Ciara is using a range of techniques to understand host parasite interactions in visceral leishmaniasis. This deadly disease involves the systemic infection of multiple organs by the vector-borne Leishmania parasite.
Her research focuses on the parasite Leishmania donovani and seeks to understand how the parasite colonises and disseminates between different tissues. To understand this process, her work utilises an interdisciplinary approach, including immunology, molecular parasitology, microbial ecology and mathematical modelling. Using these approaches, she is building a model of the tissue parasite population dynamics in key tissues involved in disease pathology, and how these patterns change over time and under different conditions, such as secondary infection and immunodeficiency. Another key aspect of her work is understanding dissemination to the skin, which is a key event in transmission via the sand fly insect vector.
Ciara completed her PhD at the University of York, as part of the Hull York Medical School, in 2024. Prior to this, she did an MSci in Molecular and Cellular Biology at the University of Glasgow.
She has previously done research on Toxoplasma gondii mitochondrial biology with Prof Lilach Sheiner, which led her to parasitology for her PhD project, and has also worked at GlaxoSmithKline in target validation and pathway analysis for drug development.
Ciara has previously run tutorials for undergraduates on CRISPR genome editing, Neglected Tropical DIseases (NTDs), parasite immuno-biology and the history and philosophy of science. She has also worked as a GTA for multiple modules during her PhD.