Kerrie Sandgren

Kerrie Sandgren is a Research Focused Academic at the University of Sydney's School of Medical Sciences, affiliated with the Westmead Institute for Medical Research. Her work focuses on vaccine adjuvants, innate immunity, and viral infections, particularly herpes simplex and HIV. She holds a PhD from UNSW/Westmead Institute and a BSc (Hons 1) in Medical Microbiology and Immunology from UNSW.

Research Interests: Dr. Sandgren investigates how vaccine adjuvants modulate immune responses, with a focus on improving vaccines for older adults. She explores skin immunity in viral infections and vaccine delivery, leveraging her expertise in dendritic cell biology. Her work bridges basic immunology and translational research to enhance vaccine efficacy against influenza, COVID-19, and HSV.

Grants & Collaborations: Key grants include NHMRC funding for studying Herpes simplex transmission pathways (2018) and HIV-mucosal interactions (2015). She collaborates with the Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute and the Westmead Institute's Vaccines and Adjuvants group.

Advising: Current students include Jackson KARRASCH (neuroimmune interactions) and Sifan ZHANG (adjuvant mechanisms in aging populations).

Labs/Teams: Co-leads the Vaccines and Adjuvants group at the Centre for Virus Research, specializing in human lymph node studies and immune cell dynamics.