Featured Trainees are students, postdoctoral fellows, practicing physicians and faculty, and others who work under the tutelage of Levy CIMAR Core Faculty members and who stand out for their efforts in the fight against antimicrobial resistance. Trainees might be graduate students, antimicrobial stewards, educators, scientific researchers, medical doctors, veterinarians, pharmacists, or a combination of any of these and other professions. If you are a Levy CIMAR Core Faculty member and would like to nominate someone for “Featured Trainee” distinction, please email us any time at cimar@tufts.edu.
Spring 2024 Featured Trainees:
Our Spring 2024 Featured Trainee profile spotlights two first-year Biology PhD Students—Umaojo Ojogbane and Julia Hershelman—who are working with Levy CIMAR’s Benjamin Wolfe, PhD, to explore the ecology of antimicrobial resistance in fermented foods. As members of the Wolfe Lab antibiotic resistance team, their research explores how “classic” antibiotic resistance mechanisms operate in multispecies bacterial communities, where interactions between microbial species might change the outcomes of resistance. Dr. Wolfe is an Associate Professor of Biology at Tufts University’s School of Arts and Sciences.
Umaojo Ojogbane
Umaojo is part of a Wolfe Lab team using metagenomics to identify the frequency of occurrence of beta-lactamase genes in cheese rinds and salamis. She is using hybrid genomic assemblies to determine the distribution and genetic structure of beta-lactamases. This work will determine if antimicrobial resistance can be horizontally transferred from these beneficial microbial communities in food systems to pathogens or commensals.
As she expands her research, Umaojo hopes to delve deeper into the mechanisms underlying antibiotic resistance in fermented foods, exploring potential mitigation strategies and their implications for food safety standards.
Born and raised in Nigeria, Umaojo moved to Massachusetts in August 2023 after earning her master’s degree in Applied Microbiology from the University of Agriculture, Makurdi. Her research prior to attending Tufts focused on renewable energy, particularly the production of biofuels from agricultural waste products. However, her growing interest in understanding the interplay between microbial communities in food ecosystems and their potential impact on human health and safety sparked a shift in her research focus.
When not in the lab, Umaojo enjoys taking walks and listening to good music. She dedicates her free time to volunteer work and actively advocates for educational reforms in Nigeria.
Julia Hershelman
Julia uses the cheese rind, a well-established and tractable microbial ecosystem, to study the ecology of antibiotic resistance. Specifically, she is interested in how susceptible bacteria respond differently to antibiotics in the presence of resistant species. So far, Julia and the Wolfe Lab have observed that some species of bacteria have varying responses to antibiotics in polyculture vs. monoculture. By understanding bacterial community responses to antibiotics, Julia hopes to share the importance of studying antibiotic resistance in a community context and the implications this research can have on environmental and clinical settings.
Prior to starting graduate school at Tufts, Julia earned a bachelor’s degree in Microbiology at the University of Massachusetts Amherst where she was an undergraduate research assistant in the John Gibbons Food Science lab. There, she studied Listeria monocytogenes, and its cross-tolerance to a sanitizer and certain antibiotics.
Julia plans to continue exploring antibiotic resistance in a community context during her PhD studies. Due to the rising prevalence of antimicrobial resistance, Julia has developed a passion for spreading knowledge and awareness for preventing the evolution of resistance.
In her free time, Julia enjoys spending time with family and friends, running, and going to see live music.
Meet all of the Levy CIMAR's Featured Trainees:
-
Umaojo Ojogbane and Julia Hershelman, Biology PhD Students and Members of the Wolfe Lab Antibiotic Resistance Team
Two first-year Biology PhD Students—Umaojo Ojogbane and Julia Hershelman—work with Levy CIMAR’s Benjamin Wolfe, PhD, to explore the ecology of antimicrobial resistance in fermented foods. Both are members of the Wolfe Lab antibiotic resistance team.
-
David Manning, Recipient of the Levy CIMAR Undergraduate Summer Internship in Science and Medicine
Senior at Tufts University’s School of Arts and Sciences working with Levy CIMAR investigator Dr. Alysse Wurcel on researching the implementation of antimicrobial stewardship programs in state prisons and jails. Recipient of the 2023 Levy CIMAR Undergraduate Summer Internship in Science and Medicine.
-
Jonathan Samuel, Recipient of the Levy CIMAR Undergraduate Summer Internship in Science and Medicine
Sophomore at Tufts University School of Arts and Sciences working with Levy CIMAR investigator Dr. Ralph Isberg on understanding factors contributing to antibiotic resistance in A. baumannii
-
Nhi Van, Research Assistant in the laboratory of the Levy CIMAR’s Bree Aldridge, PhD, and a member of the Aldridge Lab’s “DiaMOND” team
Research Assistant in the laboratory of the Levy CIMAR’s Bree Aldridge, PhD, and a member of the Aldridge Lab’s “DiaMOND” team interested in learning to optimize drug combination therapies for tuberculosis and nontuberculous mycobacteria.
