Kristen Funk, PhD

@kristenefunk.bsky.social

Neuroimmunologist at University of North Carolina at Charlotte studying post-infectious dysfunction in the aging brain

Very excited to share our preprint posted to BioRxiv from my first PhD student, Britanie Blackhurst! Our results show that CD8+ T cells cause interstrand crosslinking DNA damage in neurons, which may contribute to neurodegenerative diseases. Check it out below!

Graphical abstract depicting viral infection in the brain and CD8+ T cells interacting with neurons. In the neuronal nucleus there is interstrand crosslinking DNA damage, which was detected by comet assay, gene expression, and immunocytochemistry.
bioRxiv Immunology@biorxiv-immuno.bsky.social · 6mo ago

CD8⁺ T cells induce interstrand crosslinking-associated DNA damage in neurons https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.03.14.711737v1

🚨 PhD Programme – Vascular Dementia Research New 4-year PhD funded by BHF & UK DRI on vascular mechanisms in dementia. Training across UCL, Oxford, Leicester & Edinburgh with lab rotations. 📅 Deadline: 14 April 🎓 Start: Sept 2026 Apply: CV + statement + 2 refs → neurophd@ucl.ac.uk Please share!

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Calling all rising juniors & seniors: Interested in biological or biomedical research? Applications for our ’26 Summer Undergraduate Research Experience Program are now open! Nine weeks, hands-on research, & mentorship from some of the nation’s top scientists — learn more: bit.ly/CechFellows

Summer Undergraduate Research Experience | HHMI

The Cech Fellows Program is a paid, nine-week summer research experience empowering the next generation of scientific leaders.

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Assistant Professor position posted for my Department, Biological Sciences at UNC Charlotte! Current research foci: Immunology, Microbiology, Virology; Biomolecular Function; Proteostasis; Genome Integrity; Epigenome Regulation; Cancer; Environmental Risks. jobs.charlotte.edu/postings/65141

Assistant Professor

Applicants should possess a Ph.D. in the biological sciences or related fields.Candidates are expected to document expertise in their specialty by a record of postdoctoral training, peer reviewed publ...

jobs.charlotte.edu

The Anne West lab at Duke is hiring a postdoc to work on nuclear cell biology in neurogenesis. Please help me spread the word! Applications to west@neuro.duke.edu.

We are looking for post-docs interested in studying T cell responses to M. tuberculosis infection…especially basic T cell immunologists who are interested in learning to work with BSL3 pathogens. The NIH intramural program is an amazing place to train!

I have been awarded a pre-tenure teaching release for Fall 2025, and I would love to use the time to visit other faculty! As you prepare your upcoming seminar schedule, if you would like to hear about our work on aging, neuroimmunology, and viral infections, please reach out!