School of Medicine
Showing 11-20 of 40 Results
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Dylan Dodd
Assistant Professor of Pathology and of Microbiology and Immunology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsHarnessing the gut microbiome to treat human disease.
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Elizabeth Egan
Associate Professor of Pediatrics (Infectious Diseases) and of Microbiology and Immunology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMalaria is a parasitic disease transmitted by mosquitos that is a leading cause of childhood mortality globally. Public health efforts to control malaria have historically been hampered by the rapid development of drug resistance. The goal of our research is to understand the molecular determinants of critical host-pathogen interactions in malaria, with a focus on the erythrocyte host cell. Our long-term goal is to develop novel approaches to prevent or treat malaria and improve child health.
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Shirit Einav
Professor of Medicine (Infectious Diseases) and of Microbiology and Immunology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsOur basic research program focuses on understanding the roles of virus-host interactions in viral infection and disease pathogenesis via molecular and systems virology single cell approaches. This program is combined with translational efforts to apply this knowledge for the development of broad-spectrum host-centered antiviral approaches to combat emerging viral infections, including dengue, coronaviruses, encephalitic alphaviruses, and Ebola, and means to predict progression to severe disease.
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Stephen J. Galli, MD
Mary Hewitt Loveless, MD, Professor in the School of Medicine and Professor of Pathology and of Microbiology and Immunology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe goals of Dr. Galli's laboratory are to understand the regulation of mast cell and basophil development and function, and to develop and use genetic approaches to elucidate the roles of these cells in health and disease. We study both the roles of mast cells, basophils, and IgE in normal physiology and host defense, e.g., in responses to parasites and in enhancing resistance to venoms, and also their roles in pathology, e.g., anaphylaxis, food allergy, and asthma, both in mice and humans.
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Leonor García-Bayona
Assistant Professor of Microbiology and Immunology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe human microbiome is evolving rapidly (i.e. over our lifetimes) following changes in modern lifestyles, especially in industrialized countries. The García-Bayona lab seeks to understand how horizontal gene transfer shapes interactions within the human intestinal microbiota and what the implications of this widespread phenomenon are for community properties relevant to human health (for example, the ability of the gut community to recover after antibiotic treatment). There is currently only a superficial understanding of the different cellular roles of most exchanged genes, the mechanisms governing their spread and their effect community dynamics. Our lab works on bridging the existing gap between the current systems-level observational studies and a mechanistic understanding through bacterial genetics and physiology. We take a bottom-up approach (from genes to communities), incorporating genetics, metagenomics, population analyses and experimental evolution in tractable bacterial consortia.
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Matthias Garten
Assistant Professor of Microbiology and Immunology and of Bioengineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsWith a creative, collaborative, biophysical mindset, we aim to understand the ability non-model organisms to interface with environment to a point at which we can exploit the mechanisms finding cures against diseases and use the mechanisms as tools that we can use to engineer the environment. By developing approaches that allow a quantitative understanding and manipulation of molecular transport our research makes non-model organisms accessible to researchers and engineers.
Specifically, we are studying how the malaria parasite takes control over red blood cells. By learning the biophysical principles of transport in between the host and the parasite we can design ways to kill the parasite or exploit it to reengineer red blood cells. The transport we study is broadly encompassing everything from ions to lipids and proteins. We use variations of quantitative microscopy and electrophysiology to gain insight into the unique strategies the parasite evolved to survive. -
Jeffrey S. Glenn, M.D., Ph.D.
Joseph D. Grant Professor and Professor of Microbiology and Immunology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDr. Glenn's primary interest is in molecular virology, with a strong emphasis on translating this knowledge into novel antiviral therapies. Other interests include exploitation of hepatic stem cells, engineered human liver tissues, liver cancer, and new biodefense antiviral strategies.
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Michael R. Howitt
Assistant Professor of Pathology and of Microbiology and Immunology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsOur lab is broadly interested in how intestinal microbes shape our immune system to promote both health and disease. Recently we discovered that a type of intestinal epithelial cell, called tuft cells, act as sentinels stationed along the lining of the gut. Tuft cells respond to microbes, including parasites, to initiate type 2 immunity, remodel the epithelium, and alter gut physiology. Surprisingly, these changes to the intestine rely on the same chemosensory pathway found in oral taste cells. Currently, we aim to 1) elucidate the role of specific tuft cell receptors in microbial detection. 2) To understand how protozoa and bacteria within the microbiota impact host immunity. 3) Discover how tuft cells modulate surrounding cells and tissue.
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KC Huang
Professor of Bioengineering and of Microbiology and Immunology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsHow do cells determine their shape and grow?
How do molecules inside cells get to the right place at the right time?
Our group tries to answer these questions using a systems biology approach, in which we integrate interacting networks of protein and lipids with the physical forces determined by the spatial geometry of the cell. We use theoretical and computational techniques to make predictions that we can verify experimentally using synthetic, chemical, or genetic perturbations. -
Peter K. Jackson
Professor of Microbiology and Immunology (Baxter Labs) and of Pathology
On Partial Leave from 02/01/2025 To 01/31/2026Current Research and Scholarly InterestsCell cycle and cyclin control of DNA replication .