Elizabeth Ballou

I studied chemistry with a focus on protein kinetics and spectroscopic methods at Mount Holyoke College, and then earned a masters in the Molecular Biology of Infectious Disease at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Following my masters I joined the hard working folks of the malaria serology lab at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research in DC, where I contributed to the development of an assay for the efficacy of up-and-coming malaria vaccines. I came to Duke looking for a program to unify my experiences and to direct my research towards solving medically immediate problems. The UPGG program has been a good fit for both these goals, and puts me in contact with a diverse group of rigorous researchers whom I have consistently found to be excited to share their experience. In 2007 I joined the Alspaugh Lab, and now spend my time exploring the contribution of conserved elements of the Ras1 signal transduction pathway to stress response and pathogenesis in the human fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans. Of course, its not all work here. When I'm not in the lab, I spend my time exploring Durham, traveling, watching movies, and tackling home improvement projects.

top