2009 Boomerang Award: Andrew Webb

Imperial College London

Andrew Webb’s research career began in 2001 with his MBiomedSc (Part 1) year, sharing his time between two leading research departments in Melbourne. During this time, he was jointly supervised by Dr Mibel Aguilar at the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Department at Monash University and Dr Tony Purcell from the Microbiology and Immunology Department at the University of Melbourne. During the early years of his career, his research focused on characterising T lymphocyte immune responses to modified peptide antigens. Working between the two departments gave Andrew a firm grounding in a wide range of techniques, including protein purification, mass spectrometry and assays of immune function. In 2005, he completed his PhD in the same laboratories, examining the molecular basis for T cell recognition of peptide MHC complexes, which included collaborations with Professor Jamie Rossjohn, Dr Steve Turner and Nobel Laureate Professor Peter Doherty. Andrew’s first postdoc position included 12 months as a research associate with Steve Turner and Tony Purcell, examining the molecular basis for viral antigen recognition by T lymphocytes. It was during this time that he developed a keen interest in host-pathogen interactions and immune recognition.

In 2006, Andrew relocated to Imperial College London under the guidance of Professor Gavin Screaton as a travelling NHMRC CJ Martin Fellow. His research there is directed at developing a greater understanding of the pathogenesis of dengue infection, and in particular, the identification of the receptors involved in surface binding and the molecules involved during receptor-mediated entry. The highlight of this work to date is the identification of an alternative C-type lectin, which is solely expressed in tissue that exhibits dengue haemorrhagic pathology, suggesting a possible role in disease progression. Andrew has also recently begun a collaborative project studying the mechanisms of how the innate signalling sytems are inhibited in dengue-infected cells. He plans to continue this work upon returning home to Australia later this year.

Following the ComBio2009 meeting in Christchurch, New Zealand, Andrew plans to use his Boomerang Award to visit investigators at the University of Queensland and QIMR and present his recent work.

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This page last modified: April 25, 2009.