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The Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Science
Yael Litvak
Dr. Yael Litvak
The interactions Between Pathogens, the Host and the Gut Microbiota
Biological Chemistry
Personal Information
Research Interests
We explore molecular mechanisms that control the balance between bacterial pathogens, the gut microbiota, and the host.
Our overarching goals are:
Our overarching goals are:
- To unravel how bacterial pathogens manipulate host physiology and drive immune responses to change the intestinal environment, overcome the competition of the microbiota, expand, and transmit to the next host.
- To understand how intestinal inflammatory diseases initiate and progress, and how intestinal homeostasis is maintained and regulated.
Our research strategy is to address these fundamental biological questions by taking a triangulated approach:
- Manipulating the pathogen (using bacterial genetics and bacteriology techniques).
- Analyzing host responses (using different genetic mouse models, drugs, dietary interventions, etc.).
- Controlling the microbiota (using germ-free mice, defined microbial communities, and microbial community analysis).
Dissertation Topics
- How do virulence factors promote the expansion of bacterial pathogens in the gut?
- Interaction of bacteriophages (bacterial viruses) with the microbiota and the mammalian host.
- Mechanisms of colonization resistance against pathogens in the intestine.
