Just like us, most microorganisms require iron for growth and fundamental cellular processes. I am interested in how bacteria take up this essential micronutrient from their surroundings, either in their hosts or in the environment. I finished my BSc in Molecular Biotechnology and PhD in the Discipline of Pharmacology at the University of Sydney, Australia. During my PhD, I applied the iron uptake systems of the marine bacterium Shewanella putrefaciens to synthesize new siderophore-based lead compounds. I moved to the Hall lab in May 2016 and I am currently investigating the mode of iron uptake in the gut microbiome, including in Bifidobacterium, and its role in pathogen resistance, metabolite synthesis and the maintenance of iron homeostasis.