Amadou is a Trainee Scientific Officer working with the Vaccines and Immunity Theme on the Protecting From Pneumococcus in Early Life (PROPEL) Trial, which seeks to assess the safety and immunogenicity of administering a pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (Prevenar13). Amadou’s research is a nested study within the PROPEL clinical trial study of MRCG. In this sub-study, memory B cells are being enumerated from blood to explore the effect of maternal (28-34 weeks gestation) or neonatal (within 1 week of life) Prevenar13™ vaccination on vaccine-type (VT) pneumococcal carriage in infants up to 20 weeks of age. To more fully characterise the effects of both regimens on humoral immunity, pneumococcal VT-specific memory B-cell numbers in infants at time points up to the end of their 3 doses primary series are being determined.

Amadou has a wealth of microbiology and immunology laboratory experience having worked in numerous projects requiring these skills. He has contributed significantly to the success of this and other trials and studies which have generated large amounts of data allowing him to contribute in a more significant way to research publications. The critical role Amadou plays within the PROPEL study facilitates the coordination of sample reception, processing, documentation and storage. To demonstrate his research during the MRCG Festival, Amadou will talk about the basic parts of the immune system and explain how the body defends itself. He will also explain what immunological memory is and why this is important following vaccination. He will demonstrate how memory in blood and breast milk can be detected using the ELIspot technique with plates and some blood in tubes already separated on display.

When asked about his expectations for the event, Amadou said, “I hope the visitors will appreciate more the science we do if we can get them to understand how we do our work and how the body works. We really want to inspire other young people to think about a career in science.”

Amadou’s research interest includes contributing to work that informs the development of more effective and safe vaccines. He graduated with a BSc Hon from the University of Ulster, United Kingdom. Beyond research, Amadou is interested in watching football.