I completed both my M.S. and Ph.D. at UW-Madison where I studied the role of tRNA modification in the biology and virulence of Salmonella. After graduation, I joined Pan Genome Systems, Inc. to develop commercial vaccines for ruminant animals against Johne’s disease. Following this experience, I worked at the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Animal Disease Center in Ames, Iowa where I investigated novel antibiotic alternatives to reduce or eliminate human foodborne bacterial pathogens in food-producing animals. I joined the Ulland lab in November 2018 to study the role of the innate immune response in Alzheimer’s disease.