Vaccine immunology
RESEARCH AIMS
Dr. Eberhardt's research group is dedicated to advancing the understanding of vaccine- and pathogen-specific adaptive immune responses, particularly in vulnerable populations such as immunocompromised individuals and newborns. By exploring how the immune system responds to infections and vaccinations, the group aims to generate knowledge that can improve vaccine design, guide immunization policies, and support the development of cellular diagnostic tools for clinical application.
Currently, the group’s research is centered around two main themes:
1. Adaptive Immune Responses to Vaccination, Infection, and Neoplasia
One of the group’s core research areas investigates how different forms of antigen exposure—whether through vaccination, natural infection, or cancer—shape antigen-specific T cell responses. Dr. Eberhardt’s team has been at the forefront of this field, notably demonstrating that patients undergoing B-cell depleting therapies can still mount strong spike-specific T cell responses following COVID-19 vaccination. This finding has important implications for vaccine strategies in immunocompromised individuals.
Building on this work, the team is exploring how booster doses affect the diversity and functionality of T cell receptors, with a focus on understanding the role of B cells in priming T cell responses and supporting long-term immune memory. Additionally, the group uses HPV-induced neoplasia and HPV vaccination as in vivo human models to study how the duration and anatomical site of antigen exposure influence the quality of T cell responses.
Another key goal is the development of cellular assays to evaluate vaccine-induced immune responses, particularly in populations where standard antibody-based tests may be insufficient, such as individuals with compromised immune systems.
2. Maternal Immunity and Protection of Newborns
The second major focus of Dr. Eberhardt’s research is maternal immunization and its role in protecting infants during early life. Her group has shown that immunizing pregnant women against pertussis during the second trimester results in higher levels of protective antibodies transferred to the newborn compared to third-trimester vaccination. Furthermore, their research has demonstrated that early pregnancy vaccination does not negatively affect the quality (avidity) of maternal antibodies.
Currently, the team is investigating how maternal antibodies against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) contribute to protecting preterm infants from severe respiratory infections such as bronchiolitis. This work also examines how maternal RSV vaccination and monoclonal anti-RSV antibodies influence the development of adaptive immune responses in early life.
Through these projects, Dr. Eberhardt’s group strives to uncover critical insights into the dynamics of immune protection, with the ultimate goal of enhancing vaccine strategies for both vulnerable patient populations and the general public.
EXPERTISE
One of her major research interests is to identify and characterise antigen-specific T-cell responses following immunization, infection or cancer. For this, her group has successfully applied a variety of functional methods including confection and the use of tetramer staining, the combination of activation-induced marker (AIM) assay with transcription factors to assess CD4 T-cell polarization and intracellular cytokine-staining ICCS to define CD4 and CD8 T-cell functionality, and TCR and single-cell mRNA analysis of antigen-specific T cells.
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
Omicron-Specific Cytotoxic T-Cell Responses After a Third Dose of mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine Among Patients With Multiple Sclerosis Treated With Ocrelizumab.
Madelon N, Heikkilä N, Sabater Royo I, Fontannaz P, Breville G, Lauper K, Goldstein R, Grifoni A, Sette A, Siegrist CA, Finckh A, Lalive PH, Didierlaurent AM°, Eberhardt CS°.
JAMA Neurol 2022, 79:399-404. (°equal contribution)
Robust T cell responses in anti-CD20 treated patients following COVID-19 vaccination: a prospective cohort study.
Madelon N, Lauper K, Breville G, Sabater Royo I, Goldstein R, Andrey DO, Grifoni A, Sette A, Kaiser L, Siegrist CA, Finckh A, Lalive PH, Didierlaurent AM°, Eberhardt CS°.
Clin Infect Dis. 2021 Nov 17. (°equal contribution)
Functional HPV-specific PD-1+ stem-like CD8 T cells in head and neck cancer.
Eberhardt CS°, Kissick HT°, Patel MR, Cardenas MA, Prokhnevska N, Obeng RC, Nasti TH, Griffith CC, Im SJ, Wang X, Shin DM, Carrington M, Chen ZG, Sidney J, Sette A, Saba NF, Wieland A, Ahmed R.
Nature. 2021 Sep;597(7875):279-284. (°equal contribution)
Persistence of Varicella-Zoster Virus-Specific Plasma Cells in Adult Human Bone Marrow following Childhood Vaccination.
Eberhardt CS, Wieland A, Nasti TH, Grifoni A, Wilson E, Schmid DS, Pulendran B, Sette A, Waller EK, Rouphael N, Ahmed R.
J Virol. 2020 Apr 22.
Maternal immunization earlier in pregnancy maximizes antibody transfer and expected infant seropositivity against pertussis.
Eberhardt CS, Blanchard-Rohner G, Lemaître B, Boukrid M, Combescure C, Othenin-Girard V, Chilin A, Petre J, Martinez de Tejada B, Siegrist CA.
Clin Infect Dis. 2016 Apr 1;62(7):829-36.
6 Feb 2025