Jessica A. Scoffield

Jessica A. Scoffield is an American microbiologist and an assistant professor in the Department of Microbiology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine. Scoffield studies the mechanisms by which oral commensal bacteria interfere with pathogenic bacterial growth in order to inform the development of active therapeutic tools to prevent drug resistant pathogen infection. In 2019, Scoffield became the inaugural recipient of the American Association for Dental Research Procter and Gamble Underrepresented Faculty Research Fellowship.

Early life and education Scoffield grew up in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She pursued her undergraduate degree at Tuskegee University in 1998, which is when she discovered her passion for biomedical research. Following her undergraduate degree, Scoffield stayed at Tuskegee University to complete her Master of Science in biology. She explored the use of Agrobacterium-mediated gene transfer efficiency in sweet potato cultivars, in an effort to improve sweet potato production in Alabama. She presented this emerging technology at the In Vitro Cellular and Developmental Biology Symposium. She completed her Master's training in 2004. P. aeruginosa infections are one of the leading causes of chronic pulmonary infections in people with cystic fibrosis, often resulting in mortality. Her work helped to explore which environmental factors and adaptations lead to persistent and severe infection in CF patients. She explored how commensal bacteria in the mouth help to suppress P. aeruginosa infection.

In 2018, Scoffield was appointed to assistant professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in the Department of Microbiology. In 2019, she became the inaugural recipient of the AADR Procter and Gamble Under-represented Faculty Research Fellowship.

Scoffield is also the principal investigator of the Scoffield Lab. Her lab explores the role of commensal bacteria in maintaining homeostasis. The lab focuses on both oral and pulmonary commensal bacteria and how these bacteria are able to control and suppress pathogenic bacteria in these niches.

Awards and honors 2019 inaugural recipient of the American Association for Dental Research Procter and Gamble Underrepresented Faculty Research Fellowship 2017 postdoctoral paper featured in Nature Reviews Microbiology 2017 Most-esteemed Postdoc Award University of Alabama at Birmingham 2016 NIH K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award

Select publications Jones LB, Kumar S, Bell CR, et al. Effects of Pseudomonas aeruginosa on Microglial-Derived Extracellular Vesicle Biogenesis and Composition. Pathogens. 2019;8(4):297. Published 2019 Dec 14. doi:10.3390/pathogens8040297 Scoffield JA, Duan D, Zhu F, Wu H. A commensal streptococcus hijacks a Pseudomonas aeruginosa exopolysaccharide to promote biofilm formation. PLOS Pathogens. 2017;13(4):e1006300. Published 2017 Apr 27. doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.1006300 Scoffield JA, Wu H. Nitrite reductase is critical for Pseudomonas aeruginosa survival during co-infection with the oral commensal Streptococcus parasanguinis. Microbiology. 2016;162(2):376-383. doi:10.1099/mic.0.000226 Scoffield JA, Wu H. Oral streptococci and nitrite-mediated interference of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Infection and Immunity. 2015;83(1):101-107. doi:10.1128/IAI.02396-14 Hagins JM, Scoffield JA, Suh SJ, Silo-Suh L. Influence of RpoN on isocitrate lyase activity in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Microbiology. 2010;156(Pt 4):1201-1210. doi:10.1099/mic.0.033381-0 Egnin, M., H. Gao, D. Mortley, J. Scoffield, S. Jack, and B. Bay. 2007. Gene expression profiling and the physiological role of t-Zeatin Riboside (ZR) in sweetpotato storage root initiation and enlargement. Horticultural Science. 42:976. Scoffield, Jessica, M. Egnin, B, Bey, M. Quain, C.S. Prakash and D. Mortley. (2006). Development of an Efficient Agrobacterium-Mediated Gene Transfer System for Multiple Sweetpotato Cultivars. In Vitro Cellular & Developmental Biology. 42 (4):36A.