She compares the lungs of old mice to young mice to determine what “old age” in the lungs translates to biologically. In her most recent study, she studied the ability of the mice to fight off tuberculosis bacteria in the lungs. As expected, the old mice had a more difficult time fending off the infection, but Turner noticed something strange: the immune system of the old mice was spending all of its energy fighting inflammation in the lungs, which was giving TB the chance to prosper.