Infection and Immunity

We're joined by multi-award winning journalists, Aisha Dow and Melissa Cunningham, to chat about their new book Life As We Knew It. The book tells the gripping inside account of Australia’s extraordinary pandemic story. It has been described by our very own Peter Doherty as a “Terrific account of Australia’s outstanding political and public health response to COVID-19.” He says: “We all lived through it, and it’s our story”. Aisha Dow is health editor at The Age and Melissa Cunningham is a reporter for The Sunday Age.   Shownotes To purchase a copy of the book, visit the publisher’s website scribepublications.com.au Book giveaway: We have one book to give away kindly donated by Aisha. All you have to do is suggest a topic for the podcast by emailing doherty-media@unimelb.edu.au Get in touch Have a question or topic you'd like us to explore in a future episode? Contact us via email doherty-media@unimelb.edu.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In a major coup for the Doherty Institute and the Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, our two COVID-19 vaccines went head to head in a Phase 1 clinical trial in 2022. The interim results have just been published in the Lancet’s eBioMedicine journal and found that both have strong potential to be an improved approach for boosting immunity to SARS-CoV-2 variants. In this episode we unpack the interim results from the trial with Professor Terry Nolan. Terry is a paediatrician and clinical epidemiologist. He is also the Head of the Vaccine and Immunisation Research Group at the Doherty Institute and Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, which led this Phase 1 clinical trial. Shownotes: Publication in The Lancet’s eBioMedicineNolan, Terry M. et al. Interim results from a phase I randomized, placebo-controlled trial of novel SARS-CoV-2 beta variant receptor-binding domain recombinant protein and mRNA vaccines as a 4th dose booster. eBioMedicine (2023). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ebiom.2023.104878 Recent article published by the Doherty Institute about the study Get in touch Have a question or topic you'd like us to explore in a future episode? Contact us via email doherty-media@unimelb.edu.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our immune system is made up of many types of cells. Many people will have heard of T cells that fight infection, but did you know there are many different subsets of T cells? In this episode we're talking all things tissue-resident memory T cells with the author of a new study that has found new ways to remove immune cells that cause skin autoimmune diseases, like psoriasis and vitiligo, without affecting protective cells that fight infection and cancer. Dr Simone Park is an immunologist who holds an Honorary position at the Doherty Institute after completing her PhD with Professors Thomas Ghebhardt and Laura Mackay, and is currently a Cancer Research Institute Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. Her work aims to understand how the immune system responds to infection and cancer.  Show notes: Publication in SciencePark S, Christo S, et al. Divergent molecular networks program functionally distinct CD8+ skin resident memory T cells. Science (2023). DOI: 10.1126/science.adi8885 Recent article published by the Doherty Institute Hope for autoimmune skin disorder sufferers with new immunotherapy strategy Get in touch Have a question or topic you'd like us to explore in a future episode? Contact us via email doherty-media@unimelb.edu.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Antimicrobial resistance has consistently been named by the World Health Organization as one of the top 10 global health threats, with current estimates of over 700,000 deaths per year due to antimicrobial resistance, expecting to reach 10 million by 2050. Antimicrobials refer to a category of medicines used to prevent and treat infections in humans, animals and plants including antibiotics, antivirals, antifungals and antiparasitics. So what exactly is antimicrobial resistance? What is causing it to become increasingly worse? And what can be done to prevent it? To answer these questions we're joined by Medical Microbiologist, Dr Rod James. Show notes: AURA 2023: Fifth Australian report on antimicrobial use and resistance in human health released this month by the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care National Antimicrobial Prescribing Survey (NAPS) celebrated 10 years this week WHO Collaborating Centre for Antimicrobial Resistance located at the Doherty Institute works in the Western Pacific region to build capacity in surveillance and antimicrobial stewardship activities. Get in touch Have a question or topic you'd like us to explore in a future episode? Contact us via email doherty-media@unimelb.edu.