Kayla J. Rayford, Ph.D.

Kayla Rayford is a skillful biomedical scientist who focused her doctorate studies on microbiology and immunology. While attending Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Kayla worked as a graduate research assistant investigating molecular mechanisms of host cell response contributing to pathogenesis and infection during early Trypanosoma cruzi infection using primary cell lines. During her graduate school career, Kayla coordinated laboratory projects, mentored other students, presented at national and local conferences, co-authored peer-reviewed articles, and instructed multiple courses.

Kayla worked on several other research projects while pursuing her undergraduate degree. She became an Alaska/Oregon Research Training Alliance Fellow at the University of Oregon, a SOAR Fellow at Georgetown University, and a STAR-PREP Research Fellow at the University of Maryland.

In addition, Kayla has extensive experience with molecular biology techniques to investigate infectious diseases and cancer pathogenesis.