In my research I study how interactions between animals and microbes work and evolve, how they influence each other’s health and the conditions that lead to disease. I do this by using the nematode model Caenorhabditis elegans and its naturally associated bacteria, as well as bacterial pathogens that cause infection. To understand host-microbe interactions I combine multiomics (transcriptomics, proteomics and targeted metabolomics) with genetic (mutants, RNAi) and phenotypic (microscopy, survival, bacterial load, fitness) analyses. I am currently working on the research grant (BBSRC: BB/S017127/1) awarded to Dr. Alex Benedetto to map the genetic network that governs worm gut-bacteria interactions.