The Gambia Immunology Society: 2024 International Day of Immunology Report
The Gambia Immunology Society (GAMIS) organised a one-day event at MRC Unit, The Gambia campus on International Day of Immunology (IDI), 29th May 2024 to increase awareness on the importance of immunology. The event was open to staff from different departments in the Unit, along with invited students from University of The Gambia and a local high school (Marina International High School).
The event started with presentations from research scientists in the Unit, mainly early career post-doctoral and PhD fellows discussing immunity to infection and vaccination in the context of various diseases ranging from Malaria, HPV, influenza and TB. This was followed by a presentation from a representative from the Unit’s research training and career development department on internship and scholarship opportunities for students.
We then attended the IUIS & EFIS seminar online and had a more interactive session right after to discuss the topics presented on.
Figure 1. Photo of GAMIS Executive members/postgraduate researchers presenting their areas of research
Attendees included thirty (30) invited high school and University students, GAMIS members in the Unit and other staff making a total of fifty-four (54) participants.
Figure 2. Group photo of participants and GAMIS Executive
The presentation was followed by lunch and a networking session. Subsequently, there was a poster session with presentations from 10 postgraduate immunology students. This was a very interactive session as it provided first-hand evidence of how scientific data was obtained from samples collected from the population, to generate results that will inform public health decisions and add to scientific knowledge.
Figure 3. Photo of post-graduate student presenting their posters to participants.
The day ended with a practical flow cytometry and microscopy session in the immunology laboratory, facilitated by the Immunology platform team. Students were shown how to identify cells stained for T cell and cytokine markers on the flow cytometer by fluorescence detection. All students that attended were offered mentorship opportunities with GAMIS members and to foster this we will keep close contact with the students by organizing outreach programmes at the school and the University.
Figure 4: Picture showing students using microscope to observe malaria parasites and observing immune cells on a flow cytometer.
GAMIS aims to promote immunological educational programmes and courses within the schools and universities in The Gambia. We have the aim of promoting a better understanding of immunology and its related areas in the context of biomedical sciences in the country. To achieve this, we thought it was important to include students from both the high school and the University of The Gambia Medical School to celebrate the Day of
Immunology. The high school students were accompanied by their Biology teacher who expressed gratitude to GAMIS for the invitation and highlighted that although they had covered “Introduction to Immune cells” in school, the day spent at the Unit gave them a broader perspective on the immune system and its role in infections and diseases. The practical flowcytometry and microscopy session was an exciting experience for the participants as this was their first time seeing a malaria parasite under the microscope and for some of them, some immune cells within the blood.
Through this event, the President of GAMIS was invited to give a lecture to The University of Gambia students on vaccine development and immunity. The lecture was well attended with over 30 undergraduate students, and plans are on the way for more immunology seminars to be done with students from the University. GAMIS already has members from both the Biological and Medical schools of The University of The Gambia and we hope that we will recruit more members during these seminars.
Part of the work we do at GAMIS is offering mentorship to members within the society. The students were keen to learn more about immunology and as such, GAMIS will establish chapters in different schools to teach students about the amazing immune system and immunology research areas that students can venture in.
Students were encouraged to apply for internship opportunities once they complete high school. These students if accepted will be given the opportunity to work with research scientist in the Unit. In addition to the practical experience that they will gain from this, they will also be able to initiate collaborations for future work opportunities and access scholarship opportunities for university education within and outside The Gambia through the research, training and career development department.