Ebenezer Tumban

Ebenezer Tumban

Contact

  • Associate Professor, Biological Sciences
  • Director and Advisor, Graduate Program
  • PhD, Molecular Biology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM
  • MS, Biology, New Mexico Highlands University, Las Vegas, NM
  • BS, Biochemistry, University of Buea

Biography

Dr. Tumban is a trained molecular virologist and vaccinologist; in the past, he conducted research studies aimed at understanding the molecular determinants of arboviruses (such as dengue and Langat viruses) mode of transmission. He also researched and developed antigens that could be used to develop immunodiagnostic kits for diagnosing infectious agents.

Most recently, Dr. Tumban’s research has been focused on the development of next-generation vaccines against human papillomaviruses (HPVs)—the causative agents of some human cancers (cervical and anogenital cancers). He is exploring strategies to increase immune responses against HPV infections, using platforms such as bacteriophage virus-like particles (VLPs). Dr. Tumban has observed that the display site of an HPV L2 epitope on a bacteriophage VLP platform can affect the magnitude of immune responses to the epitope as well as the breath of protection against HPV infection. He demonstrated that the display of a highly conserved single epitope from HPV L2 protein, on one of the surface-exposed loops of a bacteriophage VLP, induces antibodies that are highly cross-protective against diverse HPV types. Dr. Tumban is a co-inventor of a L2 bacteriophage VLP, which has been licensed to Agilvax Biotech. He is collaborating with research labs at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center as well as a research lab at the National Cancer Institute at the NIH. For more information on Dr. Tumban’s current projects, please visit The Tumban Lab website.

Research Interests

  • Infectious diseases, human papillomaviruses
  • Virus-like particles, prophylactic and therapeutic vaccines
  • Vaccine formulations
  • Peptide mimotopes discovery