December 2019
Cheleka Mpande from Zambia and currently based in South Africa, is our ambassador of the month. Cheleka is a PhD student in immunology researching on T cell immunology in the context of Tuberculosis infection. She joined the Immunopaedia team in December 2017, as Junior Communications Officer, and has made valuable contributions by writing articles and assisting Bonamy Holtak with facilitating our online-course materials.
Position: PhD Candidate
Research Institute: South African Tuberculosis Vaccine Initiative (SATVI), Institute of Infectious Diseases & Molecular Medicine and Div. of Immunology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town
Research interests: Tuberculosis, classical (CD4) T cell immunology, TB vaccines
Recent publications: Mpande et al., 2018. Functional, Antigen-Specific Stem Cell Memory (TSCM) CD4+ T Cells Are Induced by Human Mycobacterium tuberculosis Infection. Frontiers in Immunology.
Watch visual summary of the article created as part of the Immunopaedia-Keystone Sci-talks collaboration.
If I wasn’t an immunologist I would be: An aeronautical engineer or astronomer. I was always fascinated with science and enjoyed learning new things. As I child one of my many fascinations was space: the different stars, moons, planets and what was beyond our solar system. I actually wanted to go to space and become astronaut. Knowing how difficult it would to be become one, being an aeronautical engineer or astronomer would be the closest thing to achieving this.
Why I love immunology: Knowledge gained from understanding immunology can be used to prevent many diseases, particularly infectious diseases. This is the main reason I started studying immunology. Many diseases that burden our continent (Africa) and the world are curable. However, not many people have access to good and affordable health care. If we could prevent these diseases using vaccines then we would have a healthier society, and a less burdened health care system.
Understanding the immunology of diseases progression and pathology is very vital to developing a vaccine. This is the main reason I joined my current research group, the work we conduct in translation TB research and TB vaccine discovery, is very important and contributes to hopefully achieving a “world without TB”.
Tips for young people who want to enter the field of immunology: Be aware of how vast immunology is, and remember that immune cells work within a system. Read out of your research focus, you never know where inspiration for your next research may come from.
What being an Immunopaedia Ambassador means to me: Being part of immunopaedia has given me the opportunity to read outside my research focus. Over the past year, I have learnt more about parasitology immunology, cancer immunology and how cell populations behave differently based on the microenvironment. Additionally, it has also awarded me the opportunity to improve my soft admin skills by assisting with the online courses and quizzes we facilitate. In the past year I have learnt and I am still learning how to relay the immunological messages in the clearest and least complicated way. As you know immunology is very complex.
How I have contributed to Immunopaedia so far: I have written most of the breaking news articles and also manage the Immunopaeia Ambassadors program. I assist Bonamy Holtak, who does a great job in organising and curating our online courses and website. I have also had the opportunity to facilitate the use of Immunopaedia at the Infectious Diseases in Africa workshops