Profile

I have always been fascinated by medicine and disease. Bacteria that live in the environment and are medically important are my specialty- we tend to call these ‘opportunistic pathogens’ meaning they are harmless out and about in the environment, but when we humans come in contact with them they can make us ill.

As a molecular microbiologist, I am interested in the very detailed and intricate mechanisms of adaptation in bacteria – especially how bacteria make us ill and causes disease. In 2013, I completed my PhD at the University of Exeter. My PhD revolved around cystic fibrosis respiratory pathogens studying what is in a sticky sugary substances excreted by the bacteria (looked like mucous!). I studied biofilms, adhesion, and even used mass spectrometry and fluorescent flow cytometry! These are exciting techniques that give a lot of information when used in an experiment.

I am no longer a student but I am a post-doctoral researcher. This means I am carrying out research in the laboratory, as well as being an academic tutor for Masters’ students and overseeing some research projects. My research now is making vaccines using protein-glycan coupling technology (PGCT) in E. coli. I am currently focused on using glycoengineering tools to develope subunit vaccines to protect against three interesting diseases all three of these diseases are capable of making people very ill or even killing – so we must study the bacteria that cause the disease to try to find the best way to make good vaccines to protect people! Overall, although antibiotics are good for treating disease, the best strategy is to prevent anyone getting ill in the first place – by using a vaccine!

Each day is completely full. I leave my house at 6:30 a.m., commute on the train (free wi-fi means I can catch up on emails on the train) and arrive for 8:15 at work. I go strait into the laboratory to start bacteria growing, make growth media and sterilize it, and set up experiments. I will have made a week long plan so I know overall what I am going to accomplish that week and for each day. Some experiment take days to set up, others only hours. I go to my computer to read emails while I eat my breakfast! The days go by very quickly as there is always so much to do, and I could be juggling meetings, experiments and grabbing a bite to each between 11-4. I try to wrap things up in the lab by half four, and then either go to the gym or catch my train home. A day in a scientific laboratory is NEVER dull, no doubt many new things learned everyday. It is tiring, and sometimes discouraging, but overall so enjoyable. Using your brain-power to try to figure out what make bacteria tick is a pretty exciting challenge to face every day.