PhD Student
Curriculum in Genetics and Molecular Biology
Christian Parobek is a MD/PhD candidate in the UNC School of Medicine and the UNC Curriculum of Genetics and Molecular Biology (GMB). He graduated from Duke University in 2010 with a BS in Biology. Christian is currently a student in Dr. Juliano’s lab where he studies P. falciparum and P. vivax population genomics to understand the genetic signatures of drug- and vaccine- resistant malaria parasites. He is receiving guidance from his Thesis Committee, which includes experts in epidemiology (Steven Meshnick), immunology (Kristina De Paris), functional genomics (Praveen Sethupathy), malaria genomics (Jeffrey Bailey), and population genetics (Corbin Jones). While Christian primarily studies malaria genomics and molecular epidemiology, he is also contributing to studies of tickborne illnesses, healthcare-associated bacterial outbreaks, and Pneumocystis genetics. During his PhD, he has had the opportunity to work closely with international collaborators at field sites and molecular laboratories in Thailand and Indonesia. His training is funded by a fellowship from the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases (F30AI109979).
