Where are you from?
Washington, DC, USA

What is your role at LSHTM?
PhD candidate in Rob Moon’s lab, working on Plasmodium vivax vaccine candidate selection. 

Tell us about a project you are currently working on?
I’m currently using CRISPR/Cas9 to genetically modify Plasmodium knowlesi, a species of malaria which causes zoonotic infections in Southeast Asia and is closely related to Plasmodium vivax. Unlike P. vivax, we can culture P. knowlesi in the lab, which makes it a great tool for research. I am modifying P. knowlesi to express various P. vivax erythrocyte binding proteins, so that I can test how well antibodies block the ability of these parasites to invade red blood cells. This will help identify new vaccine targets to control P. vivax infections. 

What did you want to be when you were growing up?
Aside from a week when I wanted to be a ballerina, I’ve always wanted to be a scientist. 

"When I'm not working, I am…"
ice skating - it’s great exercise and far more fun than the gym. 

What is the best book you have read recently?
For non-fiction, Educated, by Tara Westover - an incredible autobiography/memoir. Or, for some fiction, A Gentleman in Moscow, by Amor Towles. It’s good to branch out from reading about science occasionally!

Tea or coffee?
Coffee, of course

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?
If you don’t ask, you don’t get - in other words, never be afraid to contact someone asking for advice/internships/jobs etc. The worst thing someone can say is no, and you’ll probably still get good career advice or find out about interesting projects. Scientists love to talk about their work!

Which words or phrases do you overuse?
I’m American, so I say ‘like’ far too often. 

If not yourself, who would you most like to be?
Not a specific person, but I’d love to be someone who speaks lots of different languages - it’s so impressive.