Marina Kusumoto

Marina joined the Singanayagam research group as a research technician in July 2024. She holds a BA in Molecular Biology from Pitzer College in Claremont, California.

During her undergraduate studies, Marina had the opportunity to conduct research at the Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit, investigating the epidemiology of rickettsial infections. This experience inspired her to pursue an MRes in Biomedical Research (Microbiome in Health and Disease stream) at Imperial College London, which she completed with distinction. Her MRes projects included the impact of the CF lung environment on P. aeruginosa antimicrobial resistance and the impact of the microbiome and metabolite upon immune responses to the COVID-19 vaccines in IBD and liver disease patients.

Marina's current research interests center on the role of the airway microbiome in innate immunity and its implications for chronic lung diseases.