Dr. Robinson is a microbial ecologist based in the UK (soon to be Australia). In 2021, he received a PhD from the University of Sheffield. He is passionate about researching microbes, ecosystems, social equity issues and the connections between them, and at the same time, he is keen to develop ways to conserve and restore nature. Invisible Friends is his first book. This book counters the prevailing narrative of microbes as the bane of society, along the way providing much-needed clarity on the overwhelmingly beneficial role they play. Discover how the microbiome is highly relevant to environmental and social equity issues while there’s also discussion about how microbes may influence our decisions; even the way we think about how we think may need to be revisited. Invisible Friends introduces the reader to a vast, pullulating cohort of minute life – friends you never knew you had! Jake has worked on several publications with the MSE Working Group founder Dr Sue Ishaq and even interviewed her for the Microbes and Social Equity chapter in Invisible Friends.

For two weeks, we’ll be bringing back our Theme 3 speakers back to engage in a panel discussion together on the importance of environmental microbiomes and our place in ecosystems, and then will continue talking about soil health. Panel will be hosted by Katherine Daiy, Kieran O’Doherty, Mallory Choudoir, Mustafa Saifuddin, and Hannah Holland-Moritz.

Please note, this session will only be featured live in real-time and will not be recorded.

Dr. Eldin Jašarević, who presented on “The maternal microbiota and offspring development: Towards a translational systems approach in maternal-child health.”

Dr. Merilee Brockway, who presented on “The maternal microbiota and offspring development: Towards a translational systems approach in maternal-child health.”

Dr. Sarah Lebeer, who presented on T’he vaginal microbiome: key for women’s health & healthy newborns’.

Dr. Eldin Jašarević, who presented on “The maternal microbiota and offspring development: Towards a translational systems approach in maternal-child health.”

Dr. Merilee Brockway, who presented on “The maternal microbiota and offspring development: Towards a translational systems approach in maternal-child health.”

Dr. Sarah Lebeer, who presented on T’he vaginal microbiome: key for women’s health & healthy newborns’.

Dr. Sarah Lebeer is a research professor at the Department of Bioscience Engineering of the University of Antwerp, Belgium. She has studied bioscience engineering, with a specialisation in cell and gene biotechnology and food & health and obtained her Master’s degree at KU Leuven (Belgium) in 2004. In 2008, she obtained a PhD degree in Bioscience Engineering with a topic on probiotics and
inflammatory bowel diseases (KU Leuven). After a postdoc on the interaction between lactobacilli, viruses and mucosal immunology, Sarah was offered a tenure track position in applied microbiology
and biotechnology at the Department of Bioscience Engineering of the University of Antwerp in Nov 2011. In 2020, Sarah obtained an ERC StG Grant (Lacto-Be) that enables her to gain in-depth knowledge of the evolutionary history and ecology of lactobacilli. Within this ERC project, Sarah has launched the Isala citizen-science project to gain new insights in the ecology and role of vaginal lactobacilli for women’s health, but also to actively involve women to contribute with ideas on how to improve vaginal health and break some taboos together (https://isala.be/en). This project has won the
communication award from the Young Academy and Royal Academy of Science KVAB in 2021.

This week, we’ll be bringing all of our Theme 2 speakers back to engage in a panel discussion together on the microbiome in early life. Panel will be hosted by Emily Wissel.

Please note, this session will only be featured live in real-time and will not be recorded.

Dr. Sarah Lebeer is a research professor at the Department of Bioscience Engineering of the University of Antwerp, Belgium. She has studied bioscience engineering, with a specialisation in cell and gene biotechnology and food & health and obtained her Master’s degree at KU Leuven (Belgium) in 2004. In 2008, she obtained a PhD degree in Bioscience Engineering with a topic on probiotics and
inflammatory bowel diseases (KU Leuven). After a postdoc on the interaction between lactobacilli, viruses and mucosal immunology, Sarah was offered a tenure track position in applied microbiology
and biotechnology at the Department of Bioscience Engineering of the University of Antwerp in Nov 2011. In 2020, Sarah obtained an ERC StG Grant (Lacto-Be) that enables her to gain in-depth knowledge of the evolutionary history and ecology of lactobacilli. Within this ERC project, Sarah has launched the Isala citizen-science project to gain new insights in the ecology and role of vaginal lactobacilli for women’s health, but also to actively involve women to contribute with ideas on how to improve vaginal health and break some taboos together (https://isala.be/en). This project has won the
communication award from the Young Academy and Royal Academy of Science KVAB in 2021.

