Project 5

Microbiome Monitoring and Interventions for Human Health

Microbiome monitoring and precision microbiome modification hold tremendous potential for improving human health. In Project 5, we will focus on disease surveillance for improved public health, and on targeted interventions in inflammatory and metabolic diseases as well as cancer.

By targeted evaluation of wastewater microbiomes, critical information about the extent and location of communicable diseases and the identity and extent of antibiotic resistance genes will be generated. This targeted surveillance serves both as an early warning system and a quantitative measure of the success of public health interventions that can guide the actions of decision-makers almost in real-time.

One of the most promising microbiome-based interventions in human health is fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT), which is used successfully to restore microbiomes and ameliorate diverse disease pathologies. We will leverage our clinical FMT facility and large FMT biospecimen repository to evaluate the value of personalized FMTs.

Finally, we will specifically examine signaling molecules important to the interdomain communication between human host and microbiome to design intervention strategies as a therapeutic strategy for diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease.