Tuckey earns Outstanding Young Scientist Award at research symposium

Faculty and students participate in the 2024 Infectious Disease and Host Defense Research Symposium at the University of South Alabama.

Kevin Macaluso, Ph.D., professor and chair of 

microbiology and immunology, and Allyson Shea, Ph.D.,

assistant professor of microbiology and immunology, 

present Amanda Tuckey with the award.

Amanda Tuckey, a student in the Basic Medical Sciences Graduate Program at the Whiddon College of Medicine, received the Outstanding Young Scientist Award at the 2024 Infectious Disease and Host Defense (IDHD) Research Symposium held May 9 at the University of South Alabama. 

The award recognizes a well-rounded student who exemplifies academic excellence, leadership, and service to the basic medical sciences.  

In total, nine BMS students, including Tuckey, presented research at the second annual IDHD symposium chaired by Allyson Shea, Ph.D., an assistant professor of microbiology and immunology.   

The symposium offered students conference-style presentation experience and a collaborative environment to receive feedback on their research from outside perspectives. 

The symposium presenters and their presentation titles: 

• Rachel Rodenberg – “gd T17 cells are master regulators of the acute antiviral response in HSV-1 infected corneas” 
• Nam Suwanbongkot – “Spotted fever group Rickettsia transmission and dissemination kinetics during infected tick feeding” 
• Meagan Taylor – “Aedes aegypti salivary protein as an inhibitor of IFN-I signaling in human dermal fibroblasts” 
• Killian Brewer – “FPR-mediated signaling rescues neutrophil dysfunction in mut-STAT3 mice, promoting tissue repair in the lung” 
• Shovon Lal Sarkar – “Tissue localization and profiling of bacterial symbionts in the invasive Asian Longhorned Tick, Haemaphysalis longicornis”   
• Amanda Tuckey – “Amyloid-beta regulates the innate immune response to pneumonia 
• Steven Smith – “Increased expression of Amyloid-ꞵ exhibits protective role against influenza A virus infection in a mouse model” 
• Parker Norman – “Interspecies co-feeding transmission of Heartland virus between a native tick species, Amblyomma americanum, and the invasive East Asian Tick, Haemaphysalis longicornis 
• Bailey Hettinger – “Minimum feeding time required for Haemaphysalis longicornis to transmit Severe Fever with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome Virus”

Planning committee members, from left, were Meredith

Moody, program coordinator; students Nam Suwanbongkot, 

Killian Brewer and Meagan Taylor; and Allyson Shea, Ph.D.,

assistant professor of microbiology and immunology.

The keynote speaker was Christopher Paddock, Ph.D., lead of the Diagnostic and Microbiology Team, Rickettsial Zoonoses Branch, at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. His presentation was titled “Rediscovering rickettsiae,” and he spoke about the history of rickettsial tick-borne diseases and his scientific research. 

Student members of the research symposium planning committee were Killian Brewer, Nam Suwanbongkot, and Meagan Taylor.