Current Group Members

she/her
blackwell@chem.wisc.edu

University of Wisconsin-Madison
Professor, 2011-present
Associate Professor, 2008-2011
Assistant Professor, 2002-2008

Education

Postdoc, Harvard University, 1999-2002
Ph.D. Chemistry – California Institute of Technology, 1999
B.A. Oberlin College, 1994

Helen grew up on the east side of Cleveland, OH (Shaker Heights) and loves living in the Midwest. Outside of her lab, she likes spending time with her husband and two kids, travelling, reading all sorts of books, cooking, rooting for WI sports, and long walks in the beautiful Madison area.

they/them
clay5@wisc.edu

Joined In: 2023
B.S. in Chemistry — Furman University (2018)
Ph.D. in Chemistry — Stanford University (2023, Advisor: Justin Du Bois)

Clay works on developing small molecule inhibitors of agr quorum sensing in gram positive bacteria. After obtaining a B.S. in chemistry from Furman University in Greenville S.C., Clay completed graduate work in the laboratory of Justin Du Bois at Stanford University studying the total synthesis of bis-guanidinium neurotoxins. Outside of lab, Clay enjoys rock climbing, running, and watching bad science fiction.

he/him
dmcbee@wisc.edu

Joined in: 2026
B.S. in Biochemistry — Youngstown State University (2020)
Ph.D. in Chemistry — The University of Tennessee (2025, Advisor: Joshua A. Baccile)

Dillon works to define how acyl homoserine lactones (AHLs) interact with cellular membranes, metabolites, and proteins to understand how these interactions shape membrane remodeling and quorum sensing signaling in P. aeruginosa. Dillon completed his graduate work in the laboratory of Joshua Baccile, where he developed cell-permeable analogs of isopentenyl and dimethylallyl pyrophosphate (IPP and DMAPP, respectively) to interrogate isoprenoid metabolism in human cancer cell lines and Bacillus subtilis. Beyond chemistry, Dillon enjoys sparring in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and mountain biking.

he/him
vulpis@wisc.edu

Joined In: 2021
B. S. in Chemistry – University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2021

Troy works on discovering and developing new chemical tools to interfere with quorum sensing in Gram-positive species, with a particular interest in mixed microbial communities containing Staphylococcus species. Outside of lab, he enjoys playing recreational basketball and baseball and exploring new restaurants around Madison.

she/her
stoutland@wisc.edu

Joined In: 2021
B.A. in Chemistry and Studio Art – Carleton College, 2021

Irene works on understanding the mechanisms and structure of LuxR-type receptors in Gram negative bacteria. She originally hails from MN and enjoys gardening, art projects, and exploring natural areas around Madison.

she/her
icannell@wisc.edu

Joined In: 2022
B. A. in Chemistry — Carleton College, 2022

Isabel grew up in San José, CA, and moved to MN to attend Carleton College, where she majored in chemistry and worked on organocatalysis mechanism research with Prof. Gretchen Hofmeister. She also spent a summer at Virginia Tech with Prof. Emily Mevers working on natural product discovery. In the Blackwell lab, her research focuses on synthesizing AHL-like probes to understand the structure-activity relationship between AHLs and quorum sensing agonism and antagonism in LuxR-type receptors. Outside of lab, she enjoys spending time being active outdoors, playing board games and tabletop roleplaying games, and playing the piano.

she/her
anelson55 at wisc.edu

Joined In: 2022
B.S. in Chemistry — Morningside University, 2021
MHS in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology — Johns Hopkins University

she/her
mnmcguire@wisc.edu

Joined In: 2023
B.S. in Chemistry and Cellular & Molecular Biology — Belhaven University, 2023

Madison is originally from Arkansas and she attended Belhaven University in Jackson, Mississippi, where she double majored in Chemistry and in Cellular and Molecular Biology. As an undergraduate, she worked with Professor Reid Bishop to study the thermodynamics of Warfarin binding to human serum albumin. She also participated in an REU at the University of Mississippi synthesizing near-infrared fluorophores for biological imaging. Now, Madison synthesizes novel Gram-negative quorum sensing modulators and studies their activities. When she’s not in lab, Madison loves spending time with friends, reading, and playing sports.

she/her
nbeebe@wisc.edu

Joined In: 2024
B. A. in Biochemistry/Molecular Biology — Hamilton College, 2024

Natalie grew up in Glenmoore, PA and attended undergrad at Hamilton College in Clinton, NY. While at Hamilton, Natalie majored in Biochemistry and worked in Dr. Ryan Martinie’s lab studying the biosynthesis of a natural product, Pantocin A. Now in the Blackwell lab, she works on developing novel heterologous systems in Bacillus subtilis to study agr-type quorum sensing in a variety of Gram-positive pathogens. Outside of lab, she enjoys skiing, softball, line dancing and movie nights with friends.

he/him
gbarksdale@wisc.edu

Joined In: 2025
B.S. in Biochemistry – University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Garrett grew up in Waterloo, IL, and attended the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign where he majored in Biochemistry. At Illinois, Garrett worked in the lab of Dr. Wilfred van der Donk to investigate the kinetics of enolate stabilization by class II lanthipeptide biosynthetic enzymes. Now in the Blackwell lab, he works on characterizing the activities and mechanisms of agr-type quorum sensing inhibitors in various species of Gram-positive bacteria. Outside of lab, he enjoys trying new coffee shops, restaurants, and biking around Madison.

she/her
canogiraldo@wisc.edu

Joined In: 2025
B.S. in Biochemistry – Beloit College

Kamila grew up in Medellín, Colombia, and the suburbs of Chicago. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry from Beloit College. She is currently working on the Gram-negative side of the lab where her research focuses on synthesizing novel LasR modulators. Outside of the lab Kamila likes to read, draw and weightlift.

she/her
astrohm@wisc.edu

Joined in: 2025
B.S. in Biochemistry – Stony Brook University, 2025

Amanda is from Queens, NY and went to Stony Brook University. As an undergraduate, she worked in Prof. Peter Tonge’s lab studying the time-dependent inhibition of leucyl-tRNA synthetase. In the Blackwell lab, her research focus is on understanding the mechanisms of activation and inhibition of LuxR-type receptors in Gram-negative bacteria. Some of her hobbies include visiting museums, making crafts, and doing crosswords.

Joined in: 2025

Joined in: 2025

Joined in: 2026

Joined in: 2026