-
Rachel Ende, PhD, Postdoctoral Scholar in the lab of CIMAR’s Dr. Joan Mecsas, studying mechanisms of synergistic antibiotic interactions against Klebsiella pneumoniae in the lungs
Postdoctoral Scholar & first-year IRACDA Fellow in the lab of Levy CIMAR’s Dr. Joan Mecsas, studying mechanisms of synergistic antibiotic interactions against Klebsiella pneumoniae in the lungs
-
Irene Nagawa, Inaugural Recipient of the Levy CIMAR’s Undergraduate Summer Internship
Senior at UMass Boston majoring in biology and working with the Levy CIMAR’s Aimee Shen, PhD; Inaugural recipient of the Levy CIMAR Undergraduate Summer Internship for Underrepresented Groups in Science and Medicine
-
Rebecca Tenner, Inaugural Recipient of the Levy CIMAR’s Undergraduate Summer Internship
Rising Senior at Tufts University’s Undergraduate School of Arts & Sciences working with the Levy CIMAR’s Alysse Wurcel, MD; Inaugural recipient of the Levy CIMAR Undergraduate Summer Internship for Underrepresented Groups in Science and Medicine
-
Emma Price, VMD, master’s candidate in Clinical and Translational Science at Tufts University’s Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
2nd year master’s candidate in Clinical and Translational Science at Tufts University’s Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences working with the Levy CIMAR’s Claire Fellman DVM, PhD, and Shira Doron MD, to identify factors driving antimicrobial prescription in hospitalized dogs and cats
-
Joshua Khuvis, MD Candidate at Tufts University School of Medicine and Levy CIMAR Student Researcher
MD Candidate at Tufts University School of Medicine and Levy CIMAR Student Researcher working with Dr. Shira Doron on exploring the impact of diagnostic stewardship interventions on Clostridioides difficile test ordering practices and results
-
Efrat Hamami, Molecular Microbiology PhD Candidate Working to Identify Vulnerabilities in Drug Resistant A. baumannii Isolates
Molecular Microbiology PhD Candidate Working in the Ralph Isberg Lab to Identify Vulnerabilities in Drug Resistant A. baumannii Isolates
-
Kathleen Davis, PhD, Postdoctoral Scholar Working on Adapting Drug Combination Testing of Clinical Isolates
Postdoctoral Scholar working to identify antibiotic and small molecule combinations that function against problematic community and hospital-acquired pathogens; Working on adapting drug combination testing of clinical isolates
-
Shailab Shrestha, MERGE-ID Ph.D. Candidate and Recipient of the Tufts GSBS Fellowship For International Students
PhD Candidate in Molecular Microbiology, MERGE-ID (Medically-oriented Research in Graduate Education – Infectious Disease) track at Tufts University’s Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences; Inaugural Recipient, Tufts University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences Fellowship Supporting International Student Education, 2018
-
Courtney Chan, Infection Prevention Coordinator, Medical Scribe, and Researcher
Infection Prevention Coordinator and Infectious Diseases Clinic Medical Scribe at Tufts Medical Center; Research contributor and co-author with the Levy CIMAR’s Drs. Maya Nadimpalli and Shira Doron: “Antibiotic Resistance: A Call to Action to Prevent the Next Epidemic of Inequality,” in Nature Medicine (2021)
-
Eve Abraha, Undergraduate Researcher and Co-Teacher
Undergraduate Researcher at Tufts Medical Center working with the Levy CIMAR’s Dr. Shira Doron; Co-teacher in the PARE (Prevalence of Antibiotic Resistance in the Environment) program’s short course, PARE-Seq, under the guidance of the Levy CIMAR’s Drs. Carol Bascom-Slack and Amy Pickering
-
Aubrey Specht, DVM Candidate and Award Winner, 2020 Tufts Vet Summer Research Training Program
Second-Year Graduate Student pursuing a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) at the Cummings School; Winner, Basic Science Award at the 2020 Tufts Vet Summer Research Training Program
-
Iyob Gebremariam, Levy CIMAR Software Developer
Software Developer working with the Levy CIMAR on our Cutter and DiaMOND research and analytics tools; Masters student studying International Business at the Tufts Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy
-
Juan A. Hernández-Bird, MERGE-ID PhD Student
2019 American Society of Microbiology (ASM) Capstone Fellowship awardee and PhD Candidate in Molecular Microbiology – MERGE-ID (Medically-oriented Research in Graduate Education - Infectious Disease) track at Tufts University’s Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
-
Scarlet Bliss, Undergraduate Laidlaw Fellow
Laidlaw Scholar working with CIMAR’s Drs. Amy Pickering and Carol Bascom-Slack to incorporate molecular methods into the PARE (Prevalence of Antibiotic Resistance in the Environment) project
-
Erica Fuhrmeister, PhD, Postdoctoral Scholar and National Science Foundation Fellow
Postdoctoral Fellow, Pickering Lab, Tufts University School of Engineering; Recipient: National Science Foundation Fellowship titled, “Transfer of Antimicrobial Resistance Genes betwee
-
Gabriela Andujar Vazquez, MD, Inaugural LEAP Fellow
Attending physician, Division of Geographic Medicine and Infectious Diseases, Tufts Medical Center; Assistant Professor of Medicine, Tufts University School of Medicine; Inaugural LEAP Fellow for 2018-2019