Martina L. Sanderson-Smith obtained her Ph.D. in Molecular Microbiology from the University of Wollongong (UOW), Australia. Subsequently, she was awarded an Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship to undertake research at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, Germany. Currently, she is a Senior Lecturer and NHMRC Career Development Fellow at UOW, leading a research team in the Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute. Her research is focused on virulence mechanisms of the human pathogen Streptococcus pyogenes, with specific interests in interactions between S. pyogenes and the host fibrinolytic system and mechanisms of innate immune resistance.