Trained in bacteriology and biochemistry at University of Idaho
(BSc & MSc) and in biochemistry and molecular biology at University of British Columbia (PhD), I also did a postdoctoral fellowship at Duke Medical Center, Institut Pasteur and Samuel Lunenfeld. Over the last decade, I have been focusing my work to understand the mechanisms by which the bacterium Shigellaspp causes disease. We are especially interested in how pathogens hijack the ubiquitin proteasome system. Our lab is also developing genetic tools to facilitate the study of virulence at a systems level.
Role in Syst-OMICS
With my colleague Rafael Garduno, I’m in charge of Activity 1.4.2 which aims to do high-throughput protozoan whole cell screening (ciliate and amoeba) to define virulence of selected Salmonella strains.