and submit the form along with a one-page research proposal.

  • Research proposals can focus on any aspect of immunology
  • Proposals must describe a pilot study to profile either the human or mouse TCR or BCR repertoire
  • Proposal length is limited to one page
  • For further information on required qualifications, proposal details, and evaluation criteria, please see the appropriate sections at the bottom of this page

Applications for grants and all granted services must be for research purposes only, not for any diagnostic purposes.

  • Applicants applying must have an MD, PhD, or equivalent advanced degree and pursuing research in immunology or related scientific-fields.
  • This award is open to women and those identifying as women.
  • There are no citizenship requirements for this program; Adaptive Biotechnologies welcomes applications from all qualified individuals from qualifying institutions worldwide.

  • Research proposals may focus on any aspect of immunology or related fields with potential implications towards advancement in immunology
  • Proposals must describe a pilot study to profile either the human or mouse TCR or BCR repertoire
  • Proposal length is limited to one page
  • Proposals must be for research purposes only; Adaptive Biotechnologies does not currently offer public grants for clinical research projects (e.g. diagnostic or therapeutic trials)

Proposals will be evaluated on: the innovative application of immunoSEQ Assays to the research concept, the soundness of the research design, and the value of the research to the field of immunology.

  • Winner to receive a $15,000 grant for use towards the purchase of any immunoSEQ Assay immune cell sequencing Service
  • Winner to cite Adaptive Biotechnologies in the methods section of any resulting publication
  • Winner also agrees to be interviewed for, and possibly highlighted in, Adaptive’s Researcher Profiles feature (with potential distribution via various promotional and media channels)
  • Winner must agree to submit data generated from their project to the immuneACCESS database within six months after its public release (i.e. any public reference to the data including, but not limited to, presentation via abstract, poster, or speaking engagement, press release, media interview, etc.)
  • Grant funds expire one year from date of award

All grant determinations and interpretations of the Women in Immune Science Award program will be made in the sole and absolute discretion of Adaptive Biotechnologies Corporation. The grant program may be revoked or terminated at any time for any reason, even after a grant notification has been issued. Winners will be required to sign or acknowledge a written grant agreement with Adaptive Biotechnologies Corporation as a condition for using the granted services.

You may not be eligible to receive the grant if you work for an institution that purchases diagnostic services from Adaptive Biotechnologies or if offering you the grant is otherwise prohibited under applicable law, which determination will be made by Adaptive Biotechnologies in its sole and absolute discretion. This grant receives support that may result in a report to the CMS Open Payments website under the Physician Payments Sunshine Act. The supporting companies are required to report the amount of the grant, the names of physicians who are awarded this grant, and the names of their institutions. This information may appear on the Open Payments website. More information about the Sunshine Act and CMS Open Payments program can be found here.

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