I am an immunologist and microbiologist who works on bacterial infection. I received my PhD from UCSF in 2006 under the mentorship of Jeff Cox. My work focused on using genetic approaches to identify virulence factors in the bacterial pathogen M. tuberculosis. I then received postdoctoral training at the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, where I explored chemical biological approaches to identifying novel treatments for tuberculosis. I started my lab at Cal in 2012. My research here has focused on understanding protective immunity to Mtb at a mechanistic level using the mouse model of infection. I also use bacterial genetics to identify factors that mycobacteria use to resist elimination by the immune system. Most recently my work has begun to move in a translational direction with projects related to the development of vaccines and the analysis of immune responses in humans with tuberculosis. In addition to my work in the lab, I also run the BSL3 facilities on campus and also perform research and teaching in Uganda.
For full research description, please visit Sarah's Faculty Profile.
mechanisms of pathogenesis and immune subversion in tuberculosis, protective immunity to tuberculosis, metabolic interactions between hosts and pathogens, development of novel therapeutics for tuberculosis, scientific capacity building, tuberculosiss
