Ayamita Paul

Ayamita Paul has brought her understanding of human nutrition and her passion for public health to her research at the Liggins Institute, where she is studying the characteristics of regulatory T cells in human breast milk.

Ayamita uses the metaphor of an orchestra to explain the composition of human milk, which contains a range of cells, bacteria and biomolecules working in concert to enhance the baby’s immunity. Like conductors, the regulatory T cells (also known as T-regs) modulate or suppress overactive immune responses, to maintain harmony within the immune system.

“I want to understand and compare T-regs’ unique and functional characteristics in human milk, baby’s blood and mum’s blood,” explains Ayamita. “This understanding will help uncover how mother’s milk cultivates a balanced and resilient immune system in newborns, which is crucial for their long-term health and wellbeing.”

Ayamita aims to improve the efficiency and accuracy of T cell isolation, thereby enabling more precise studies on the immunological properties of human milk. She is interested in understanding the characteristics of T cells in human milk, how the cells are transferred to the baby and how they influence the baby’s developing immune system.

Born and raised in India, Ayamita did a Bachelor of Science degree specialising in clinical nutrition and dietetics at Calcutta University in Kolkata and a Master of Science degree at Periyar University in Bangalore.

She worked as a dietician in a hospital and as a nutritionist for a non-profit organisation focused on meeting the United Nations’ sustainable development goals. It was important work but “I knew it was not for me,” she says. “I really wanted to work with baby and child health.”

That chance presented itself via a conversation with Liggins Institute Director Dr Frank Bloomfield. While Ayamita was aware of the University of Auckland’s reputation, she was not then familiar with the work of the Liggins Institute, a world-renowned centre for research into fetal and child health, nutrition, development and epigenetics.

After that conversation, Ayamita started to seriously consider a move to New Zealand and has been heartened by the collegiality of the Liggins Institute and the opportunities she has had while in Auckland.

In her first year in Auckland, Ayamita has presented a paper on T cell isolation from human milk at the Advanced Immunology Summer School in Sydney, organised by the Australian and New Zealand Society of Immunology. She created a poster for the HealtheX Conference and participated in the ever-popular 3MT (Three Minute Thesis) competition at the University of Auckland. She has also worked as a Graduate Teaching Assistant and spent countless hours brushing up her laboratory skills.

“They help you grow as a researcher,” she says of Liggins staff and fellow students. “The learning curve has been big but I’m grateful for the opportunity. It gives me motivation to grow more and be better.”