My research focuses on how the immune system responds to picornaviruses residing inside extracellular vesicles. Cells make vesicles to transfer host components and to communicate with other cells. Many virus species hijack these vesicles and hide inside them to transverse through the body. Inside these vesicles, viruses are protected from neutralizing antibodies, which makes it more difficult for the body to clear the associated disease. My research investigates how immune cells from the human body can still recognize these vesicle-enclosed viruses. To address this, I use human white blood cells (PBMCs) and assess their cytokine responses and cell profiles to determine how these readouts differ between naked viruses, vesicle-enclosed viruses, or plain vesicles. I use techniques like flow cytometry, PCR, western blot and ELISAs to address these questions.