Updated 10/21/19

KAYLEIGH O’KEEFFE
Department of Biology • The University of Pennsylvania • Philadelphia PA 19104
kokeeffe@sas.upenn.edu • 516-205-8000 • krokeeffe.wordpress.com • @KOKeeffe12

EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA at CHAPEL HILL 2019
Ph. D. in Biology
Dissertation: Within-host microbial interactions and plant parasites: from pairwise interactions
to the microbiome (Advisor: Charles Mitchell)

AMHERST COLLEGE 2012

B.A. in Biology, cum laude
Thesis: Allelic Diversity at the S-RNase gene in Lycium carolinianum (Advisor: Jill Miller)

APPOINTMENTS
Postdoctoral Research Associate (Dr. Dustin Brisson) 2019-Present
University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA

Graduate Research Fellow (Dr. Charles Mitchell) 2014-2019

University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC

Research Technician (Dr. Andrew Greenberg) 2012-2014

Jean Mayer Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging, Boston, MA

Summer Field Assistant (Dr. Maria Diuk-Wasser) 2012

Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT

Honors Student Researcher (Dr. Jill Miller) 2011-2012

Amherst College Department of Biology, Amherst, MA

PUBLICATIONS
O’Keeffe, K.R. and Jones, C.D. (2019) Challenges and Solutions for Analyzing Dual RNA-seq Data
for Non-Model Host/Pathogen Systems. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 10:401-414
(http://doi.org/10.1111/2041-210X.13135).
*Summarized in blog post on Methods in Ecology and Evolution blog:
https://methodsblog.com/2019/02/20/dual-rna-seq-limited-genomic-resources/

O’Keeffe, K.R. and Bain, R. (2018) ComSciCon-Triangle: Regional Science Communication

Training for Graduate Students. Journal of Microbiology and Biology Education, 19(1)
(http://doi.org/10.1128/jmbe.v19i1.1420).

Hansen, W.D., Scholl, J.P., Sorensen, A.E., Fisher, K., Klassen, J., Calle, L., Kandlikar, G., Kortessis,
N., Kucera, D., Marias, D., Narango, D.L., O’Keeffe, K.R., Planas, A., Recart, W., Ridolfi, E., and
Shay. M. (2018). How do we ensure the future of our discipline is vibrant? Student reflections on
careers and culture of ecology. Ecosphere, 9(2):e02099 (http://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.2099).
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O’Keeffe, K.R., Carbone, I., Jones, C.D., Mitchell, C.E. (2017). Plastic Potential: how the phenotypes
and adaptations of pathogens are influenced by microbial interactions within plants. Current Opinion
in Plant Biology 38:78-83 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pbi.2017.04.014). (Invited).

Bowman, T.A., O’Keeffe, K.R., D’Aquila, T., Yan, Q.W., Griffin, J.D., Killion, E.A., Mashek, D.G.,
Buhman, K.K., and Greenberg, A.S. (2016). Acyl CoA synthetase 5 (ACSL5) Ablation in Mice
Increases Energy Expenditure and Insulin Sensitivity and Delays Fat Absorption. Molecular
Metabolism, 5(3) (http://doi.org/10.1016/j.molmet.2016.01.001)
INVITED PRESENTATIONS
O’Keeffe, 2019. Within-host microbial interactions and plant parasites: from pairwise interactions to
the microbiome. Biology Seminar Series, Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, PA.

O’Keeffe, 2018. The effect of within-host microbial interactions on disease: from parasite individuals
to populations. UNC Biology Symposium (one of two invited graduate student speakers).

O’Keeffe, K, 2018. The effect of within-host microbial interactions on disease: from parasite
individuals to populations. Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA.

CONTRIBUTED PRESENTATIONS (underlining indicates undergraduate under my mentorship)

O’Keeffe, K., and R. Bain, 2019. ComSciCon-Triangle: Regional Science Communication Training
for Graduate Students. Undergraduate Biology Education Research Gordon Research Conference
(Poster presentation).

O’Keeffe, K., F.W. Halliday, C.D. Jones, I. Carbone, and C.E. Mitchell, 2019. The fungal
microbiome of a grass host under natural infections by diverse parasites. Ecology & Evolution of
Infectious Disease Conference (17th annual), Princeton University (Poster presentation)

O’Keeffe, K., B.T. Wheeler, and C.E. Mitchell, 2018. A defensive symbiont may decrease the spread
of a fungal plant pathogen through a host population but not within hosts. Ecological Society of
America, New Orleans LA (Oral presentation).

O’Keeffe, K., B.T. Wheeler, and C.E. Mitchell, 2018. A defensive symbiont decreases the spread of a
fungal plant pathogen through a host population but not within hosts. Ecology & Evolution of
Infectious Diseases Conference (16th Annual), University of Glasgow (Poster presentation).

