Developed, maintained, and operated bioinformatics analysis pipelines on a high performance computing cluster for a variety of concurrent studies with investigators at Lifespan, Women and Infants Hospital, and Brown University.Maintained organized documentation of analysis pipelines and results for reproducibility and manuscript writing.Contributed to manuscript preparation for a variety of studies.Routinely presented project progress at group meetings.Developed a user-friendly executable software tool and R package for complex insertion deletion (INDEL) variant calling from next-generation sequencing (NGS) data utilizing a novel algorithm for INDEL detection and parallel processing techniques for handling large data.Developed and operated a pipeline for detection of differential alternative splicing events and prediction of peptide level effects which contribute to the pathoetiology of CLN2 Batten disease. Developed and operated a data analysis pipeline using Linux and R programming languages to investigate the role of increased burden of runs of homozygosity in the pathogenesis of Autism Spectrum Disorder using data from the Simons Simplex Collection of the Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative.Developed and operated an comparative transcriptional analysis pipeline to investigate the differential regulation of gene expression in placental tissues of maternal patients with and without preterm premature rupture of membranes (PPROM) to better understand the mechanisms of preterm birth. Manuscript in preparation.

Developed NGS data analysis tools and pipelines in R, Julia, and Linux programming languages while concurrently enrolling over 150 patients in a clinical study of the genetic architecture of severe preeclampsia.Developed the Julia programming language package VariantVisualization.jl and a user-friendly executable bioinformatics tool called VIVA for visualization of gene variant information contained within Variant Call Format (VCF) files. I am first author of our paper published in Scientific Reports (2019). Developed and operated RNA and DNA sequence data analysis pipelines and prepared a successful manuscript presenting our novel insights into pathogenic mechanisms of adhesion in Candida parapsilosis. I am second author of our manuscript published in ASM’s mSphere journal (2020).Developed and operated a pipeline for predictive modeling of novel DNA binding domains on a protein of interest and prediction of genome-wide binding sequence targets as a core component of an integrative ChIP-seq based approach for novel transcriptional regulator discovery and characterization utilizing Linux and R programming languages alongside ModelX and FoldX software. I am co-first author of a manuscript presenting our findings which is currently under review.Performed PCR, qPCR, gel electrophoresis, RNA extraction and purification, and cDNA preparation from RNA for a comparative transcriptional profiling study of Candida parapsilosis studying a range of highly adhesive, non-adhesive and transcription factor knock out isolates in a variety of conditions.Enrolled over 150 patients and managed clinical patient data in REDCap for an NIH RO1-funded whole exome sequencing study of the genetic architecture of severe preeclampsia.Performed genotype-phenotype association analysis for several NGS data analysis projects studying the genetic architecture of disorders of pregnancy including preterm birth and preeclampsia and coauthored papers .

Researched and created a comprehensive model of competition in the lateral flow test strip market to inform Lab-on-a-Chip's R&D and commercialization efforts. Successfully arranged a collaboration with the Institute for Immunology and Informatics (iCubed), an industry-leading immunology research organization.Facilitated clear communication between engineering and immunology research teams with the aim of expediting project progress and optimizing design of a robust, Point-of-Care (POC) diagnostic tool with potential application to Dengue Fever POC diagnosis. Demonstrated strong science communication and understanding of enzyme-linked immunoassays to help a team of mechanical engineers optimize a sandwich ELISA for Dengue Fever antigen NS1 for use with their innovative lateral flow microfluidic assay platform.

Six month internship with the RI Special Pathogens and Bioterror Response Laboratory which provides laboratory support to detect and monitor spread of NIAID priority infectious diseases.Conducted Cost benefit study of RI State Lab Tuberculosis Screening Protocol:Analyzed 3000+ Mycobacterium tuberculosis laboratory results reported during 2014 and 2015 to identify sources of redundancy in protocol to eliminate waste. Identified two potential sources of waste - one source has been cleared by administration to be eliminated from protocol and the other is under review. (2016) Supported clinical laboratory scientists by performing:Mammalian cell culturing of Vero 76 cells for RI arbovirus monitoring program.Preparation of specimens for Bordetela pertussis PCR and culture.Quality control (QC) on monthly biochemical and media shipments.Isolate banking and maintenance of cryogenized QC organism isolates.Specimen logging using Cerner Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS).Follows quality assurance (QA) protocol to ensure integrity of specimen and patient information.

Organized and managed team of peers to help realize vision of establishing a community for URI Cell and Molecular Biology students to network and build professional skills. Recruited 75 members from the college with dominant representation of freshman who will carry the organization into the future to encourage continued chapter growth and access to resources for CMB students. Duties included direction of leadership board meetings, internal and external group communication, and organization of biweekly meetings.

Provided support to laboratory scientists in the Environmental Microbiology Department while building excellent aseptic technique, good laboratory practice, pipetting, and bacterial culturing skills. Gained experience utilizing defined substrate technology to monitor sanitary conditions in recreational water, shell fishing beds, drinking water, and pasteurized dairy. Given the opportunity to write the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) document for the flagship program for cyanobacteria monitoring in recreational water to observe and respond to harmful algal blooms. Received additional experience with the Molecular, Serology, and Special Pathogens Labs through additional work.Gained experience in preparing direct fluorescent antibody tests in the neighboring rabies lab and observed execution of the dissection and antibody test.Became familiar with RT-qPCR used for mosquito pool monitoring for Eastern Equine Encephalitis.Gained experience in mammalian cell culturing of green monkey kidney cells for cell death counts for arbovirus monitoring.

Studied alternative splicing events underlying the cystic fibrosis using Basic Local Alignment Search Tools (BLAST) and other bioinformatics tools. Using structural and functional annotation in WebApollo, I identified an alternative splice site that may be responsible for the development of cystic fibrosis.