Former Trainees
Our former trainees continue to advance science in many different ways. They have become scientific "citizens" and work to benefit others through continued post-graduate training, mentoring, teaching, and outreach programs. Moreover, many of our earlier trainees are now finding scientific, research-based positions in academia and in industry that apply their SPII training in different ways. Their accomplishments represent strong evidence of the success of our SPII training program.
Predoctoral Trainees
Aaron Christensen-Quick (2012-2013)
Research Project: "Mechanisms of preferential HIV infection of Th17 cells"
Alison Scott (2012-2013)
Research Project: "Development of mass spectrometric–based methods to map lipids in the innate immune response to infection"
Erin Harberts (2013-2014)
Research Project: "Discovery of Ultraviolet (UV) Radiation-activated TLR4 signaling pathway resulting in apoptosis"
Ann Mary Joseph (2013-2014)
Research Project: "Convergence of innate signaling pathways in adaptive immunity"
Kelsey Gregg (2014-2015)
Research Project: "Generation of an avirulent lipid A biosynthetic mutant (∆lpxF) in Francisella that alters innate immune signaling to elicit a protective immune response; engineering and evaluation of novel TLR4 agonists for adjuvant potential in vitro and in vivo"
Justin Mancini (2014-2015)
Research Project: "Role of galectins in infections by enveloped RNA viruses in zebrafish"
Phillip Balzano (2015-2016)
Research Project: "Loss of the MFS Transporters fptG and fptB increases cytosolic retention of Francisella tularensis and modifies host innate cytokine responses"
Jeticia Sistrunk (2015-2016)
Research Project: "Investigating host-pathogen transcriptional responses in Enterotoxigenic E. coli infections"
Mark Guillotte (2016-2018)
Research Project: "Role of lipopolysaccharide in the innate immune response to Rickettsia spp."
Thiagaraian Venkataraman (2016-2017)
Research Project: "The Role of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor signaling in SARS pathogenesis"
Postdoctoral Trainees
Kurt Piepenbrink, PhD (2012-2013)
Research Project: "The Function of Type IV Pili in The Pathogenesis of Clostridium difficile"
Katharina Richard, PhD (2012-2014)
Research Project: "Role of macrophage activation by Francisella tularensis and TLR4 adjuvants in Ft infection and for novel Ft subunit vaccines"
Nuria Gonzalez-Montalban, PhD (2013-2014)
Research Project: "Role(s) of zebrafish galectins during IHNV infection"
Sarah Brennan-Laun, PhD (2014-2015)
Research Project: "Mechanisms of action of RNase-L"
Kristen Rennoll-Bankert, PhD (2014-2016)
Research Project: "Rickettsia typhi molecular interaction with the cat flea (Ctenocephalides felis), with emphasis on early innate immune signaling"
Lindsey Brown, PhD (2015-2017)
Research Project: "Structural basis of innate immune signaling inhibition via disruption of Toll-IL-1R Resistance domain (TIR) adapter interactions"
Kirsten Kulscar, PhD (2017-2018)
Research Project: "Mechanisms of Middle East Respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV)-induced respiratory disease"