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Karen Maxwell completed her Ph.D. in Molecular Genetics at the University of Toronto, where she worked in Dr. Marvin Gold’s lab studying the assembly of bacteriophage lambda. Her postdoctoral work was at the Ontario Centre for Structural Genomics, leading a project focused on phage structural genomics. She moved to a Research Associate position at the Donnelly Centre, University of Toronto, before starting in the Department of Biochemistry as an Assistant Professor in 2016. Her research examines the phage-host evolutionary arms race, investigating unknown genes known collectively as viral 'dark matter', which are important in increasing the severity of human diseases by transmitting toxins and antibiotic resistance genes. The lab focuses on characterizing dark matter encoded by phages that infect Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a significant human pathogen. Their long-term goal is to use this information to engineer phages for treating antibiotic-resistant infections in human patients.
Department of Sociology