Ragon Institute graduate student, Dr. Jens Dinter, is one of five recipients for the Schering Foundation PhD fellowship.

The Schering Foundation awards 2-year fellowships to outstanding graduate students who work in internationally leading research institutes and aims to support young scientists in their early careers.

Jens Dinter’s PhD thesis project in the Le Gall lab focuses on the intracellular degradation of HIV proteins into peptides presented to immune cells, a critical step in the recognition and clearance of HIV-infected cells by the immune system. Jens is specifically interested in antigen processing and presentation by macrophages -one of the cell subsets infected by HIV-, and by dendritic cells that prime immune responses. Deciphering mechanisms underlying the production of epitopes presented by HIV-infectable cells will contribute to the innovative immunogen design leading to selective and efficient presentation of epitopes associated with protective immune responses.

“This fellowship is a great acknowledgment of my research at the Ragon Institute and will also provide support to attend international meetings in order to present my project.” says Mr. Dinter.