Summer 2006 - University of Minnesota College of Veterinary ...

MAKING A DIFFERENCE MAKING A DIFFERENCE MAKING A DIFFERENCEGraduate student profile:Terri MattilaTerri Mattila joined the Comparative andMolecular Biosciences Ph.D. program in thefall of 2003. Her advisor is Dr. PamelaSkinner.After spending several years raisinga family, Terri received herbachelor’s degree in biologyfrom the University of Wisconsin-Superior in December 2001, 20 yearsafter graduating from high school. Sheworked as a biologist at a privatelyowned aquatic toxicology lab until herlove for animals and concern for theirhealth and welfare brought her to theUniversity of Minnesota College ofVeterinary Medicine.Terri’s research involves using in-situtetramer staining, a new techniquedeveloped by her advisor, to studyCD8+ T cell response to HIV infection.HIV/AIDS has taken the lives ofmore than 20 million people worldwidesince 1983 and left millions of childrenorphaned. Its incidence continues toclimb. It is imperative that a vaccine bedeveloped that could help stop thespread of the virus. Studies have shownthat to do this, knowledge of the mechanismsof CD8+ T cell response to viralinfection is needed. Using in-situtetramer staining in lymph nodes takenfrom HIV-infected individuals allowsvisualization of virus-specific T cells,while their spatial relation to other cellsof interest remains intact. Subsequentin-situ hybridization on in-situtetramer-stained tissues can also beused, providing further information.These methods will provide new insightinto virus-specific T cell response toinfection, and may ultimately lead todevelopment of a vaccine and/or therapeuticmethod to help combatHIV/AIDS.Terri expects to finish her Ph.D. sometimein 2008. She had originally plannedto pursue a career working with felineleukemia virus. However, the HIVresearch field is so interesting that shemay just stick with it.Back to Africa continued from page 19For many reasons, going back to Africawas something Mark had to do.“It’s an opportunity to take care of myunfinished business in Africa,” he says.“It appeals to my desire to live life to thefull and is a way of doing somethingabout the outrageous injustices afflictinginnocent people. I can’t ignore such aproposition for involvement.”Mark has passed on his international perspectiveand humanitarianism to his children.His son Nate, 31, works at a largeinternational school outside Nairobi,Kenya. His other two children live inBrooklyn, New York, but intend to go towork in Africa as soon as they are able.Anne, 29, works as a physician’s assistantat an AIDS clinic in hopes of eventuallyworking with AIDS orphans in Africa.Sam, 22, is a graduate of the CarlsonSchool of Management, has a PeaceCorps assignment, and is interested inhelping businesses in the third world.In November, an e-mail from Audreyreported that Mark was busy workingwith various organizations and governmentagencies involved in relief anddevelopment work, writing reports andcoordinating team leaders for health,nutrition, agriculture, and water and sanitation.Their work was often disrupted,she wrote. “Rebel groups and armed banditson camel and horseback have made itimpossible for our teams to go to the villageswhere they had been working.”Back at the College, Mark’s colleaguesmiss his calm, thoughtful nature andglobal perspective, as well as his technicalexpertise.“I admire Mark very much,” says Dr. JimCollins, director of the VeterinaryDiagnostic Laboratory. “He is a consummateprofessional: hard-working, considerate,kind and capable. His personaland professional lives set a high standardfor us to follow. He is missed a great deal,but we all wish him the very best.”For more information about WorldRelief and the Darfur ReliefCollaboration, go to http://www.worldrelief.org.■ SUE KIRCHOFF20