Graduate Student Directory

Tiffany Prest MGM Graduate Student 437 Jones Building Box 103100 DUMC Durham, N.C. 27710 Phone: 919.681.2081 Fax: 919.681.2714 Email: tiffany.prest@duke.edu

Research Interest: The roles of UPEC capsule composition, cross regulation of Type 1 pili and capsule, and sialic acid sensing during cystitis.

Initially a Detroit, MI native, the land of the Pistons, Redwings and Tigers, I graduated from Michigan State University (GO GREEN!) with a BS in Microbiology in the spring of 2006. During undergrad I participated in independent study for two years, investigating the ability to predict pseudogenes through the use of mathematical models in the lab of Dr. Julius Jackson and exploring the role of middle T-antigen of Poloyoma in Dr. Michele Fluck’s lab. I presented research at the Michigan Undergraduate Mathematics Conference in 2004, and more recently, at the American Society for Microbiology meeting in 2008.
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Drawn to North Carolina and the Duke collaborative atmosphere (along with the beautiful weather!), I began attending Duke in the fall of 2006. In addition to the incredible pathogenesis research at Duke, I appreciated the eclectic interests of the MGM students and the communication between students and faculty. I finally settled in the lab of Dr. Patrick Seed, studying cystitis caused by uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC). Our lab employs the use of genetics, biochemistry and a murine model system. Currently, I am investigating the cross-regulation of Type 1 pili and capsule, exploring the role different capsule types have during cystitis, and examining the effect sialic acid has on UPEC pathogenesis. 

Favorite pastimes include (but are not limited to!) getting lost in record and book stores, curling up in local coffee shops with good books and frequenting the independent underground music scene. Additionally, I love writing music and poetry, and play the guitar, piano and random percussive instruments. Other interests outside of lab include running, long-boarding, playing ultimate Frisbee, and hiking the Appalachians.

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