Page 16 - Luce 2023

B ooks an d Authors

PhD candidate and Resident JCH Tutor in Amongst other items of
Biomedical Science, Amy Bongetti, reviews An interest, readers can expect
to discover the origins of the
insider’s plague year by Nobel Laureate and College most commonly utilised mouse
Visitor, Prof. Peter Doherty AC, published in 2021. strains in biomedical research,
as well as the many institutes
An insider’s plague year is an insightful and illuminating work and organisations that make
in which Prof. Doherty provides his firsthand account of the up the Melbourne Biomedical
COVID-19 pandemic as it happened and how he used almost Precinct that flanks Grattan
six decades of his expertise in virus pathogenesis and immunity Street, Royal Parade, and
to educate the public and aid in the pandemic response. Flemington Road.

Since winning the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1996 (shared Looking back on the first
with his ANU colleague Rolf Zinkernagel for their discoveries year of the pandemic,
concerning the specificity of the cell mediated immune Prof. Doherty remarks ‘it’s
defence) and being named Australian of the Year in 1997, Prof. tough to make predictions,
Doherty has undertaken a myriad of scientific communication especially about the future’.
roles as a public lecturer and author of numerous scientific Even now in early 2023, as our third year of living with
books and media articles. At the beginning of the pandemic, COVID-19 comes to a close, this still holds true. From new
Prof. Doherty became a COVID commentator, joining the variants, to defining ‘COVID normal’, and those suffering from
Peter Doherty Institute’s communication team. the long-term effects of COVID-19 infection, it is difficult to
predict what the future will hold for our society in terms of
As a prolific science communicator, Prof. Doherty provides COVID-19 and potentially other pandemics. However, what
an accessible way to discover the ins and outs of infection we can do is make the right decision in the moment based
and immunity in the context of COVID-19. In his latest on the information we have and adapt as new information
scientific book, readers cannot only expect to learn about becomes available. That is, we are constantly learning about
how COVID-19 causes disease and how our body mounts an how this virus evolves, and its long-term impact on our
immune response, but also about the unfolding of our public population, both from a public health perspective – the mental
health response, and the scientists, clinicians, and healthcare health burden of lockdowns, especially here in Melbourne – as
workers who guided us through the pandemic. well as the economic and financial implications for many. Prof.
Doherty’s recommendations for the future are that ‘modern
Readers are first introduced to the Melbourne Biomedical science protects and serves us’ and we must continue to adapt
Precinct and the origins of COVID-19 before being taken on our communication avenues to capture all demographics.
a journey through the first year of the pandemic, through Another important thread that Prof. Doherty touches on is the
the eyes of Prof. Doherty. A large proportion of this work is impact of climate change on our society.
dedicated to a series of essays aimed to educate the public
about infection and immunity in relation to COVID-19 and to This is a thread through much of his public communication.
combat the spread of misinformation during the pandemic. ‘So, unless the COVID-19 experience changes the way
These articles, entitled ‘Setting it Straight’, were originally we travel and reduces our negative impact on natural
published weekly on the Peter Doherty Institute website, with environments, can we have any real expectation that we will
the first being released on 6 April 2020. The incorporation not see further pandemics through the next eighty years?’
of these articles into the book provides an insight into the Some food for thought. If we are to survive future pandemics
pandemic as it unfolded in real-time – rather than a story and preserve our society, we must look after our planet and
written in retrospect – allowing one to understand how prevent climate change – ‘the best that anyone can do is to
Australia’s pandemic response was formulated. help build a sustainable future’.

Covering topics from COVID re-infection, to how the body Setting COVID-19 aside, one of the most difficult parts of
mounts an immune response or how it recognises ‘self’ from being a scientist is to communicate the science effectively
‘non-self’ are just some of the issues the reader can expect to to a general audience. Contending with misinformation and
learn from these articles. The layout of this section also allows sensationalism by the media is no easy feat. This work is a
one to jump back into the book after a period of absence prime example of science communication at its finest. Prof.
or turn from article to article according to one’s interests. It Doherty’s book speaks volumes to those not only wishing to
also serves as a reference for any query the reader may have educate themselves about our biology or those with a curiosity
regarding the development of a vaccine, or how scientists go about the pathogenesis of COVID-19. It also speaks to those
about their work. pursuing a career in the sciences or any field. There are many
paths that careers may take and the beauty of life is that one
Whilst a large component of this book is centred around the never knows what discoveries await.
mechanics of infection and our bodies’ immune response,
woven eloquently into its pages is a multi-faceted story For those interested in the origins of the ‘Parkville Precinct’,
connecting people, places, and their scientific contributions the public health response to the COVID-19 pandemic, or
that form the science presented here. Any great moment in purely the mechanics of the magic that is our immune system,
history, or scientific discovery, is not just a one-man show. An insider’s plague year is well worth a place on your bedside
Rather, it results from a community of people in the present, table. Prof. Doherty’s conversational and humble tone will
and from foundations formed in the past, that make the now make you feel as though you are learning about the pandemic
possible. with your friend Peter over a cup of tea.
16 LUCE Number 21 2022