Welcome!

I’m a postdoctoral scholar in the Laboratory of Prof. Ran Blekhman at the University of Chicago, where I study microbial transmission through metagenomic and genomic approaches. I am interested in studying how commensal as well as pathogenic bacteria spread and persist in individuals that are in close social contact. In particular, my current projects are focused on:

• Investigating strain transmission between maternal breast milk and her infant’s gut microbiome. The maternal milk often represents the sole source of nutrition for the baby for the first months of life, and yet very little is known about its microbial composition at the species and strain level. This study aims at studying the maternal milk microbiome in relation to the infant’s gut microbiome, and to better represent maternal milk in public repositoriese. This project is in collaboration with Prof. Cheryl Gale and Prof. Ellen Demerath.

• Investigating microbiome and antimicrobial resistance genes transmission in the hospital context. Hospitals represent a hotspot for the development of antimicrobial resistance and the acquisition of pathobionts during hospitalization can have serious health consequences. This project is in collaboration with the SET Center at the University of Chicago.

In addition, I’m involved in projects studying strain transmission within social groups of wild animals, in particular of wild baboons. This project is part of the Amboseli Baboon Research Project and it is a collaboration with the labs of Prof. Elizabeth Archie and Prof. Jenny Tung.