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Michelson Prizes: Next-Generation Grants ePanel on Human Immunology, Cancer Vaccines & Immunotherapy Advances

On April 29, 2025, Keystone Symposia will host a live ePanel event featuring the recipients of the Michelson Prizes: Next-Generation Grants.  These grants are designed to support young investigators at a time in their careers when funding can be difficult to secure, particularly for innovative projects that may be risky but have the greatest potential to yield scientific and medical breakthroughs.  The international prize awards $150,000 in funding to early-career researchers who are applying disruptive concepts and inventive processes to advance human immunology, vaccine discovery, and immunotherapy research. The prize has been awarded annually since 2018, as a collaboration between the Michelson Medical Research Foundation and the Human Immunome Project.

This ePanel event will showcase the 2024 award recipients, Drs. Caleb Lareau, Yzhong Liu and Omar Abudayyeh, and their groundbreaking work to advance our understanding of human immunology and applications towards cancer vaccines and immunotherapies. Each will present their award-winning research and participate in a live Q&A panel discussion. (Read more about their work below) 

Dr. Gary Michelson, founder and co-chair of Michelson Philanthropies and the Michelson Medical Research Foundation, will provide introductory remarks along with Dr. Wayne Koff, Founding Partner Michelson Prizes: Next Generation Grants.

Immediately following the event all audiences are invited to join our Virtual Networking Lounge where they can speak directly with the panelists and with each other in small groups to continue these conversation and make new connections to further their work, and the field.

Register here for this FREE event

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Applications for the 2025 Michelson Prizes are now open, until June 22!

For more information, visit:

  https://www.michelsonmedicalresearch.org/michelson-prizes-next-generation  

#MichelsonPrizes

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Caleb Lareau, PhD

Assistant Member, Computational and Systems Biology Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Caleb Lareau

 

How the Human Virome Influences Health

Proposal: Approximately 380 trillion viruses comprise an individual human’s virome. Though the immune system typically controls the virome without complication, the long-term impact of endemic viral infections on human health and disease is highly variable between persons and remains largely unresolved. For instance, endemic viral exposures that are normally tolerated can serve as a trigger in immunocompromised persons for complex diseases, including autoimmunity and cancer. Here, we will develop new petabyte-scale data science tools that integrate novel viral nucleic acid quantifications within human immune cells via biobank-scale datasets to map how the human virome shapes complex diseases.

Bio: Caleb is an Assistant Member in the Computational and Systems Biology Program at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC). He leads a research lab focused on computational and translational immunology via technology development. He joined MSK from Stanford University where he was an inaugural Stanford Science Fellow and Parker Scholar at the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy. Originally from Oklahoma, Caleb completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Tulsa before attending Harvard University for his graduate degrees.

Why did you choose to become a scientist?

I originally wanted to work in a research lab because the possibility of discovering something unknown to humanity seemed like (and still is) the coolest job imaginable.

After working on a few projects, I learned how creative thinking was in many ways the currency of new discoveries, and I was amazed at how fun it was to push myself to think creatively. The combination of the goal (new knowledge) and the method (thinking creatively) is why I’m a scientist today. 

What drew you to the field of immunology?

I couldn’t get away! My very first research exposure as an undergraduate student in Oklahoma was studying the genetic basis of autoimmune diseases, including sarcoidosis and lupus. In graduate school, I wanted to study how the immune system repopulates itself to the tune of billions of cells each day. And in my postdoctoral work, I worked on projects to improve the safety and efficacy of immunotherapies. At each stop, I studied a distinct aspect of the immune system (first, genetics; then, dynamics; and finally, manipulation) and it’s clear that there is much more to learn! 

What is your research?

My lab specializes in petabyte-scale data analyses to discover new associations between the immune system and complex diseases. Recently, we’ve been using large sequencing datasets to discover and annotate the Human Virome– the composition of viruses that humans co-exist with. Our bet is that large-scale data analyses will help us understand how the immune system interfaces with viruses and mechanisms for how this can evolve into disarray. 

What is the potential impact of your research on people’s health?

An estimated 380 trillion viruses in and on our bodies– nearly ten-fold the number of human cells–collectively comprise the human virome.  Most humans are infected with the same set of endemic viruses, yet individuals have vastly different responses–some tolerate infections whereas others develop autoimmunity, cancer, or other complications. 

How will the Michelson Prize help you with your future research and career? 

I had a front-row seat to the impact of the Michelson Prize as my mentor at Stanford, Ansuman Satpathy (2018 Laureate) was a recipient and had his research rapidly gain international prominence. Similarly, I expect the early recognition of this award to be a tremendous resource for accelerating our high-risk, high-reward ideas.

