Dr Alonso obtained her PhD degree in Microbiology and Molecular Biology from the University Claude Bernard Lyon I (France). She then continued her post-doctoral training at the Institut Pasteur de Lille (France) where she developed bacterial vaccine delivery systems, followed by another 2 years at Cornell University (NY, USA) where she studied the molecular pathogenesis in tuberculosis. In 2004, she was awarded the Lee Kuan Yew post-doctoral Fellowship and joined the Department of Microbiology at NUS, Singapore. She was recruited as an Assistant Professor in 2007, promoted to Associate Professor with tenure in 2013, and then Full Professor in 2026. For the past 15 years, Dr Alonso’s research team at NUS has studied host-pathogen interactions during viral infections, including Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease (HFMD) and Dengue. She has also pursued her long-time interest in vaccine development against viral diseases. In close collaboration with A/P Mireille Lahoud from Monash University (Australia), Dr Alonso has pursued the development of a promising dendritic cell targeting vaccine platform against influenza, coronaviruses and dengue.