WEHI Postgraduate Seminar hosted by the Education Committee

Professor Shalin Naik
Laboratory Head, Immunology division, WEHI

DC1s – will a WEHI discovery change the world?

Davis Auditorium
Join via TEAMS
Including Q&A session

Prof Ralph Steinman of Rockefeller University won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2011 for the discovery of Dendritic cells (DCs). DC are specialised in checking the body for infected or cancerous cells. When they encounter these cells, DC1s alert the immune system, unleashing an army of killer T cells to kill those infected or cancerous cells. As a result, scientists and clinicians have been testing DC therapies for decades. So why haven’t you heard much about them? In our opinion, it is because they have been chasing the wrong DC, monocyte-derived DCs (MoDCs). While MoDCs are easy to make, unfortunately there has been little to no success in the clinic. 

It was the discovery of an otherwise un-noteworthy subset of DCs in mice by Prof Ken Shortman at WEHI in 1992 that changed the trajectory of DC knowledge forever. Originally called CD8+ conventional DCs, now called DC1s, it is this subset that is specialised in kickstarting the killer T cell response. This discovery, in addition to a series of WEHI and other Australian discoveries, helped put DC1s on the map! But in order to harness this breakthrough discovery DC1s in the clinic faced several bottlenecks, primarily: Can we make enough of them? How can we activate them against cancer? In this seminar, we will explore the history of DC1 biology, and recent progress in our efforts to take them to the clinic. 

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Postgraduate Teaching Seminar Series 2025: Breakthroughs & Bottlenecks
What drives major scientific breakthroughs? What roadblocks are holding back progress?

This seminar series explores the discoveries that have shaped biomedical research and the critical challenges still ahead. Each week, leading WEHI researchers will share insights into groundbreaking advances—past and present—while discussing the pressing bottlenecks that must be overcome to move the field forward.

Format
30-minute talk by a faculty member or division head

20-minute panel discussion with experts, clinicians, industry partners & more
Student-only Q&A to wrap up the session

This is your chance to gain perspective on the bigger picture of research, hear from experts across our divisions, and engage in conversations that shape the future of science. Open to all students and staff.

A special seminar will give you a preview of the series on Monday 17 March, with the postgraduate teaching seminar series running from May to July, 2-3pm in the Davis Auditoirum.

Don’t miss out – join us for a fresh take on the breakthroughs and bottlenecks driving biomedical innovation! 

All Welcome!