PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
Regina Joice Cordy, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor (2018 – present)
Ph.D. in Biological Sciences in Public Health, Harvard University. B.A. in Human Biology, University of Virginia.
RJC is an Assistant Professor in the Biology Department at Wake Forest University. Her PhD work at Harvard led to the identification of an enrichment site of malaria’s sexual stages (gametocytes) in the bone marrow. Her postdoctoral work at Emory focused on computational analysis of the microbiome and metabolome of malaria-infected hosts.
In her free time, she enjoys sewing, taking road trips, and relaxing outside on her back porch.
GRADUATE STUDENTS
Dinah Nahid
PhD Student (2019 – present)
B.A. in Biochemistry, Smith College
nahid19 [at] wfu.edu
Dinah’s work focuses on Plasmodium replication rate under varying oxygen conditions, using a combination of in vitro culture and mathematical modeling approaches.
In her free time, Dinah enjoys cooking, taking walks outside, and taking care of her cat.
Kevin Coffey
PhD Student (2021 – present)
B.S. in Biology, UNC Charlotte
coffk21 [at] wfu.edu
Kevin’s work focuses on studying differential gene expression of Plasmodium falciparum in various oxygen conditions.
Outside of studying infectious diseases, he enjoys traveling, cooking, baking, swimming, playing tennis, and learning about different cultures around the world.
Cam Sherlock
PhD Student (2022-Present)
B.S. in the biological sciences, University of Pittsburgh
sherce22 [at] wfu.edu
Cam’s work focuses on how oxidative stress disrupts the cell cycle during erythroid development in the context of malarial anemia.
When Cam is not in the lab, he enjoys playing basketball, doing graphic design work, and editing videos.
Tryphena Adams
PhD Student (2022 – present)
MPhil. Applied Parasitology, University of Ghana
BSc. Animal Biology and Conservation Science, University of Ghana
adamt22 [at] wfu.edu
Tryphena’s work focuses on the gut biology, particularly the gut microbiome and gut barrier integrity following a malaria infection and its influence on disease severity.
Outside of the lab, she enjoys a lot of indoor activities: mostly spending time with family, listening to music and podcasts, volunteering, trying out recipes and traveling.
UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS
Estefania Narvaez
B.S. in HES, Minors in Biology and Chemistry, WFU (’23)
narveg19 [at] wfu.edu
Presidential Wake Forest Fellow for the Office of the CEO at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist (2023 fall)
Estefania has been researching the parasite stage morphology and parasitemia counting protocols of Plasmodium falciparum.
She is interested in the field of Pediatrics and Neonatology, with hopes of implementing clinical research with a supporting team.
Sung Ku Kang
B.S. in Biology, WFU (’23)
kangs216 [at] wfu.edu
PharmD Student in USC School of Pharmacy (2023 fall)
Sung Ku has been working with Dinah to perform real time PCR to determine the concentration of Plasmodium DNA.
In his free time, Sung Ku enjoys outdoor and Indoor Rock Climbing.
Joy Oguama
B.S. in Biology, Minor in Chemistry, WFU (’23)
oguanj19 [at] wfu.edu
Joy is on the pre-med track and plan on going to medical school in the near future.
In her free time, she loves to cook, jump rope, and spend time with her friends and family.
Alex Latuda
B.S. in Biology, Minor in Statistics, WFU (’24)
latuac20 [at] wfu.edu
Alex is part of the computational analysis team.
Outside of research and classes, Alex is a biology and organic chemistry tutor, and she is the president of the American Sign Language Club.
Matt Walker
B.S. in Biology, Minors in Spanish and Chemistry, WFU (’24)
walkmj20 [at] wfu.edu
Matt has been helping Dinah with her research and plan to attend medical school after graduation.
In his free time, Matt is an avid runner. He volunteers as a Spanish-English medical interpreter and enjoys rock climbing.
