Dr Moreland and her team study antibodies and the central role these molecules have in our immune response to infection. They investigate how a functional antibody response protects us against infection following exposure to a pathogen. Yet in some cases, when the immune response is not properly controlled, a mistargeted antibody response be harmful. The goal of this work is to inform the design of novel antibody-based diagnostic tests and safe and effective vaccines.

The team’s major research focus is rheumatic fever, a serious autoimmune disease that can develop after an untreated Strep A infection. Globally, Strep A is placed in the ‘top 10’ infectious causes of human mortality. The rates of rheumatic fever remain unacceptably high in Aotearoa New Zealand, and the disease pathology is poorly understood.

The team are using a range of technologies to profile antibodies and immune responses in Strep A and rheumatic fever to improve understanding of the disease and contribute to the development of better diagnostics. They are also involved in Strep A vaccine development and use a suite of techniques to map functional antibody responses following Strep A infection.

In March 2020 the team turned their expertise to SARS-CoV-2 and have been part of collaborative efforts to study antibody responses in COVID-19 in New Zealand.

Current lab members:
- Dr Reuben McGregor, Senior research fellow
- Dr Natalie Lorenz, Senior research fellow

- Dr Anna Vesty, Research fellow

- Dr Evert J Loef, Research fellow

- Dr Georgia Lenihan-Geels, Research fellow

- Aimee Paterson, Senior research technician

- Dr Kelly Peterken, Postdoctoral fellow

- Dr Joshua Rand, Postdoctoral fellow

- Dr Lauren Carlton, Postdoctoral fellow
- Dr Andrew Fox-Lewis, PhD Candidate

- Renee Shields, Research technician