Amelia Williams
Short Bio
I am a PhD candidate in the Department of Biological Sciences, where I study the evolution and development of immune responses in marine invertebrates. My dissertation research focuses on echinoderm larvae, particularly sea urchins and sea stars, to understand how ancient immune signaling systems, host–microbe interactions, and environmental microbial communities shape early-life immunity. My work includes research on ancestral IL-1 cytokines, larval microbiome assembly and single-cell approaches to characterize immune cell responses. In addition to my research, I serve as a graduate teaching assistant for General Microbiology and Clinical Microbiology. I am also active in undergraduate mentoring, scientific outreach and comparative immunology conferences, where I have presented work on echinoderm immunity and host–microbe interactions.
Education
Biomedical Sciences Auburn University 2022
Professional Experience
2022: Researcher, University of Alabama Birmingham, Birmingham, AL
2021-2022: Undergraduate Researcher, Auburn University, Auburn, AL
Innovation
Francisco Fontenla-Iglesias, Amelia G. Williams, Tse Mao Lin, Sabyasachi Das, Jonathan P. Rast, Max D. Cooper, Katherine M. Buckley and Sebastian D. Fugmann. (In review - 2026) An ancient evolutionary origin for IL-1 cytokines as mediators of immunity. Nature Ecology & Evolution.
Stephanie Hendricks, Amy L. Tan, Amelia G. Williams, Katherine M. Buckley and Marie Strader. (In submission - 2026) Environmental microbial communities and host selection shape larval microbiomes. FEMS Microbiology Ecology.
Engagement
2026
- AURORA Spring into Science, “Spring into the Sea”
2025
- Auburn STEM Summer Bridge Program, “Biological Sciences”
- Summer Science Institute, organizer, “Early and Late Development of Sea Urchins”
- Destination STEM, “Secrets of the Sea”
2024
- Summer Science Institute Module, “Invertebrate Diversity & Development”
- Wild About Coding! SCORE Summer Camp, Ocean Habitats module
2023
- EmpowHER exhibit, “Ocean Organism Odyssey”
- AU Society for Women in Sciences and Mathematics, COSAM before Convocation
- AU OID Tiger Takeoff: A Day in COSAM – Exploring the Life Sciences
- Wild About Coding! SCORE Summer Camp, Ocean Habitats module
- Summer Science Institute Module, “Invertebrate Diversity & Development”
- Auburn University OIED STEM Summer Bridge Program, Microbiology Section
- Science Matters, Ocean Biology module
- Notebook Judge, The SCORE Showdown at Great Wolf Lodge (VRC Signature Event)
