Results of the 2025 Inspire Summer Studentships competition
The Emerging and Pandemic Infections Consortium (EPIC) is an integrated network for researchers, trainees and partners working to confront infectious disease challenges. We unite members across the University of Toronto and its hospital partners to accelerate cross-disciplinary work in the understanding and development of new countermeasures against pathogens. A key pillar of EPIC’s work is training the next generation of infectious disease research leaders that will help stop future pandemics and reduce the societal burdens of infectious disease.
The EPIC Inspire Summer Studentships aim to foster inclusive excellence by providing third-year Black and Indigenous undergraduate students with opportunities to engage in infectious disease research with and receive mentorship from EPIC’s faculty members. These awards support Black and Indigenous students interested in infectious diseases and create a more diverse talent pool for the next generation of infectious disease research leaders.
We are also happy to acknowledge support from the PRECISE program in expanding the impact of the 2025 Inspire Summer Studentships program by awarding an additional placement and bringing the total to 6 placements.
We are pleased to share the 2025 Inspire Summer Studentships competition results.
Meet our 2025 Inspire Summer Studentship recipients
Elect Adenuga
Faculty of Arts & Science, University of Toronto Scarborough
Project title: Characterizing immune responses to respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccines in immunocompromised hosts
Supervisor: Victor Ferreira and co-supervised by Victoria Hall (University Health Network)
Atinuke Boboe
Faculty of Arts & Science, University of Toronto Scarborough
Project title: Characterizing host immune response to infection through proteomics and antibody measurements
Supervisor: Anne-Claude Gingras ( Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute/ Sinai Health); supported by PRECISE
Abdulkadir Duble
Faculty of Arts & Science, University of Toronto, St. George campus
Project title: Investigating the role of tissue resident immune responses in herpes-induced neurological diseases
Supervisor: Julien Muffat (The Hospital for Sick Children)
Kaden Hill
Faculty of Arts & Science, University of Toronto Mississauga
Project title: Investigating the effects of inflammatory signals in odor-sensing neurons in the mouse nose
Supervisor: Tatsuya Tsukahara (Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute/ Sinai Health)
Makuach Joack
Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, St. George campus
Project title: Exploring novel strategies to control virus replication
Supervisor: Alan Cochrane (University of Toronto, Temerty Faculty of Medicine)
Jezreel Sol-Edeigba
Faculty of Arts & Science, University of Toronto Mississauga
Project title: A scoping review to identify diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers for congenital cytomegalovirus in pregnant women and infants
Supervisor: Shaun Morris (The Hospital for Sick Children)
