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Shelby Bradford, PhD

Shelby Bradford, PhD

Shelby earned her PhD in immunology and microbial pathogenesis from West Virginia University, where she studied neonatal responses to vaccination. She completed an AAAS Mass Media Fellowship at StateImpact Pennsylvania, and her writing has also appeared in Massive Science. She participated in the 2023 flagship ComSciCon and volunteered with science outreach programs and Carnegie Science Center during graduate school. Shelby joined The Scientist as an assistant editor in August 2023. 

Articles by Shelby Bradford, PhD
Illustration of a mosquito ingesting blood with bright green circles representing parasites entering its abdomen with the blood. A depiction of a white blood clot with red blood cells makes up the background.
Targeting Mosquito Spit Could Stop Parasites in Their Tracks
Shelby Bradford, PhD | Jan 1, 2025 | 5 min read
A protein found in the saliva of Anopheles gambiae stopped blood from clotting in the insects’ stomachs and aided parasite transmission.
Photograph of fermenters in a biorefinery in Brazil that produce bioethanol.
Not All Bacteria are Bad in Biofuel Production
Shelby Bradford, PhD | Dec 16, 2024 | 2 min read
Long seen as collective contaminants, some bacterial species actually promote bioethanol production.
Illustration of a blue piece of DNA with a red segment in its middle on a purple background. Blue and red segments that have been cut out surround the larger strand.
Splicing Fungal Genes Help Cells Change Shape
Shelby Bradford, PhD | Dec 16, 2024 | 2 min read
Candida albicans uses alternative splicing to morph into a filamentous form during fevers.
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The Regulation of the lac Operon
Shelby Bradford, PhD | Dec 13, 2024 | 4 min read
Gene expression of lactose-digesting genes is controlled by the lac operon that accounts for varying amounts of lactose or glucose in the cell.
Digitized outline of a person surrounded by binary inputs with a DNA strand running down the center of the image.
Pioneering the Aging Frontier with AI Models
Shelby Bradford, PhD | Dec 13, 2024 | 8 min read
David Furman uses computational power, collaborations, and cosmic inspiration to tease apart the role of the immune system in aging.
3D illustration of RNA polymerase (blue, middle) transcribing a segment of DNA (purple) into an RNA chain (red, extending to top).
The lac Operon: A Lesson in Simple Gene Regulation
Shelby Bradford, PhD | Dec 13, 2024 | 10+ min read
The discovery of an inducible switch in Escherichia coli that controlled lactose metabolism offered the first clues into gene expression.
Illustration of Carlo Quintanilla, a health science policy analyst at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, at his desk creating a report (right monitor) that summarizes the impact of policies based on data about them that he has researched (left monitor).
What Does a Career in Science Policy Entail?
Shelby Bradford, PhD | Dec 9, 2024 | 5 min read
Science policy helps shape research and funding; science policy analysts evaluate these policies to ensure they support scientific progress and innovation.
3D cartoon of a blue and green prokaryote on a teal background. Part of the cell is cutaway to reveal its circular chromosome.
A Hunt for Clues to the Origins of the Eukaryotic Immune System
Shelby Bradford, PhD | Dec 6, 2024 | 4 min read
Homologous defense proteins in archaea and eukaryotes point to these early prokaryotes' role in the immune system of modern complex organisms.
A panel of six screenshots from the computer animated game Microscopya, developed by Beata Science Art.
Playing Games to Learn Cell Biology
Shelby Bradford, PhD | Dec 2, 2024 | 2 min read
Video games get microscopic in an educational science outreach project.
A photograph of a man sleeping on a couch next to a plate with a poultry leg on it.
Why Does Thanksgiving Dinner Make Some People Sleepy?
Shelby Bradford, PhD | Nov 25, 2024 | 4 min read
Urban myths cry turkey, but the science behind why Thanksgiving feasts induce sleep suggests otherwise.
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