The Prize comes at a critical time for my new lab, and the financial support and recognition embolden our team to pursue our most ambitious projects. 

 

What is the ultimate motivation that keeps you going?

Since leading my group, I’ve been continually inspired by trainees in my lab who took a chance to work with me in a brand-new lab. I’m excited to chip away at our research questions each day because I feel a debt of gratitude for their trust, and I hope to help them unlock their skills to make their own discoveries. By supporting and enabling the next generation, I hope to have a multiplicative impact on scientific research. 


Yuzhong Liu, PhD

Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry, Scripps Research Institute

Yuzhong+Liu_Scripps+Research

 

 Improved Saponin-based Adjuvants for Cancer Vaccines

Proposal: Cancer antigens alone are poor inducers of adaptive immunity, and thus, effective vaccination will require co-administration of an immune adjuvant. A highly glycosylated saponin-based adjuvant QS-21 has been used as an immunopotentiator in many clinical studies, including several cancer vaccines. Adjuvanted by AS01 formulation, which consists of QS-21 and MPLA- a TLR agonist, VBI-1901 has recently demonstrated encouraging early tumor response data from randomized controlled phase 2b study in treating recurrent glioblastoma. This project seeks to use synthetic biology to elucidate the structure-immunoactivity relationship of natural and new-to-nature glycosides to guide the design of more potent and safer vaccine adjuvant candidates for cancer vaccines.

Bio: Dr. Yuzhong Liu obtained her PhD degree in Chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley studying dynamic porous materials for carbon capture. In 2018, she started her postdoctoral research at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory focusing on the sustainable production of complex natural products through heterologous pathway expression in microbial hosts. In particular, she achieved the complete biosynthesis of QS-21 in engineered yeast, which remains the only saponin-based vaccine adjuvant approved by the FDA. Yuzhong started her independent career at The Scripps Research Institution in August 2023 and her lab focuses on the biosynthesis of complex natural and unnatural glycosides to advance vaccine development.
 
Why did you choose to become a scientist?
 
Curiosity has always been a defining part of who I am. I’ve always been fascinated by the unknown of the natural world. Trained as a chemist, I am driven and equipped to understand how things work at a molecular level. The development of small molecule tools enables us to decipher the building blocks of life and develop innovative solutions to complex problems. Becoming a scientist is the perfect avenue to translate my curiosity and passion for molecular discovery into impactful research.
 
What drew you to the field of immunology?
 
Immunology plays a pivotal role in addressing many of the most pressing global health
challenges. During my postdoctoral research, I achieved the complete biosynthesis of QS-21 in engineered microorganisms. QS-21 is an FDA-approved adjuvant used in vaccines for shingles, malaria, and COVID-19. It is the most potent of the few vaccine adjuvants approved to date, but accessing large quantities remains a major challenge. Our work not only enabled a more sustainable approach to producing QS-21 but also significantly increased its production capacity to meet the growing demand. This project sparked my interest in immunology, as I began to appreciate the critical importance of adjuvants in enhancing vaccine efficacy and their broader potential in modulating immune responses. I was fascinated by how chemical biology could intersect with immunology to create transformative solutions, and this motivated me to delve
deeper into this field.
 
Immunology offers an incredible opportunity to contribute to global health by combining innovative science with real-world impact.
 
What is your research?
 
In my lab, we aim to understand the molecular basis for adjuvanticity and toxicity of these compounds to make next-generation adjuvants with enhanced potency and attenuated side-effects. Similar to QS-21, many bioactive natural products exist at very low concentrations in their native host organism, making extraction and purification difficult. My lab is working on reconstituting and engineering these biosynthetic pathways in microorganisms to increase the availability of complex natural products and accelerate the characterization of their immunoregulatory properties.
 
What is the potential impact of your research on people’s health?
 
The ultimate goal of my research program is to identify and produce better and safer vaccine adjuvant candidates that are affordable and available to everyone.
 
How will the Michelson Prize help you with your future research and career? 
 
The Michelson Prize will significantly impact my future research and career by enabling me to take on a high-risk, high-reward project aimed at making the next generation of vaccine adjuvants. This supported phase of my research will allow me to build a strong foundation for my independent research program to drive long-term innovation.
 
What is the ultimate motivation that keeps you going?
 
Curiosity drives me to push the boundaries of what’s possible, while the opportunity to improve access to life-saving vaccines inspires me to approach challenges with urgency and purpose. I am committed to making a societal impact, not only by addressing pressing scientific problems but also by mentoring and empowering the next generation of scientists. I believe that sharing knowledge and fostering growth amplifies the collective impact we can achieve.

