Department of Biology

About Gail Hardy

Research interests

I have always been drawn to science. I am very curious about how things work and why they work the way they do. I enjoy exploring how microbes manipulate and interact with their environment. As a research scientist, I have been able to use my skills to investigate many questions in microbiology. My early research involved understanding the biosynthesis and regulation of bacterial polysaccharide capsule and bacterial protein adhesins. I blended knowledge from those studies to probe how bacteria anchor polysaccharide adhesins to their cell surface. I am currently trying to understand how proteins organize and protect the chromosome during growth and development. Outside the lab, I enjoy the outdoors, working-out, reading and playing piano.