A new review from our group highlights prominent examples of characterizing and engineering chemical interactions found within host-associated microbial communities – with an emphasis on the plant-root microbiota and the intestinal microbiota of animals. Great and exciting work Doug! The full review can be accessed here.
Research Highlight: Gut Microbiome Deprives Mice of Key Nutrient
Our recent research in collaboration with the Rey Lab at the University of Wisconsin-Madison was featured in the Harvard Gazette! Read the full story here.
Gourmet Investigator
An interview with Vayu (our resident chef-scientist) was just published in Nature's career section! Check out the full text here.
HHMI Awards Gilliam Fellowships
The Howard Hughes Medical Institute has selected 39 new Gilliam fellows, and among them is our very own Vayu! Recipients are exceptional doctoral students with the potential to be leaders in their fields, and the desire to advance diversity and inclusion in the sciences. This unique award also includes mentoring development training for advisors. Congratulations Vayu!
Colibactin's Cyclopropane Moiety Derived from SAM
Our recent Nature Chemical Biology paper reports an exciting new use for the versatile cofactor S-adenosylmethionine (SAM)! We have identified an unusual nonribosomal peptide synthetase that utilizes SAM for amide bond formation and subsequent cyclopropanation, revealing a novel biosynthetic route to the functional group that likely mediates colibactin's genotoxicity. Congratulations to Li, Yindi, and Matt; and thank you to our collaborators Matthew Henke and Neil Kelleher!
Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation Announces Fellows
Monica has been named a Damon Runyon Fellow! This prestigious fellowship is awarded to outstanding postdoctoral scientists in order to fund research with the potential to improve cancer prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. Congratulations Monica!
Cylindrocyclophane Biosynthesis Elucidated
Our recent Nature Chemical Biology paper describes a cryptic chlorination and subsequent aromatic ring alkylation involved in cylindrocyclophane biosynthesis. Congratulations to Hitomi and Erica!
A New Strategy for Enzyme Discovery in Microbiomes
Our recent Science paper reports the development of chemically guided functional profiling and the discovery of a new glycyl radical enzyme in human gut microbes that metabolizes a host-derived amino acid. Congratulations to Ben, Yolanda, Spencer, Ana, and Jonathan, and thank you to our wonderful collaborators Yifeng Wei (MIT), Eric Franzosa, and Curtis Huttenhower (Harvard School of Public Health, Broad Institute)!