Leah Baker

My name is Leah Baker. I grew up in Hanover Park, Illinois and attended my undergraduate education at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. At SIUE, I did a fast-track program for their School of Pharmacy. I am starting my second year of pharmacy school in the fall and hope to use research to further my interests in finding new therapeutic strategies. 

Research Area

This summer I am working in Ashley Steeds lab with the influenza virus. We look for cell specific mechanisms that determine how well a host can recover from the influenza virus. I spend my days isolating cells and infecting them with the virus to later check for viral DNA and various genetic markers for protective qualities of certain immune cells when exposed with to the influenza virus.