My work as a parasitologist mainly focuses on the preclinical development and evaluation of vaccine candidates against the Malaria blood-stage parasites. I am also involved in the preparation of parasites for clinical studies as well as in the supervision of a CL3 facility. In addition, I am a member of the MultiViVax consortium (http://www.multivivax.eu/).
Prior to joining the Jenner Institute, I worked as a postdoctoral research scientist for the pharmaceutical company Arrow therapeutics, a subsidiary of AstraZeneca, in London, where I gained extensive experience in the pre-clinical development of potential drugs against the Hepatitis C Virus (HCV).
Preceding this position, I completed my undergraduate training in biology at the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, Germany, before obtaining my PhD in biology – with an emphasis on molecular biology, cell biology and biochemistry – at the same university. My PhD thesis work in the research group headed by Professor Ralf Bartenschlager focused on the structural and functional analysis of the HCV replication complex and its associated cellular host factors.
Throughout my career I have been interested in human pathogens and how to fight them effectively.