Comparative Genomics of Diplomonads
Some of the microbial eukaryotes are important parasites of humans and animals; however, there are many species that are known to be host-associated, yet their pathogenicity remains unknown. Comparative genomics is a powerful tool for understanding parasitism on a genomic level. Diplomonads are a group of microbial eukaryotes that includes medically and economically important parasites. Additionally, there are several putative secondarily free-living species and host-associated commensalic species. We are performing a taxonomically wide, comparative study of diplomonads, including well-studied parasites, primarily and secondarily free-living species, and commensals. The results will address some of the fundamental questions of biology, including the mechanisms of reversal from free-living to parasitic lifestyle and whether it is possible to predict pathogenicity or host-associated lifestyle based on genomic information.
Diversity of Microbial Eukaryotes in the Gut Microbiome
We study the diversity of microbial eukaryotes in human gut microbiomes using amplicon sequencing by combining several approaches to minimize the presence of host DNA in the results. We will take advantage of a current collaboration with the Institute of Experimental Medicine (IKEM, Prague), giving us access to DNA material from human microbiomes of healthy individuals as well as individuals with a variety of infections and medical conditions. We will also perform DNA sampling from diverse animal hosts.
Microbial Eukaryotes and Their Interactions with the Gut Microbiome
We are using an experimental infection model of a host (mouse or rat) and a microbial eukaryote (Blastocystis) to identify any detectable changes in transcription levels in the metatranscriptome of the microbiome (predominantly the prokaryotic part) as well as changes in transcription in the parasite/commensal and in the host. This will help us to elucidate differences in the interactions between parasites/commensals and their hosts and host microbiomes.