PhD students make progress on P2f Infectious diseases project
Above: Zain Ul Abedien
Above: Aleksandra ‘Ola’ Stanczak
Two PhD students at UTS are working on Dairy UP’s P2f Infectious diseases project, under the supervision of Dr Barbara Brito Rodriguez at EMAI and others at UTS.
Zain Ul Abedien and Aleksandra ‘Ola’ Stanczak are both working in the field of microbial genomics – discovering the genetic makeup of microbes that cause diseases such as scours and pneumonia in dairy calves.
Zain Ul Abedien has Bachelor and Masters qualifications in Microbiology and has previously worked as an application specialist in the molecular division of a medical company in UAE.
This role involved implementing molecular diagnostic technologies and providing technical support, which has equipped him with practical skills directly applicable to his current research. Outside of work, Zain enjoys sightseeing, discovering new things, playing cricket, and traveling.
Aleksandra ‘Ola’ Stanczak completed a Masters in Medical Biotechnology and has worked in the medical device industry, where she was responsible for developing biofilm formation models in surrogate medical devices and method validation for FDA submissions. She also worked on a university research with stem cells, fluorescence microscopy, 3D-bioprinting and CRISPR/Cas9 technology.
As a PhD student she is acquiring new skills in bioinformatics and investigating antimicrobial resistance evolution and spread.
When she is not at work she is most likely to be found outdoors as a rock-climbing instructor, scuba diving and paragliding.
About Dairy UP
Dairy UP is a collaborative research, development and extension program for the NSW dairy industry. It aims to unlock the potential of pastures, cows, water and milk to increase productivity and profitability, and de-risk the industry and develop new markets.