Sarah F. Andrews, Ph.D.

Stadtman Investigator

B Cell Immunobiology Section (BCIS)

NIAID/VRC

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Building 40, Room 2509
40 Convent Drive
Bethesda, MD 20892

240-669-5558

sarah.andrews2@nih.gov

Research Topics

The B Cell Immunobiology Section (BCIS) is dedicated to investigating B cell responses to evolving respiratory viruses, with a primary focus on influenza. Influenza remains a major public health concern and continues to cause substantial annual morbidity and mortality, underscoring the need for improved understanding of the immune mechanisms that shape durable and broadly reactive antibody responses in the context of pre-existing immunity.

Our research focuses on how prior exposures to influenza viruses and vaccines influence B cell responses in individuals with diverse immune histories. Using samples collected from clinical trials evaluating novel influenza vaccine candidates and applying cutting edge technology to explore B cell biology, we examine the cellular and molecular mechanisms that govern immune responses to vaccination. Through these studies, we seek to understand the balance of de novo and recall B cell responses, how B cell repertoires evolve over time, and how prior immune experiences shape subsequent responses. By addressing fundamental questions in B cell immunology our work aims to advance the development of more effective influenza vaccines and deepen our understanding of immunity to evolving endemic respiratory viruses.

Current projects focus on understanding how memory B cell imprinting is established early in life, how repeated vaccination shapes the composition and function of B cell memory, and how adjuvants and immunogen display influence epitope immunodominance. We also leverage samples from VRC clinical vaccine trials to isolate and characterize potent human monoclonal antibodies with potential therapeutic applications against influenza viruses.

Biography

Dr. Sarah Andrews obtained a PhD in Immunology in 2008 at the University of Washington under Dr. David Rawlings. Her PhD work focused on immune tolerance mechanisms and cell signaling pathways controlling B cell fate during B cell development. In 2009 she joined the laboratory of Dr. Patrick Wilson at the University of Chicago as a postdoctoral fellow to study human B cell response to influenza vaccination just as the 2009 pandemic H1N1 emerged. In 2014 she joined the Vaccine Research Center as a Staff Scientist where she continued her work investigating B cell responses to vaccines. She is now Chief of the B cell Immunobiology Section and Director of the Flow Cytometry Core and an Earl Stadtman Tenure-Track Investigator at the VRC.

Selected Publications

  1. Abu-Shmais AA, Freeman G, Creanga A, Vukovich MJ, Malla T, Mantus GE, Shimberg GD, Gillespie RA, Guerra Canedo V, Dadonaite B, Rodgers MD, Chopde AJ, Bardwil-Lugones E, Bylund T, Henry AR, Roberts-Torres J, Johnston TS, Smith S, Yang ES, Cheng C, Walker EL, Ravichandran M, Gordon IJ, Dittakavi TS, Reed DS, Pierson TC, Dropulic L, Bloom JD, Tsybovsky Y, Boritz EA, Douek DC, Zhou T, Kanekiyo M, Andrews SF. Cross-neutralizing and potent human monoclonal antibodies against historical and emerging H5Nx influenza viruses. Nat Microbiol. 2025;10(11):2903-2918.
  2. Spangler A, Shimberg GD, Mantus GE, Malek R, Cominsky LY, Tsybovsky Y, Li N, Gillespie RA, Ravichandran M, Creanga A, Raab JE, Gajjala SR, Mendoza F, Houser KV, Dropulic L, McDermott AB, Kanekiyo M, Andrews SF. Early influenza virus exposure shapes the B cell response to influenza vaccination in individuals 50 years later. Immunity. 2025;58(3):728-744.e9.
  3. Mantus GE, Chopde AJ, Gorman J, Cominsky LY, Ourahmane A, Creanga A, Shimberg GD, Gillespie RA, Van Wazer DJ, Zhou T, Gajjala SR, Williams C, Maestle E, Reed DS, Serebryannyy L, Costner P, Holman L, Casazza JP, Koup RA, Dropulic LK, Kwong PD, McDermott AB, Kanekiyo M, Andrews SF. Vaccination with different group 2 influenza subtypes alters epitope targeting and breadth of hemagglutinin stem-specific human B cells. Sci Transl Med. 2025;17(779):eadr8373.
  4. Andrews SF, Cominsky LY, Shimberg GD, Gillespie RA, Gorman J, Raab JE, Brand J, Creanga A, Gajjala SR, Narpala S, Cheung CSF, Harris DR, Zhou T, Gordon I, Holman L, Mendoza F, Houser KV, Chen GL, Mascola JR, Graham BS, Kwong PD, Widge A, Dropulic LK, Ledgerwood JE, Kanekiyo M, McDermott AB. An influenza H1 hemagglutinin stem-only immunogen elicits a broadly cross-reactive B cell response in humans. Sci Transl Med. 2023;15(692):eade4976.
  5. Andrews SF, Raab JE, Gorman J, Gillespie RA, Cheung CSF, Rawi R, Cominsky LY, Boyington JC, Creanga A, Shen CH, Harris DR, Olia AS, Nazzari AF, Zhou T, Houser KV, Chen GL, Mascola JR, Graham BS, Kanekiyo M, Ledgerwood JE, Kwong PD, McDermott AB. A single residue in influenza virus H2 hemagglutinin enhances the breadth of the B cell response elicited by H2 vaccination. Nat Med. 2022;28(2):373-382.

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This page was last updated on Thursday, June 11, 2026