YoungSeo Jamie Jo

Jamie built her scientific foundation through industry co-ops at Moderna and Takeda Pharmaceuticals during her undergraduate years at Northeastern University. At Moderna, she evaluated mRNA modifications to enhance protein expression and stability, addressing limits to vaccine durability. At Takeda, she designed assays to rank-order small molecule inhibitors of a phosphatase that modulates interferon gamma signaling, with the goal of enhancing T-cell activation and tumor clearance. Both experiences fostered a deep interest in shaping targeted immune responses through molecular design.

During her gap years, she served as a Postbaccalaureate Fellow under Dr. Steven Rosenberg in the Surgery Branch of the National Cancer Institute, where she helped advance neoantigen-specific therapies using tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes and TCR-engineered T cells. This experience exposed her to both the transformative potential and the current limitations of cancer immunotherapy, motivating her to pursue a doctorate in biomedical research. In her studies, she hopes to investigate the immunological mechanisms underlying barriers to current immunotherapies and contribute to next-generation strategies that broaden their reach and efficacy.