Hudson People - Tijana Despot and Kate Friesen

TIJANA DESPOT

KATE FRIESEN

POSITION / GROUP / CENTRE ... both in the Centre for Innate Immunity and Infectious Diseases.

Tijana is a is an international undergraduate student in the Hertzog lab
Kate is an international undergraduate student in the Ferrero lab

BORN IN ...
Tijana: Toronto, Canada
Kate: Winnipeg, Canada

BEFORE HUDSON INSTITUTE I WAS DOING ...
Tijana: I am currently a 3rd year undergraduate Immunology Specialist student at Trinity college, University of Toronto.
Kate: Before Hudson Institute I was finishing the second year of my Honours Bachelor of Science Degree at the University of Toronto majoring in immunology and neuroscience and minoring in physiology.

IF I WASN’T DOING THIS JOB I WOULD BE A...
Kate: Dancer.

MY FIRST JOB WAS
Kate: My first job was lifeguarding and teaching swimming lessons.

MY FAVOURITE MOVIE/TV IS ...
Tijana: Watching sports.
 
I AM WORKING ON ...
Tijana: Determining binding characteristics and neutralising capacities of particular hybridoma cell culture supernatants to particular portions of the interferon receptor.
Kate: I am working on understanding novel molecular mechanisms Helicobacter pylori uses to promote gastric cancer.

THE HIGHLIGHT OF MY YEAR SO FAR ...
Tijana: Travelling to and living in Melbourne from May-August as part of the Queen Elizabeth II Immunology Scholarship Program.
Kate: The highlight of my year so far was going on my first trip overseas.

MY FAVOURITE PLACE IN THE WORLD
Kate: My favourite place in the world is Melbourne. Before I came here it was San Francisco.

I AM LOOKING FORWARD ...
Tijana: Exploring the city of Melbourne and visiting the Great Ocean Road.
Kate: I am looking forward to continuing to explore Australia and seeing my family when I go home.

OUTSIDE OF WORK I ENJOY ...
Tijana: Playing tennis, sailing and reading.
Kate: Dancing, eating, hanging out with friends and sleeping.

MY FAVOURITE PLACE TO EAT ...
Tijana: Any restaurant involving Greek or Italian food.
Kate: My favourite place to eat is Joey (Canadian restaurant). Best yam fries and lettuce wraps in Canada!

THE BEST ADVICE I'VE RECEIVED
Kate: The best advice I’ve received is to never give up!