Meet 2023 Sir Howard Dalton Young Microbiologist of the Year finalist Anastasia Lankina
Posted on September 5, 2023 by Microbiology Society
The Sir Howard Dalton Young Microbiologist of the Year Prize is awarded by the Society each year. The prize recognises and rewards excellence in science communication by a Microbiology Society member who is a postgraduate student or postdoctoral researcher, having gained their PhD in the last two years. In the lead up to the final, taking place on 3 October 2023, we will be getting to know each of the finalists in this blog series.
Anastasia Lankina (University College London, UK)
What are your current research interests?
I am very curious about pathogen evolution, especially the co-evolution of viruses and their hosts. Studying human herpes viruses provides a unique insight into how the millennia of host-pathogen interactions can shape their biological responses to each other, with one side always trying to "outsmart" the other. In turn, understanding evolutionary patterns can aid in preventing disease, designing new treatments, and even predicting potential pandemics.
What is the theme of your talk?
My talk is about a novel antigenic domain that we observed to be conserved across several human herpes viruses. The overarching theme of both my presentation and my PhD thesis is combining computational and experimental approaches to investigate the variation of viral genomes.
How would you explain your research to a GCSE student?
Once you get a herpes virus infection it cannot be cured, so the best strategy is prevention using vaccines. Our team is working on investigating existing vaccines and how we can improve them in the future; as well as on understanding the biology of herpes viruses, and their interaction with the human body. We are even taking steps towards making a vaccine that would work against many different types of herpes viruses at once!
If you weren’t a microbiologist, what would you be?
Scientific illustrator. I am passionate about communicating science in a clear and accessible manner, and sometimes a descriptive visual can be better than a hundred words!
Why is it important for you to be a member of the Microbiology Society?
Connection, collaboration, and networking. Microbiology Society provides an amazing opportunity to connect scientists, encouraging interdisciplinary and inter-institutional collaboration. I am thrilled and honoured to be one of the voices in this global conversation that pushes the frontiers of microbiology research further.