Mayer-Barber Research Group

We are a group of dedicated scientists from varied backgrounds who work in a highly collaborative, team-oriented, and supportive environment. Together, we tackle difficult questions related to innate and mucosal immunity in the lung to pulmonary BLS-3 and BSL-2 pathogens that affect millions of people worldwide.

Katrin D. Mayer-Barber, Dr. rer. nat. (Ph.D.)

Chief, Inflammation and Innate Immunity Unit

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Education:

Ph.D., 2006, University of Würzburg, Germany

Katrin D. Mayer-Barber, Dr. rer. nat. (Ph.D.), is the Chief of the Inflammation and Innate Immunity Unit. The Inflammation and Innate Immunity Unit (IIIU) investigates the function and regulation of inflammatory cytokines and lipid mediators during pulmonary infections, the immunological mechanisms of host protective versus host detrimental inflammation, and the translation of basic observations into host-directed immunotherapies.

Learn more about Katrin D. Mayer-Barber, Dr. rer. nat. (Ph.D.)

Headshot of Katrin D. Mayer-Barber

Fatema Alrashed, Ph.D.

Visiting Scientist

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Education:

Ph.D., Biomedical Science, University of Nottingham, UK
MRes, Biomedical Science, University of Glasgow, UK
B.Sc., Microbiology with Immunology, University of Leeds, UK

Languages Spoken: Arabic

I am visiting from the immunology and microbiology department at the Dasman Diabetes Institute in Kuwait, where my research centers on bioactive lipids and their role in diabetes and obesity. At NIH, I will leverage my background in lipid metabolism to establish techniques such as MALDI imaging to investigate the impact of key metabolic pathways on infectious diseases, particularly Mycobacterium...

Learn more about Fatema Alrashed, Ph.D.

Fatema Alrashed, Ph.D.

Eduardo Pinheiro Amaral, Ph.D.

Staff Scientist

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Languages Spoken: Portuguese

The focus of my research is to understand the cellular and molecular mechanisms of type I IFN induction upon Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection in conditions of IL1R-signaling deficiency. We aim to elucidate how type I IFNs and limiting the IL-1 pathway regulate pathology, tissue necrosis, and cell death pathways.

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Andrea Christine Bohrer, Ph.D.

Biologist/Immunologist
Senior Scientist of the lab and BSL-3 Manager

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Education:

Ph.D., Immunology, University of Pennsylvania
B.A., Molecular Biology, Bryn Mawr College

Dr. Bohrer is interested in cytokine and lipid-mediator driven control of cellular dynamics after respiratory infections like Tuberculosis and COVID-19.

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Edmee Nadia Eyraud, Ph.D.

Visiting Postdoctoral Fellow

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Languages Spoken: French

I am working on determining mechanisms of fibrosis and tissue remodeling in the lung following Mtb infection. More precisely, my aim is to decipher how the inflammatory cytokines related to Mtb infection, such as IL-1, can trigger or regulate these processes and who are the main actors of them.

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Maryonne Anastatia-Chaztity Snow-Smith, M.S.

Predoctoral IRTA Fellow (Graduate Student)

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Education:

Ph.D., George Mason University, Biosciences (currently pending)
M.S., Biology, North Carolina Central University
B.S., Biology, North Carolina Central University

Maryonne is currently a Ph.D. biosciences student at George Mason University. Her project as a NIAID Predoctoral IRTA Fellow focuses on the role of eosinophils during Type I respiratory infections. She is using animal models and human in vitro systems to investigate the role of eosinophils during M.tuberculosis infection and SARS-CoV-2.

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Portrait of Maryonne Anastatia-Chaztity Snow-Smith, M.S.

Ehydel Castro Sotolongo

Biologist/Animal Specialist

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Education:

Master in Health Services Administration, Strayer University
Higher Institute of Medical Sciences of Havana Medical School (6 years), Cuba

Languages Spoken: Spanish

After moving to USA, Ehydel worked at the Laboratory of Immune Cell Biology, NCI as a technician. In 2018 he moved to NIAID as a Biologist in the Laboratory of Clinical Immunology and Microbiology, Inflammation and Innate Immunity Unit. He is interested in the role of inflammation and innate immune cells in host defense against M.tuberculosis (Mtb) infection.

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Flor de Maria Torres Juarez, Ph.D.

Visiting Postdoctoral Fellow

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Education:

Ph.D., Unidad de Investigacion Biomedica de Zacatecas, Mexico

Languages Spoken: Spanish

During her Ph.D., Dr. Torres Juarez studies the role of platelets during M.tuberculosis infection. She has a special focus on elucidating the role and function of understudied lipid mediators in host resistance to tuberculosis and an interest in developing tools to study foamy macrophages in vivo.

Learn more about Flor de Maria Torres Juarez, Ph.D.

Portrait of Flor de Maria Torres Juarez, Ph.D.

Former Research Group Members

  • Bo Yan, Ph.D. (visiting postdoc 2015-2017)
  • Claire Tocheny (postbac 2016-2018)
  • Maike Assman, Ph.D. (visiting postdoc 2018-2020)
  • Paul J. Baker, Ph.D. (visiting postdoc 2018-2023)
  • Cassandra Jordan (postbac 2020-2021)
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