Research
I was a research trainee in the Norton Lab at the Tulane University School of Medicine.
My research focused on biomarker and functional components of dmLT adjuvanticity. dmLT is a derivative of a E. coli toxin used to bolster immune responses to vaccination. While dmLT is currently undergoing clinical trials in polio vaccines, the exact mechanisms of dmLT as an adjuvant are not well understood. In my research, I have identified possible biomarkers from clinical trial data, validated biomarker candidates in a cell line model, and have helped elucidate the functional implications of certain promising biomarkers.
Additionally, during my freshman year, I participated in a servive learning project to survey water quality changes in the Southeast Louisiana resulting from human activity and historic natural disasters.
See some pictures of my research (left) and posters (below) from my research work as an undergraduate student.
Bai 2021 Poster.pdfPoster for 2022 Summer Research.pdfPublications
Stone AE, Rambaran S, Trinh IV, Estrada M, Jarand CW, Williams BS, Murrell AE, Huerter CM, Bai W, Palani S, Nakanishi Y, Laird RM, Poly FM, Reed WF, White JA, Norton EB. Route and antigen shape immunity to dmLT-adjuvanted vaccines to a greater extent than biochemical stress or formulation excipients. Vaccine. 2023 Jan 31:S0264-410X(23)00055-5. doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2023.01.033. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36732163.
Damle, E. B., Broderson, Y., Anderson, N., Vijayaraghavan, M., Kelly, M. N., Maurice, Y. V., Friedmann, L., Yusufji, A., Godfrey, J. C., Bai, W. H., & Shrestha, S. S. (2022). Environmental Disasters and Water Quality: A Multifaceted Look into the Effects of Anthropogenic and Natural Disasters on Water Quality Metrics in Coastal Louisiana. Tulane Undergraduate Research Journal, 4. https://journals.tulane.edu/turj/issue/view/420