02 / 2023
The Paul-Ehrlich-Institut and the Association for the Promotion of the Langen Science Award have awarded the Langen Junior Science Award for the twelfth time. Dr Aileen Ebenig (32) received the first prize for her research on the safety of vaccines. Alexandra Goretzki (27) received the second prize for her research on the induction of regulatory B cells by a fusion protein. The third prize went to Angela Braun (27) for her work to increase the CAR T-cell yield. The Junior Science Awards recognise high-calibre research leading to first author publications in recognised journals.
From left to right: Angela Braun, Dr Aileen Ebenig, Alexandra Goretzki (first row), Hagen Wenzel, Professor Johannes Löwer, Professor Klaus Cichutek, Stefan Löbig (second row).
Source: Paul-Ehrlich-Institut
The three prize winners received their certificates and congratulations on 8 March 2023 from the Chairman of the Association for the Promotion of the Langen Science Prize, Professor Johannes Löwer; Hagen Wenzel, member of the Sparkasse Langen-Seligenstadt Management Board; and the President of the Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Professor Klaus Cichutek. First City Councillor Stefan Löbig conveyed the city's congratulations: "We are proud to be able to support young and talented scientists with the Junior Science Award. With this prize, Langen continues to present itself as a location for research and teaching, and I would like to thank Sparkasse Langen-Seligenstadt for funding this important prize again this year."
The high-quality research at the Paul-Ehrlich-Institut is an integral part of its activities as the Federal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines. "The fact that we are honouring three women as prize winners this year and that the award ceremony took place on International Women's Day emphasises the importance of women not only in research and society in general, but also in their work in regulation and research here at the Paul-Ehrlich-Institut. The successful work on multifaceted topics for which the scientists are being recognised this year gives a small impression of how wide-ranged the research at the Paul-Ehrlich-Institut truly is,"
explained Institute President Cichutek.
The first prize went to Dr Aileen Ebenig for her first author publication "Vaccine-associated enhanced respiratory pathology in COVID-19 hamsters after TH2-biased immunization". In her project, Dr Ebenig compared the influence of two experimental COVID-19 vaccines on the immune system of hamsters. She used a measles vector-derived vaccine as well as a protein vaccine with an adjuvant to simulate a worst-case scenario. The experimental protein vaccine is designed to induce type 2 T helper cells (Th2 cells) and would never be authorised in this form. The study confirmed the need to align vaccines towards immune stimulation of type 1 T helper cells (Th1 cells) via the measles virus-derived vaccine. This protected the animals from severe disease, as is also the case with the COVID vaccines authorised for use in humans. In contrast, the animals that had been vaccinated with the experimental protein vaccine, which produced a Th2-mediated immune response, fell seriously ill. This research is important for ensuring the safety of COVID-19 vaccines by excluding molecular mechanisms that induce unwanted immune responses.
Alexandra Goretzki received the second prize for her first author publication "Stimulation of naïve B cells with a fusion protein consisting of FlaA and Bet v 1 induces regulatory B cells ex vivo", in which she dealt with the reaction of immune cells to a fusion protein directed against birch pollen allergies (rFlaA:Betv1). Allergies are widespread amongst the population. There is therefore great interest in developing suitable candidates for allergen-specific immunotherapy (hyposensitisation). The Paul-Ehrlich-Institut had already developed an experimental fusion protein from a birch antigen as well as a protein from a specific type of bacteria (flagellin) in past projects. Alexandra Goretzki studied the response of immune cells to this fusion protein. She found that the fusion protein stimulates important immune cells (B cells) to differentiate towards regulatory cells. This results in the formation of antibodies and messengers that could counteract allergic reactions. The current findings in combination with past research results make fusion proteins promising candidates for allergen-specific immunotherapy.
The third prize winner is Angela Braun. She was recognised for her first author publication titled, "Dasatinib is a potent enhancer for CAR T cell generation by CD3-targeted lentiviral vectors." CAR T cells are immune system cells (T cells), which are provided with a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) outside the body by means of gene transfer for the treatment of leukaemias and lymphomas. The CAR allows the CAR-T cells to recognise and kill the cancer cells.
Angela Braun has found that, in the presence of dasatinib, an authorised protein kinase inhibitor used to treat leukaemia, T cells are significantly more susceptible to targeted gene transfer directed at their CD3 surface protein. When she delved deeper into the reasons behind the increase in susceptibility, she found that there are more CD3 receptors on the T cells that are activated by the gene transfer vectors when dasatinib is present. The vectors can therefore bind better to the cells with the higher number of receptors without losing their specificity. As a result, the T cells are modified more efficiently and converted into CAR T cells. This new finding could be useful for future gene immunotherapy approaches. A higher number of functional therapeutic CAR T cells could possibly be generated and, at the same time, gene transfer in tumour cells could be avoided.
Updated: 09.03.2023