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As 2023 draws to a close, almost four years on since the first case of COVID-19 was diagnosed, we continue to see cases and have adjusted to living with COVID-19. So, is the COVID-19 pandemic officially over? In this episode, Infectious diseases expert and Director of the Doherty Institute, Professor Sharon Lewin answers this question and fills us in on what the experts are discussing behind the scenes to prepare us for the next pandemic. Show notes: Cumming Global Centre for Pandemic Therapeutics Foundation Grants are open globally for applications.  Get in touch Have a question or topic you'd like us to explore in a future episode? Contact us via email doherty-media@unimelb.edu.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Laureate Professor Francoise Barre-Sinoussi shares her insight and experience of the HIV pandemic, reflects on the strengths and weaknesses of the response and the lessons that can be applied to COVID and pandemics of the future.Françoise was the recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2008 for the discovery of HIV. She is Emeritus Professor at the Institut Pasteur and Emeritus Director of Research at the Inserm. She heads the Regulation of Retroviral Infection Unit at the Institut Pasteur in Paris.Shownotes:Watch the symposium where Laureate Professor Barre-Sinoussi recently presented her keynote address.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How severe is Omicron? How is easily is it transmitted? How do our vaccines fair against this new variant?In this bonus episode of Doherty Institute Director Professor Sharon Lewin explains what the evidence is telling us about the Omicron variant.Infection and Immunity - Evidence ExplainedPlease note this episode was recorded on Tuesday, 18 January 2022 before the Federal Government announced the Therapeutic Goods Administration had approved the Novavax vaccine along with two COVID-19 oral drugs molnupiravir and nirmatrelvir + ritonavir, for use in Australia. The episode was also recorded before a Code Brown alert was activated across multiple hospitals in the stateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What does the Director of the Doherty Institute have to say after another year of battling COVID-19?In our final episode of the season we are joined by Professor Sharon Lewin to unpack the scientific evidence after another 12 months of riding out the ever-changing landscape of COVID-19.We talk about what was done well, what we could do better and what 2022 may have in store for us.We want to hear from you! Help us shape future episodes of our podcast by telling us a little about yourself, how you listen to and what you'd like to hear more of in 2022. The survey is anonymous and will only take a few minutes to complete.Infection and Immunity – Evidence ExplainedSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Wednesday, 1 December is Worlds AIDS Day, with the 2021 edition marking 40 years since the first cases of AIDS-defining illnesses were first clinically documented.So how far has the science progressed when it comes to treating HIV? What is it like today for people living with HIV? Is a cure on the cards? Are there any lessons we can learn from COVID-19?In this episode Jared Stern answers our questions and helps us better understand HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) , the virus that if left untreated, causes AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). Jared is a PhD candidate at the Doherty Institute in Professor Sharon Lewin’s lab researching a cure for HIV. They are also the Director of Living Positive Victoria and have been living with HIV since 2015.We want to hear from you! Help us shape future episodes of our podcast by telling us a little about yourself, how you listen to and what you'd like to hear more of in 2022. The survey is anonymous and will only take a few minutes to complete.Infection and Immunity – Evidence ExplainedSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last Friday the Doherty-led modelling consortium presented their final report to National Cabinet. What does the latest report tell us? And what have we learned from the previous reports released?To help unpack the data and findings, we’re joined by Professor Jodie McVernon, Director of Epidemiology at the Doherty Institute, who has led the modelling consortium responsible for the report.Show notes:Read our statement on the latest report: https://www.doherty.edu.au/news-events/news/statement-on-the-doherty-institute-modelling-final-report-to-national-cabinetVisit the Doherty Institute Modelling Hub for further information on epidemiological modelling released by the consortium: https://www.doherty.edu.au/our-work/institute-themes/viral-infectious-diseases/covid-19/covid-19-modelling/modellingCheck out our previous episodes on modelling:Doherty Institute modelling sensitivity analysisDoherty Institute modellingWe want to hear from you! Help us shape future episodes of our podcast by telling us a little about yourself, how you listen to and what you'd like to hear more of in 2022. The survey is anonymous and will only take a few minutes to complete.Infection and Immunity – Evidence ExplainedSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.