The Snow Centre for Immune Health’s first PhD student, Matthew Wierzbowski, is dedicated to uncovering why the immune system misfires and triggers allergies.

As the Snow Centre’s first PHD student I feel… very fortunate to be a part of the centre. We’re on a mission to discover how to improve the diagnosis and treatment of people affected by allergic disease. The prospect of playing a part in achieving that goal is really exciting.

The problem I’m trying to solve is… how to unlock the secret of how B cells decide how to respond to infections by studying “class switching”, a process where B cells decide which type of antibodies to make. When this process goes awry, it can lead to conditions like allergies. Understanding this process could improve allergy diagnosis and treatment.

What I love about the work we do in immunology is… how closely a lot of it relates to clinical outcomes. It’s always motivating knowing your work could be applied to make people’s lives better in the future.

My research is personal because… a close friend of mine is allergic to nearly everything—dairy, eggs, gluten, peanuts, the list goes on! Helping people like him would be really rewarding.

I knew I wanted to be a scientist when… I played with a portable microscope set as a kid. I’d spend ages in the garden finding things to look at under the microscope. I found that fascinating.

I love being a scientist at WEHI because… of the community and collaborative spirit. WEHI puts a lot of effort into fostering an environment where people from various labs and different divisions can come together to discuss their ideas.

The Tearoom is a great place that allows for spontaneous catch ups. Sometimes I can go up for a casual chat and walk away with 10 new ideas of what I can do with my project!

I wanted to research immunology because… it’s just so fascinating the way our way bodies function. I feel like there’s nothing that really compares to the immune system in terms of how everything fits together in such a complex but effective way.

The thing gets me out of bed in the morning is… the possibility of solving a problem. The exciting part of being a scientist is that everything comes down to problem solving. I really enjoy the challenge and the feeling of exploring questions that have never been answered before.

One of the biggest challenges I’ve overcome… is pushing through the self-doubt that comes up in science. You can spend months trying to work through a single problem you never expected to come up.  When I was starting out, it was really easy to take every failure as a personal one. But now I see a failed experiment as a learning opportunity and can take it in stride.

The thing I’m proudest of is… the connections I’ve made at WEHI. I’ve made some really solid connections and friends that will not only benefit my scientific career moving forward but also enrich my life.

When I’m not in the lab, I like to… travel and take photos. I enjoy experimenting with street photography or exploring and capturing nature, especially in new places.

When I meet someone new, I explain what I do as… I research the immune system and try to understand why it doesn’t work properly in some people.

The Snow Centre for Immune Health is co-led by WEHI and the Royal Melbourne Hospital, in partnership with The Snow Medical Research Foundation.