This week, we’ll be bringing all of our Theme 2 speakers back to engage in a panel discussion together on the microbiome in early life. Panel will be hosted by Emily Wissel.

Please note, this session will only be featured live in real-time and will not be recorded.

Dr. Merilee Brockway is a PhD prepared nurse and International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) with expertise in maternal-child health, infant feeding, and patient engagement. She completed my PhD in nursing at the University of Calgary, examining maternal breastfeeding self-efficacy and infant feeding outcomes in moderate and late preterm infants. She also completed a three year post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Manitoba in Dr. Meghan Azad’s THRIVE Discovery Lab, exploring clinical applications of donor human milk for preterm infants. As an Assistant Professor at the University of Calgary, her program of research examines the use of human milk as a clinical intervention to mitigate early life perturbations to the infant microbiome.  

This week, we’ll be bringing all of our Theme 2 speakers back to engage in a panel discussion together on the microbiome in early life. Panel will be hosted by Emily Wissel.

Please note, this session will only be featured live in real-time and will not be recorded.

Dr. Merilee Brockway is a PhD prepared nurse and International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) with expertise in maternal-child health, infant feeding, and patient engagement. She completed my PhD in nursing at the University of Calgary, examining maternal breastfeeding self-efficacy and infant feeding outcomes in moderate and late preterm infants. She also completed a three year post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Manitoba in Dr. Meghan Azad’s THRIVE Discovery Lab, exploring clinical applications of donor human milk for preterm infants. As an Assistant Professor at the University of Calgary, her program of research examines the use of human milk as a clinical intervention to mitigate early life perturbations to the infant microbiome.  

This week, we’ll be bringing all of our Theme 2 speakers back to engage in a panel discussion together on the microbiome in early life. Panel will be hosted by Emily Wissel.

Please note, this session will only be featured live in real-time and will not be recorded.

Eldin (he/him) is an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences and Computational and Systems Biology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. He is also Primary Investigator at Magee-Womens Research Institute. Eldin
received a PhD in Neuroscience at the University of Missouri and the Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders studying the combined effects of maternal stress and diet on sex-specific brain development in mice. Eldin completed his postdoctoral training in
the laboratory of Dr. Tracy Bale at the University of Pennsylvania and University of Maryland School of Medicine. His postdoc work showed that lifetime experiences influence the composition and function of maternal microbiome, and vertical transmission of these communities is causally linked to poor health outcomes in offspring. Current research interests include mining the human maternal microbiota for novel functions that contribute to offspring development, and ultimately gaining a better understanding of the ways in which the prenatal
environment shapes the postnatal response to the external microbial world. For this work, Eldin has been selected as a Kavli Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences and is the recipient of a National Research Service Award from NIMH, and a Research Scientist Development Award from NIDDK.

This week, we’ll be bringing all of our Theme 2 speakers back to engage in a panel discussion together on the microbiome in early life. Panel will be hosted by Emily Wissel.

Please note, this session will only be featured live in real-time and will not be recorded.

Eldin (he/him) is an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences and Computational and Systems Biology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. He is also Primary Investigator at Magee-Womens Research Institute. Eldin
received a PhD in Neuroscience at the University of Missouri and the Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders studying the combined effects of maternal stress and diet on sex-specific brain development in mice. Eldin completed his postdoctoral training in
the laboratory of Dr. Tracy Bale at the University of Pennsylvania and University of Maryland School of Medicine. His postdoc work showed that lifetime experiences influence the composition and function of maternal microbiome, and vertical transmission of these communities is causally linked to poor health outcomes in offspring. Current research interests include mining the human maternal microbiota for novel functions that contribute to offspring development, and ultimately gaining a better understanding of the ways in which the prenatal
environment shapes the postnatal response to the external microbial world. For this work, Eldin has been selected as a Kavli Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences and is the recipient of a National Research Service Award from NIMH, and a Research Scientist Development Award from NIDDK.

This week, we’ll be bringing all of our Theme 2 speakers back to engage in a panel discussion together on the microbiome in early life. Panel will be hosted by Emily Wissel.

Please note, this session will only be featured live in real-time and will not be recorded.