Rita Maria Quintela Tizon

Rita Quintela is a veterinarian and doctoral candidate in the Department of Veterinary Microbiology at the University of Saskatchewan. Originally from Spain, she completed her Veterinary Science degree at the University of Santiago de Compostela and volunteered in several wildlife hospitals and conservation centers before completing her Wildlife Population Health internship at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. She is currently pursuing her doctoral degree under Dr. Arinjay Banerjee’s supervision at the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO). In her project, she is studying and characterizing the uniqueness of bat antiviral responses to uncover mechanisms that can be translated into both wildlife conservation measures as well as human therapeutic advancements and pandemic preparedness. Rita is also a member of the One Health Trainee Committee at the University of Saskatchewan, where she promotes multidisciplinary events and collaborations while prioritizing One Health principles. Outside of the lab, she enjoys birdwatching and playing guitar.