 


Omar Abudayyeh, PhD

Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School; Investigator, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Mass General Brigham’s Gene and Cell Therapy Institute; Faculty member, Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Harvard University

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Development of Programmable RNA Sensors for Next-Generation Cancer Immunotherapies

Proposal: Antibody-drug conjugates have made significant advances, but targeting all markers, including intracellular ones, remains a challenge posing issues for efficacy and specificity. Here, we leverage the potential of mRNA therapies combined with precise cell state targeting technologies like RADARS to achieve mRNA tumor-specific (MRT) therapies. RADARS enables the targeted expression of genetic payloads based on the transcriptional state of tumor cells. This precision reduces the risk of side effects and enhances treatment efficacy. By selectively expressing mRNA-delivered immune-modulating cytokines or cytotoxic factors in the tumor microenvironment, we aim to revolutionize cancer immunotherapy, offering safer and more effective mRNA treatments.

Bio: Dr. Omar Abudayyeh is a faculty member at Harvard Medical School, an Investigator at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Mass General Brigham’s Gene and Cell Therapy Institute, and a faculty member with the Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology at Harvard University. He previously was a McGovern Fellow at MIT, where he directed his own research group, and before that was at Harvard Medical School and MIT as a graduate student in Feng Zhang’s lab at the Broad Institute, where he earned a Ph.D. researching novel CRISPR enzymes for genome editing, therapeutics, and diagnostics. Dr. Abudayyeh graduated from MIT in 2012 and also spent two years studying for an MD at Harvard Medical School.

Why did you choose to become a scientist?
 
I've always been captivated by puzzles and problem-solving, and science allows me to channel this passion into work that can fundamentally change the world.
 
Being a scientist doesn't feel like a job to me—it's an opportunity to combine my love for tinkering and building with the pursuit of technologies that can alleviate human suffering. When I look at our generation's greatest challenges, solving aging, longevity, and disease stands at the forefront. The ability to work on these profound challenges while doing what I love is both deeply rewarding and
intellectually stimulating.
 
What drew you to the field of immunology?
 
The immune system fascinates me because it's integral to solving the puzzles of longevity, aging, and disease. It's remarkable how the immune system interfaces with every organ and process in the human body. We now understand that chronic inflammation is a central driver of dysfunction, degeneration, and aging, leading to numerous age-associated diseases—from cancer and fibrosis to neurodegeneration and cardiovascular disease. I believe that understanding immunology and developing tools to control immune cells will be crucial in creating next-generation therapeutics that can address aging at a systemic level.
 
What is your research?
 
Our lab focuses on developing programmable tools for biology to tackle aging and rejuvenation.We work at the intersection of natural biological systems, mechanism-inspired design, and machine learning-driven engineering to build molecular tools, diagnostics, and therapeutics. This includes engineering proteins like CRISPR for genome editing and using AI to model every layer of biology—from DNA and RNA to proteins and whole cells.
 
Specifically, for this award, our research centers on controlling precise cell states to modulate the immune system in novel ways to combat cancer. We've developed innovative RNA sensors that can trigger smart payloads against specific cancer cell states, enabling us to activate the immune system with unprecedented precision. This approach allows us to create exquisitely effective and specific immunotherapies.
 
What is the potential impact of your research on people's health?
 
By developing programmable technologies for biology, our research has the potential to both deepen our understanding of fundamental biological processes and create new therapeutic approaches for reversing disease. These advances could transform how we treat a wide range of conditions and ultimately contribute to extending healthy human lifespan.
 
How will the Michelson Prize help you with your future research and career?
 
The Michelson Prize will accelerate some of our lab's most innovative and high-risk research directions. It provides the freedom to pursue questions that would be challenging to fund through traditional channels, allowing us to de-risk novel concepts and push promising work forward. This kind of support is crucial for advancing breakthrough ideas in science.
 
What is the ultimate motivation that keeps you going?
 
My driving motivation is to build a research organization with a transformative vision—one that tackles aging head-on and helps people live longer, healthier lives. I want to create an environment that attracts the world's best talent, united in the pursuit of this ambitious goal. By combining novel technologies with cutting-edge AI advances, we can accelerate the discovery of fundamental biological insights and translate them into solutions for age-associated diseases. It's about creating a legacy of scientific advancement that meaningfully impacts human health and longevity.
 
 
 
 
In collaboration with:
 
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Shannon Weiman
Shannon Weiman earned her PhD in Biomedical Sciences from the University of California, San Diego, specializing in microbiology and immunology. Prior to joining the Keystone Symposia team, she worked as a freelance writer for leaders in academic, industry and government research, including Stanford University’s Biomedical Innovation Initiative, the University of Colorado’s Biofrontiers Program, UCSF, the FDA and the American Society for Microbiology.