ECR Showcase
Supporting Early Career Researchers is a central part of VALIDATE’s mission. Through the ECR Career Development Network (ECDN), our Fellowships, Pump-priming Grants, Training Grants, Travel Grants for our Annual Meeting, and dedicated workshops and networking opportunities, we work to help ECRs build skills, make connections, and take the next steps in their careers.
This ECR Showcase is one small part of that wider support, giving ECRs the chance to share their research with the Network and highlight the excellent work taking place across our community.
Take Part in a Future ECR Showcase
We hope this will be the first of many ECR Showcases. If you are an ECR and would be interested in presenting your research at a future session, please do get in touch. We welcome presentations relevant to VALIDATE’s remit, including vaccine research on mycobacteria, leishmaniasis, and Burkholderia pseudomallei.
Get in touch - validate@ndm.ox.ac.uk
About the talks
Designing Fusion Molecules from Mycobacterium tuberculosis Antigens to Enhance Serodiagnostic Sensitivity in Latent and Active TB
Dr Chandni Yaqoob, University of the Punjab, Pakistan
This talk will present research on the design and evaluation of fusion molecules derived from Mycobacterium tuberculosis antigens to improve the sensitivity of serodiagnostic tests for tuberculosis. Using in silico epitope prediction and protein engineering, the study demonstrates how fusion molecules can enhance antibody detection in both latent and active TB cases, offering a promising approach for rapid, cost-effective TB diagnostics in high-burden regions.
From Dogma to Data: Rethinking How We Study Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in Ethiopia
Dr Thao-Thy Pham, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Belgium
Ethiopia bears one of the highest burdens of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) in East Africa, yet Ethiopian CL research has long relied on clinical classifications and immune paradigms borrowed from Latin American CL which never been validated in the Ethiopian context. This talk challenges those assumptions, walking through key knowledge gaps including the limitations of the LCL/MCL/DCL system, the inappropriate application of the Th1/Th2 paradigm in the Ethiopian CL, and an overreliance on peripheral blood over lesional immune responses. Practical paths forward will be proposed including standardised clinical documentation, lesion-first sampling, and equitable data sharing.
