Research

Microbes in the microbiome and cells in our bodies are engaged in a constant chemical dialogue that shapes human biology in health and disease. Many questions about this dialogue remain unanswered: Which molecules are involved? How are they detected? And how does detection translate to changes in physiology?

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The main goal of our work is to create an understanding of the host-microbiome dialogue from its chemical underpinnings to its physiological consequences, especially in the context of diabetes and inflammatory disorders. To do so, we combine systematic CRISPR technologies and mechanistic approaches from the areas of microbiology, immunology, biochemistry, and chemical biology.

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We focus our efforts on several broad and overlapping areas:

1. Defining how gut microbes impact the pathophysiology of type 2 diabetes and metabolic disorders, with the goal of creating mechanistic links for therapeutic or preventative interventions;

2. Identifying microbiome-derived small molecules that have causal roles in human physiology and defining their mechanisms of action, with the goal of establishing the molecular bases of the host-microbiome dialogue;

3. Defining mechanisms by which immune cells initiate responses to gut microbes, with the goal of learning how the microbiome drives immune education and how microbiome imbalances predispose to autoimmune conditions and inflammatory disorders.