Faculty Sponsor: Jonathan Kurtis

Malaria is the leading single agent cause of morbidity and mortality in developing countries, yet no vaccines exist yet. Nicholas examined the targets of the human immune system when infected with malaria by testing for anti-malaria antibodies within serum from infected individuals. The serum will was tested against malarial proteins in a T7 phage bead assay. Nicholas’ technique was used as a high-throughput screen to examine large numbers of samples. He added to the body research seeking a vaccine for malaria.