Daniel McDermott is an Associate Professor of Biology. He earned his B.S. in Human Biology from Chadron State College and his Ph.D. in Immunology from the University of Iowa. Before joining the SAU faculty in 2018, Dr. McDermott served as an adjunct faculty member at Metropolitan State University–Denver for three years. His graduate research focused on how T cells are activated following viral infections and on tracking virus-specific T cells during the course of infection. As a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Colorado–Denver, he studied immune responses to the gut-associated bacterium Listeria monocytogenes. Dr. McDermott’s current research examines how microbial signals influence the maturation of macrophages during efferocytosis. This work includes real-time analysis of phagosome maturation in macrophages using fluorescent microscopy and flow cytometry with carboxylated beads. In addition, he is collaborating with colleagues at SAU and ASU to characterize blood snake leukocytes. At SAU, Dr. McDermott teaches Microbiology, Principles of Biology II, Immunology, Epidemiology, and Pre-Health Colloquium. He also serves as one of the Biology Pre-Health advisors and is chair of the Pre-Health Advisory Committee.