Positions

PhD Graduate Student - Cattle mRNA Vaccines

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Project description

Infectious diseases of cattle remain a considerable challenge that impacts animal health and food security. Veterinary vaccines with the capacity for rapid development during disease outbreaks and potential for low-cost manufacture and distribution are highly desired. Messenger RNA (mRNA) formulated with lipid nanoparticles offer a new and exciting platform for such vaccines. However, the major bottlenecks to the application of mRNA vaccines in farm animals is their limited storage/shelf stability and the requirements for multiple boosters, which increases the overall cost of the final vaccine product. The purpose of this project is to address these challenges and develop novel mRNA vaccines for cattle immunization. The project will combine approaches in drug delivery, immunology, microbiology, and bovine infection models to achieve the objectives.