O’Keeffe, K. and C.E. Mitchell, 2017. Effects of endophyte symbiosis and pathogen intraspecific
variation on the growth of a fungal plant pathogen. Ecological Society of America, Portland OR
(Poster presentation).

O’Keeffe, K., C.E. Mitchell, C.D. Jones, 2017. Challenges for analyzing dual RNA-seq data for non-
model host/pathogen systems. Ecology & Evolution of Infectious Diseases Conference (14th Annual),
UC Santa Barbara (Poster presentation).
O’Keeffe, K. 2016. Can we use RNA-seq to Investigate Host/Parasite Interactions? UNC Department
of Biology Lunch Bunch Series, Chapel Hill, NC (Oral Presentation).
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O’Keeffe, K., C.E. Mitchell, C.D. Jones 2016. Analyzing Mixed Transcriptomic Samples of Hosts
and Pathogens: A Comparison of Reference-based Mapping Methods. Ecology and Evolution of
Infectious Disease Conference (14 Annual), Cornell University (Poster presentation)
th

AWARDS AND FELLOWSHIPS

Inductee, Frank Porter Graham Graduate Student Honor Society 2019
Finalist, Three-Minute Thesis Competition, UNC-Chapel Hill 2017
Pre-doctoral Graduate Research Fellowship, National Science Foundation 2016-2019
Graduate Fellowship, Triangle Center for Evolutionary Medicine (Spring) 2016
Mrs. Louise Coker Fellowship and Holland Beers Scholarship, UNC-Chapel Hill 2014, 2016
John Woodruff Simpson Fellowship, Amherst College 2015-2018
Honorable Mention, Ford Foundation Predoctoral Fellowship Program 2015
Graduate Merit Assistantship, UNC-Chapel Hill (full fellowship support) 2014-2015
REU Award, Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC) 2010

TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Instructor for Modern Biological Concepts, Meredith College Fall 2018
Introductory non-majors course; 17 students
Guest Lecturer for Global Change Ecology, UNC Chapel-Hill 2016 & 2017
Lecture: “Infectious Disease and Global Change”
Guest Lecturer for Disease Ecology and Evolution, UNC-Chapel Hill 2016
Lectures: “Pathogens in Multi-Species Host Communities”
“Multi-Parasite Systems”
Guest Lecturer for Ecology and Evolution, UNC-Chapel Hill 2015
Lecture: “Population Growth”
Teaching Assistant for Ecology and Evolution, UNC-Chapel Hill 2015
Teaching Assistant for Evolutionary Biology, Amherst College 2011

MENTORING EXPERIENCE
Brandon Wheeler, Independent Study Student, UNC-Chapel Hill 2017-2019
2019-Onward: Plant Conservation Intern, NC Botanical Garden
Anita Simha, Honors Thesis Student, UNC-Chapel Hill 2016-2017
2019-Onward: NSF Graduate Research Fellow, Duke University
Graduated with highest honors
Recipient of R.E. Coker Award for excellence in research in organismal biology and ecology

PEER REVIEW OF MANUSCRIPTS

2015-Present: Peer review of 4 manuscripts (4 total reviews; 2 with Dr. Charles E Mitchell) in the
following journals: AoB Plants, Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, BMC
Genomics, Fungal Biology
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SERVICE & OUTREACH

Scientist Volunteer, Skype-A-Scientist 2017-Present
Graduate Student Advisory Board Member, UNC Center for Faculty Excellence 2017-2018
High School Lesson Plan Designer, Scientific Researcher and Educator Network 2014-2018
Pre-graduate Education Advisor, University Career Services, UNC-Chapel Hill 2016-2017
Vice President, Biology Graduate Student Association, UNC-Chapel Hill 2016-2017
GED Science Tutor, Durham Adult Literacy Center 2015-2016
Webmaster, Biology Graduate Student Association, UNC-Chapel Hill 2014-2016

SCIENCE COMMUNICATION
Organizing Committee Chair, ComSciCon-Triangle 2017 & 2018
Triangle-wide science communication workshop for graduate students, Research Triangle, NC
Organizing Committee, ComSciCon-Triangle 2016
Selected Participant, ComSciCon-National 2016
National science communication workshop for graduate students, Cambridge, MA
Science Writing Intern, Genetics Society of America 2015
Selected Participant, ComSciCon-Triangle 2015

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
Ecological Society of America
American Association of the Advancement of Science

REFERENCES
Dr. Charles E. Mitchell
Dissertation Advisor
(919) 843-7745
mitchell@bio.unc.edu
Dr. Corbin Jones Dr. Ignazio Carbone
(919) 962-4443 (919) 513-4866
cdjones@email.unc.edu ignazio_carbone@ncsu.edu