Dr. Guerrero-Plata received her undergraduate degree from Universidad Autonoma de Tamaulipas in Reynosa, Mexico. She then traveled to Mexico City to pursue her graduate education where she obtained her MSc and PhD from the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico (UNAM). Additional training at CINVESTAV and Imperial College London, U.K. honed her knowledge and research skills in the field of respiratory medicine and viral immunology. Dr. Guerrero-Plata acquired further research training as postdoctoral fellow at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) at Galveston where she also was a McLaughlin Fellow. Dr. Guerrero-Plata was appointed an instructor in the department of Pediatrics upon the completion of her fellowship, and became an assistant professor in the same department after obtaining extramural funding as principal investigator. Dr. Guerrero-Plata joined the Department of Pathobiological Sciences, Louisiana State University in 2009

Dr. Guerrero-Plata’s research interests are in the field of viral immunology focused on innate immunity, dendritic cells and respiratory viruses. Her work includes the study of the immune response to respiratory syncytial virus and human metapneumovirus, the most important cause of lower respiratory tract infections in children, elderly and immunocompromised patients. The long-term goal of her research is to develop new strategies to boost antiviral immunity and long-lasting protection against respiratory viral pathogens that cause significant airway morbidity. Additional studies in her laboratory are directed to determine the mechanisms by which environmental factors alter the frequency and severity of respiratory viral infections