Vinicius’ Chalk Talk

One of the chalk talks that stuck out to me the most was Vinicius’ work with inflammatory bowel disease vaccines. Not only was the talk extremely informative, it was conveyed with ease and made me understand the complex work that he was doing without cutting off important, yet complicated details.

During his talk, one of the things that stuck out most to me was the idea of using mechanisms from a different vaccine ( specifically the influenza vaccine) to get the desired response necessary for a successful IBS vaccine. Not only is it a wonderful idea, it speaks to the collaborative nature of science and the interconnectedness of research. I was also intrigued by the potential advantages that this vaccine would proved. The IBS vaccine that Vinicius’ lab aims to create would be much more stable than regular vaccines, which increases accessibility and decreases the use of precious resources, as well as creates a stronger and more targeted response, which is always desirable when talking about creating a vaccine.

Overall, it was fun to listen to Vinicius’ talk because he was able to make a completely different research area seem really interesting and approachable. I cannot wait to hear more about his research in the future!