Mary O’Riordan, Ph.D. is the Frederick C. Neidhardt Collegiate Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Michigan Medical School.  Dr. O’Riordan earned a Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Washington in Seattle, and her Ph.D. in Immunology from the University of California, San Francisco, where she studied lymphocyte development.  Following postdoctoral research in microbial pathogenesis at UC Berkeley, she continued her academic career as a faculty member at the University of Michigan.  The O’Riordan laboratory focuses on the discovery of molecular mechanisms that control host-pathogen interactions, with an emphasis on how.  Her work has been published in Science, Immunity, Cell Host Microbe, PNAS, mBio and other high impact journals.  Dr. O’Riordan’s research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, and recognized by the Crohn’s and Colitis Career Development Award, the Ellison Medical Foundation New Scholar Award, the ICAAC Young Investigator Award and an American Cancer Society Scholar Award.   At the national level, Dr. O’Riordan has served on study sections at the NIH, American Heart Association and the American Cancer Society.  She also serves on the Editorial Board for Infection & Immunity and as Associate Editor for the journal, PLoS Pathogens and Reviewing Editor for eLife.  Her 6 doctoral and 7 postdoctoral trainees have earned fellowships and awards from the American Heart Association, the American Society for Microbiology, the US Department of Agriculture and the National Institutes of Health.  Dr. O’Riordan was appointed as Associate Dean of Graduate & Postdoctoral Studies at the University of Michigan Medical School in June 2015. Her contributions to the academic teaching mission have been recognized by multiple teaching awards, and she has been a presenter in the ASM Manuscript Writing and Publishing for Scientists webinar series since 2016.