Loree C. Heller received her BS in Microbiology (Oregon State University) and worked as a medical microbiologist and immunologist in New York and Florida. During this time, she obtained a MS in Medical Microbiology and Immunology (Long Island University).
She returned to school and obtained a PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (University of South Florida Medical School). In her project, she determined that Nobel Prize winner Randy Schekman's sec59 mutant encoded dolichol kinase, an enzyme necessary for the N-glycosylation of proteins.
Her subsequent career interests have been:
Research, design, and validation of molecular diagnostics tests for detection of viral, bacterial, and fungal pathogens in clinical samples
Therapeutic gene delivery via in vivo electroporation
Antibiotic alternatives for the treatment of drug-resistant bacteria