Jainu Ajit
Esser-Kahn Group

Jainu Ajit

Jainu would like to call herself one in a billion, hailing from Kerala, a place in India popularly known as God’s Own Country. Jainu graduated from Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Bhopal with a BS-MS dual degree with a major in chemistry. For her master’s thesis, she worked with Dr. Ishu Saraogi and synthesized peptidomimetic foldamers composed of beta-peptoids.

BS/MS 

Chemistry, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Bhopal, India (2016)

 

Quote

"There are two possible outcomes: If the result confirms the hypothesis, then you've made a measurement. If the result is contrary to the hypothesis, then you've made a discovery.” – Enrico Fermi

At the Esser-Kahn lab, Jainu is working on improving Trained Immunity to boost innate immune cells for longer periods of time. She hopes to eventually develop a universal prophylactic for improving the outcome of vaccinations.

Site-specific antigen-adjuvant conjugation using cell-free protein synthesis enhances antigen presentation and CD8+ T-cell response

Weiss, A. M., Ajit, J., Albin, T. J., Kapoor, N., Maroju, S., Berges, A., … Esser-Kahn, A. P. Scientific Reports, 11(6267).

Receptor–Ligand Kinetics Influence the Mechanism of Action of Covalently Linked TLR Ligands

Kimani FW, Ajit J, Galluppi A, Manna S, Howitz WJ, Tang S, Esser-Kahn AP. ACS Chem. Biol. 2021, 16, 2, 380–388. Feb 1, 2021. doi: 10.1021/acschembio.0c00924