At Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s Hospital, I strive to understand the rules governing host-microbe interactions and early immune development. I have secured funding, including an NSF postdoctoral fellowship, an NIH Loan Repayment Award in Pediatrics, an R03 Maternal and Infant Environmental Health Riskscape (MIEHR) Pilot Award, and a $100,000 Career Development Award from the American Society for Gene & Cell Therapy (ASGCT). With this funding, we have pioneered spatial transcriptomics in human and mouse placenta tissue, identifying immune microenvironments in congenital ZIKV mouse models and placentae from human COVID-19 gravidae. We apply this approach to understand how environmental exposures, such as microplastic accumulation in the placenta, correlate with health disparities and developmental immunotoxicology. Additionally, we have conducted groundbreaking single-cell RNA-sequencing (scRNA-seq) studies on amniotic fluid and fetal cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) cells collected during laparoscopic fetoscopic repair of spina bifida. This research revealed clonal expansion and activation of fetal T cells as early as the second trimester in utero. Furthermore, we generated the first scRNA-seq data from pediatric RSV + SARS-CoV-2 co-infected subjects, uncovering synergistic and antagonistic innate immune responses. The combination of my training in multiomics, viral pathogenesis, and environmental exposures lend to a promising niche that aligns with the directives of the NICHD, NIAID, NIEHS, and NIMHD. Continued mentorship in maternal-fetal immunology and microbiome research will further enhance my capabilities. I am committed to leveraging Baylor's intellectual resources and Texas Children’s Hospital's facilities to explore genetic, environmental, and microbial molecular mechanisms driving perinatal and pediatric disease states.