Rate My Professor Naomi Daniels

Dr. Naomi Daniels is a Research Fellow in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, School of Biomedical Sciences, Division of Health Sciences at the University of Otago. She earned her PhD from the University of Otago, completing her doctoral research at the Malaghan Institute of Medical Research in Wellington, New Zealand. Her PhD thesis, titled "Cytotoxic T cell-mediated immunotherapy of allergic airway inflammation," reflects her early work in immunology. Daniels also holds a Bachelor of Medical Laboratory Science (BMLSc) from the University of Otago. During her PhD studies, she received the University of Otago basic research prize in 2015.

Daniels specializes in tuberculosis and immunology research, focusing on the role of innate immune cells in Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. Her current projects, in collaboration with Dr. Jo Kirman, examine how hypervirulent strains, including the Beijing genotype, evade BCG vaccine-induced protective immunity and suppress trained immunity gene expression in human macrophages. She has secured funding through the Division of Health Sciences Accelerator Grant (2022, $2,000) for investigating evasion of BCG-mediated trained innate immunity by M. tuberculosis. Additional honors include the Career Advancement Award - Postdoc Tier 1 from the Australian Society for Immunology (2022) and the Technique-Sharing Travel Grant from the Society for Mucosal Immunology (2023). Key publications encompass Prendergast, K. A., Daniels, N. J., Petersen, T. R., Hermans, I. F., & Kirman, J. R. (2018). "Langerin+ CD8α+ dendritic cells drive early CD8+ T cell activation and IL-12 production during systemic bacterial infection." Frontiers in Immunology, 9, 953; Daniels, N., et al. (2025). "Mechanisms of immune escape by hypervirulent strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis." Proceedings of the Infectious Diseases & Pandemic Preparedness Summit; and Shajumon, R. R., et al. (2025). "Pattern of BCG vaccine-induced protection in peripheral blood." Proceedings of the Infectious Diseases & Pandemic Preparedness Summit. She has delivered verbal presentations at events including the BMS Postgraduate Symposium (2024) and Queenstown Research Week (2022).