The National Institutes of Health has awarded a team from the Duke Department of Biostatistics & Bioinformatics and the Duke Department of Surgery more than $5 million over five years to develop computational models to rapidly accelerate the development of more effective flu vaccines.
Using human datasets, the researchers will develop computational models to understand how antibodies protect against severe influenza infection. The team is led by Cliburn Chan , PhD, professor of biostatistics & bioinformatics, and Keith Reeves, PhD , professor in surgery.
“By providing in silico platforms for generating antibody repertoires, modeling mucosal defense, and simulating infection outcomes, these computational models will rapidly accelerate the development of more effective influenza vaccines,” Chan said. “The project builds on interdisciplinary team science and involves collaboration between computational and experimental researchers across the board.”
The grant was awarded via a U01 funding mechanism — cooperative agreement awards that support multidisciplinary research projects.
Other Duke faculty leading specific aims of the project are:
- Rohit Singh, PhD, assistant professor of biostatistics & bioinformatics
- Moses Sekaran, PhD, assistant professor in surgery
- John Hickey, PhD, assistant professor of biomedical engineering
- Stephanie Jost, PhD, associate professor in surgery
- Bruce Rogers, PhD, assistant professor in surgery
- Georgia Tomaras, PhD, A. Geller Distinguished Professor for Research in Immunology and professor in surgery.