New member of Life Science team moves from the microscope to lecture theatre

Our Life Science team’s newest member of staff has welcomed the chance to enhance her teaching skills alongside her research into potentially life-threatening bacteria.

Dr. Alexandra Woodacre, Lecturer in Molecular Bioscience, qualified at the Universities of Leeds and Leicester and joins us from the University of Leicester where she held a number of research positions.  Her research work here will focus on two highly infectious bacteria: Campylobacter jejuni and Streptococcus pneumoniae.

These bacteria are responsible for medical conditions in humans that include, respectively, gastroenteritis and sepsis. Potentially, they can have fatal consequences.

Alexandra’s research will see her looking at how these bacteria respond to changes in the environment and how this affects their ability to grow and cause disease in humans.

But it’s lecturing students on our Human Bioscience and Biology courses which will provide her with an extra dimension to complement her time in the laboratory.

Commenting on her decision to join the University of Northampton, Dr Woodacre said: “I’ve worked as a scientist on a number of high profile research projects for over 10 years now and am thoroughly looking forward to continuing this at Northampton.

“But it’s the other side of a University academic’s life that increasingly interests me, after getting a little taste for this in my previous role. I’m looking forward to working closely with students and helping them enjoy science as much as I do.”

Read here for more information about Dr Woodacre and her research.

Find out more about our Biology course.

For more about our Human Bioscience course.