Jessica Jeannin Pfannenstiel

Jessica Jeannin Pfannenstiel is a 2023-2027 Self Graduate Fellow pursuing a Ph.D. in Microbiology at The University of Kansas. She received her B.S. in Microbiology in 2021 from the same university. Her research focuses on creating recombinant genomes with multiple strains of Coronaviruses using a bacterial artificial chromosome cloning process. Additionally, she screens therapeutic compounds for their ability to inhibit SARS-CoV-2. She also identifies protein interactions of Poly (ADP-ribose) Polymerases (PARPs) within cellular conditions. To determine which proteins are ADP-ribosylated during a SARS-CoV-2 infection, intending to understand whether these modifications affect virus replication or pathogenesis. Her career aspirations include working in the government sector following graduate school to be involved in a high-containment BSL-4 facility at the Center for Infectious Disease or the National Institutes of Health. Ultimately, she aims to influence policy as a scientific liaison to legislators. 

Mentor: Dr. Anthony Fehr, Ph.D., an Associate Professor in the Department of Molecular Bioscience.