Spotlight: Jennifer Shuman, Ph.D.

Jennifer Shuman, Ph.D. is a postdoctoral fellow in the Tim Cover lab in the department of Medicine and department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology. Jennifer received her B.S. in Genetics and in Microbiology from Clemson University in May 2018, where she worked with Dr. Ingram-Smith on Entamoeba histolytica metabolism. She graduated from the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program at Vanderbilt in the Spring of 2024 and is currently a postdoc in Dr. Tim Cover's lab. Her research interests include how Helicobacter pylori adapts to mixed infections and different environmental conditions. Outside of the lab, Jennifer likes to read, eat, and explore Nashville with her family.

Stephanie Rolsma, M.D., Ph.D.

Stephanie
Rolsma, M.D., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor Pediatric Infectious Disease

Dr. Stephanie Rolsma is an assistant professor in the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt.

Dr. Rolsma has experience in microbiology, vaccine development, and clinical research and her current research focuses on therapeutics and interventions in critically ill patients and clinical trials. Her primary research focuses on evaluating the utility of therapeutic drug monitoring of beta-lactam antibiotics in pediatric and adult patients, including cystic fibrosis patients and patients receiving intensive critical care. She also serves as a co-investigator in studies conducted through the NIH-funded Vanderbilt Vaccine and Treatment Evaluation Unit (VTEU), including Moderna and Janssen Phase 3 SARS-CoV-2 vaccine trials in adults, a Moderna Phase 2/3 SARS-CoV-2 vaccine trial in children, a Moderna Phase 1 SARS-CoV-2 variant vaccine trial in adults, a study of infant immune responses to RSV, and an intranasal influenza vaccine in pediatric patients. As a co-investigator for the CDC-funded Clinical Immunization Safety Assessment Network she works to address safety issues and clinical adverse events following vaccinations.

Dr. Rolsma received her B.S. in Microbiology from Michigan State University. She was awarded a Ph.D. in Microbiology and Molecular Genetics and M.D. from the Medical College of Wisconsin, where she was a part of the Medical Scientist Training Program. She completed a residency in pediatrics and a fellowship in pediatric infectious diseases at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt.

stephanie.l.rolsma@vumc.org

vaccine, vaccine safety, antibiotic pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics, therapeutic drug monitoring