Ecology, evolution and the microbiome: From mechanisms to translation
Registration closes 11:59PM March 24, 2023
(to cancel your registration please email weaverd@umich.edu)
All events are FREE and open to the public but please register so we can provide appropriate quantities of food. Thank you!
To prevent the spread of COVID-19 masks are encouraged
ResponsiBLUE status will be checked upon arrival
FRIDAY
9:00 AM - Sign In and light refreshments
Please pick up your nametag when you arrive and then enjoy light refreshments
9:30 AM - Opening Remarks
Betsy Foxman, PhD (Hunein F. and Hilda Maassab Endowed Professor of Epidemiology and Director of the Center for Molecular and Clinical Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases (MAC-EPID), Co-Director of the Integrated Training program in Microbial Systems (ITiMS))
9:45 AM - "The ecology of pathogens and protectives in the plant rhizosphere"
(Postdoctoral Fellow, University of British Columbia)
Introduced by Ande Garretto
I have designed a novel high-throughput Arabidopsis plant growth system. Using this platform, I screened 100 wild A. thaliana rhizosphere isolates for beneficial or adverse effects on the host. Although wild isolates were collected from healthy plant hosts, I found two highly effective "pathogens" that kill plants in sterile conditions. My work explores why this pathogen does not kill in the wild; whether there exists any sympatric pathogen-protective isolate strains; and how the ecological niche differs between closely related strains of pathogenic and non-pathogenic rhizosphere bacteria.
10:45 AM - Break with snacks
11:15 AM - "Connecting patterns to processes in microbiomes"
(Center for the Physics of Evolving Systems, Department of Ecology and Evolution, The University of Chicago)
Introduced by James Tan
The central focus of our group is understanding how community structure determines the emergent functional properties of microbiomes. Our ultimate goal is to learn from natural consortia the rules for designing, predicting, and controlling the behavior of these complex systems in contexts from soils to hosts and bioreactors.
12:15 PM - Luncheon
We try to be inclusive with our complimentary lunch but if you have dietary restrictions, please plan to bring your own food.
Our vegetarian lunch buffet is catered by Michigan Catering.
1:30 PM - "(Re)defining the roles of viruses in microbiomes"
(Assistant Professor of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison)
Introduced by Alex Song
Dr. Anantharaman’s interdisciplinary research program uses a combination of computational, laboratory, and field-based experiments to understand the microbial and viral processes that underpin ecology and evolution in the environment, and in human health. With increasing recognition that viruses and phage are integral components of all microbiomes, his research group are developing and applying state-of-the-art computational approaches and model systems to drive the study of viral ecology and interactions in nature.
We are proud that since our beginning in 2003, MAC-EPID symposia have been free and open to all!
Made possible by our student volunteers and our sponsors:
Integrated Training in Microbial Systems (ITiMS), Gudakunst Lectureship, MAC-EPID, Dept of Epidemiology, and Public Health.
MAC-EPID symposia are also supported through donations from people like you.
Thank you!
As part of our commitment to public health and safety we use ecologically friendly products at our events when possible. Learn More