Estefanía joined the research group in August 2012 and is currently working on her thesis to obtain a bachelor degree in Biotechnology Engineering from the Instituto Tecnológico de Costa Rica. Her work focuses on the interplay between cell wall modyfing proteins during the infection of tomato fruit by Botrytis cinerea. Also, she has been collaborating with the functional validation of hormonal-related genes to further comprehend the ripening and infection processes in the tomato-Botrytis pathosystem. Before coming to UC Davis, Estefanía worked in the molecular identification of subspecies of the bacteria Brucella spp. and the establishment of bioreactors for anaerobic bacterial growth. In the future, she is interested in attending graduate school to further develop research skills as well as training in technology management and participating in technology transfer projects.