The Small Intestine: an Underexplored Habitat with Implication for Human Health
Duration of contract: 4 years
Planned starting date: January 2024
Place of work: Medical University of Graz
Main supervisor: Christine Moissl-Eichinger (CV | Lab Homepage)
Supervision team: Alexander Loy, Alexander Moschen
This position has been filled.
Project description:
Together with a PhD student and a master student, we will assess the SI microbiome (bacteria and archaea) by: (i) developing a reliable sampling protocol from well-characterized SIBO patients; (ii) establishing a microbiome genome catalog from fresh and biobanked samples, published datasets from the literature, and own microbial isolates; (iii) dissecting ecological networks by combining in-silico metabolic modeling from metagenomes and metabolomics analyses of blood, urine, and stool; (iv) visualizing the microbial biogeography e.g. via fluorescence in-situ hybridization (FISH); (v) testing the pathophysiological/immunological effects of microbial isolates on cell cultures and mouse models, and (vi) placing our results on disturbances and dynamics in the context of other CoE projects on disturbances.
We will create a comprehensive resource for SI microbiome research, which will assist researchers worldwide in answering relevant medical questions. By focusing on SIBO, we will study an under-researched medical phenomenon whose diagnosis is still challenging in clinical practice.