Microbiome
The microbes that live in and on us direct our immune status, susceptibility to disease, physiological development and metabolism.
M&I scientists seek to understand the still largely unknown and complex interactions between gut bacteria and how these microbes shape our health. A challenge for this area of research is that microbiome composition is different between individuals, changes over time and can be impacted by our diet and the environment we live in. Therefore this work requires deep knowledge of the biochemistry of individual microbes, and how these bacteria respond to each other and their environment.
Despite the complexity of this work, M&I researchers are forging ahead as their research into the gut microbiome has potential for therapeutic discoveries ranging from diagnostic to treatments, drug discovery and cures.
What we do in M&I: A gutsy dive into the microbiome
Areas of Investigation
We work on several areas of microbiome:
- How the gastrointestinal community (gut microbiota) influences susceptibility to enteric pathogens including Clostridium difficile and E. coli as well as the progression of inflammatory bowel diseases and colorectal cancer
- How individual bacterial species harvest carbohydrate nutrition from the host diet in order to persist in the gut environment
- The microbial ecology of mucosal surfaces including the gut, lungs, nasal cavity and vagina and the influence of these microbes in shaping mucosal immunity
- The evolution of antibiotic resistance, and tracking bacterial pathogen outbreaks
In addition to traditional and leading-edge techniques in microbiology, we use DNA sequencing of the microbial community in humans and animals during disease and health to examine critical changes in this community that influence our well-being. These studies are supplemented with detailed transcriptomic, proteomic and metabolomic data that reveal the underlying biochemical processes of these microbes that dictate health status.
Michigan Microbiome Project
Learn more about the Michigan Microbiome Project and the Microbiome Core.
Faculty researching Microbiome
Marcy Balunas, PhD
Associate Professor of Medicinal Chemistry, College of Pharmacy
Robert Pickett Dickson, MD
Professor of Internal Medicine
Professor of Microbiology and Immunology
Associate Fellowship Director, Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine
Medical School
Gary B Huffnagle, PhD
Research Professor
Mary H Weiser Food Allergy Center
Professor of Internal Medicine
Professor of Microbiology and Immunology
Medical School and Professor of Molecular
Cellular and Developmental Biology
College of Literature, Science, and the Arts
Nicole M Koropatkin, PhD
Medical School
Eric C Martens, PhD
Medical School
Patrick Schloss, PhD
Professor of Microbiology and Immunology and Program Director of Microbiology and Immunology AP&A
Medical School
Thomas Schmidt, PhD
Professor of Microbiology and Immunology
Medical School
Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
College of Literature, Science, and the Arts
David H Sherman, PhD
Professor of Medicinal Chemistry, College of Pharmacy
Professor of Microbiology and Immunology, Medical School
Professor of Chemistry, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts
Research Professor, Life Sciences Institute
Evan Snitkin, PhD
Associate Professor of Internal Medicine, Medical School
Vincent Bensan Young, MD/PhD, FIDSA, FAAM
Professor of Internal Medicine and Professor of Microbiology and Immunology
Medical School
