Targeting Hepatitis C: Novel Vaccine Approaches and Anti-SR-BI Antibodies

Speaker: dr Katarzyna Grzyb, Laboratory of Virus Molecular Biology, Intercollegiate Faculty of Biotechnology of University of Gdańsk and Medical University of Gdańsk

Talk:  Targeting Hepatitis C: Novel Vaccine Approaches and Anti-SR-BI Antibodies

Time: 28.11.2025

Venue: Intercollegiate Faculty of Biotechnology, Abrahama 58, hall 042B
 

Katarzyna Grzyb obtained her PhD in Biological Sciences in 2007. Shortly thereafter, she was awarded a Marie Curie Fellowship under the EU Sixth Framework Programme and conducted postdoctoral research in Naples in the internationally renowned group of Prof. Alfredo Nicosia, working on the project “Entry inhibitors for the treatment of hepatitis C virus infection”. Her research primarily focused on the characterization of novel human monoclonal antibodies targeting the SR-BI receptor, with the aim of evaluating their therapeutic potential in preventing hepatitis C virus (HCV) reinfection following liver transplantation. After returning to Poland, her scientific interests shifted toward the design of novel HCV vaccine candidates based on recombinant E1E2 heterodimers and chimeric virus-like particles (VLPs). The strategy of targeting both structural and nonstructural HCV proteins through multiple complementary approaches represents a promising avenue for inducing durable, pan-genotypic immune responses. This line of research has been supported by three competitive grants awarded by the National Science Centre (NCN) and the National Centre for Research and Development (NCBiR). In her seminar, she will discuss the development of a prophylactic vaccine against HCV — a continuing global medical need.