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School of Medicine Greenville

Faculty Profile

Faculty and Staff

Jennifer T. Grier, Ph.D.

Title: Associate Professor
Biomedical Sciences
School of Medicine Greenville
E-mail: jgrier@greenvillemed.sc.edu
Phone: 864-455-9847
   
Office: 607 Grove Road
Greenville SC 29605
profile

Bio

Teaching Interest(s): Immunology, Host-Pathogen interactions
Research Interest(s): Investigation of host factors that contribute to antiviral immunity is important for understanding the innate response to infection and identifying protective pathways following viral infection. This is particularly important when studying viruses for which there are no vaccines available, such as Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV), a human pathogen which infects nearly every child before the age of 2, and in some cases, can result in lifelong complications.
I primarily study the innate immune response in the context of (-)ssRNA respiratory viruses which include RSV and Sendai Virus (SeV), a virulent mouse pathogen in the same family of viruses as RSV. Following infection with RSV or SeV, hundreds of Interferon Stimulated Genes (ISGs) are up-regulated, yet the functional significance of many of them remains unclear. An in-depth understanding of the mechanisms of these early responding ISGs could be used to prevent disease complications or establishment of chronic symptoms. Through targeted mutation and cellular characterization of ISGs, we hope to identify proteins and pathways that are protective for the host following viral infection to serve as targets for new therapeutic approaches.

https://www.grierlab.org/
Honors & Awards: USCSOMG Outstanding Mentor Award
Distinguished Research Service Award
Early Career Faculty Travel Grant
Outstanding Young Investigator Award
American Society of Microbiologists Peggy Cotter Award
NAAHP Travel Grant
AAI Undergraduate Faculty Travel Grant
ABRCMS Judge’s Travel Award
Runner-up Best Poster, Immunology Graduate Group Retreat
Travel Award, Graduate & Professional Student Assembly
Schwarz Pharma Award for Excellence in Academics and Research
Professional Affiliations: Association of Professors of Human and Medical Genetics
National Institute on Scientific Teaching
Member
Infectious Disease Society of America
South Carolina Branch of the American Society for Microbiolgy
Member
American Association of Immunologists
Member
Association for Women in Science
Member
American Society for Microbiology
Member
Alpha Sigma Nu Honor Society
Member
Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society
Member
Psi Mu Episilon Mathematics Honor Society
Member

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