Florence has a diverse background of scientific experience, beginning with her work with Prof. Marc Walters at New York University on gadolinium based MRI contrast agents, as well as iron redox catalysts.  Following her transition to graduate school at University of California, Irvine, Florence worked with Prof. Elizabeth Jarvo, where she studied the catalytic abilities of rhodium, palladium, and nickel based complexes to create new C-C, C-O and C-N bonds.  In particular, she studied the addition of carbon-based nucleophiles to carbonyl-derived substrates, as well as sp3-sp3 carbon-carbon cross-coupling.  Departing from organometallic catalysis, Florence chose to work for Prof. Dorothea Fiedler in the area of chemical biology.  Among her projects, Florence developed a fluorescent reagent capable of detecting proteins and peptides which had been pyrophosphorylated.  This reagent can be applied to in-gel visualization, allowing for a straightforward method of analysis.

Florence is excited to combine all of the fundamental skills she has developed over her training and apply them towards improving chemical tools for the analysis of cellular behaviors.