Professor Max Nieuwdorp
Dr Nieuwdorp is currently working as an internist-endocrinologist and Head of the department of Experimental Vascular Medicine at the Academic Medical Centre (AMC) within the University of Amsterdam. He has initiated a translational research group focused on dissecting the causal role of (small) intestinal bacterial strains to reverse insulin resistance, adipose tissue inflammation and cardiovascular disease. Dr Niuewdorp is also Visiting Professor at the University of Gothenburg. He has previously completed a residency in internal medicine and a fellowship at AMC Amsterdam and a postdoctoral fellowship in glycobiology at University College San Diego, USA.
Professor Tim Spector
Tim Spector is a Professor of Genetic Epidemiology and Director of the TwinsUK Registry at Kings College, London. He trained originally in rheumatology and epidemiology. In 1992 he moved into genetic epidemiology and founded the UK Twins Registry, of 13,000 twins, which is the richest collection of genotypic and phenotypic information worldwide. He is past President of the International Society of Twin Studies, directs the European Twin Registry Consortium (Discotwin) and collaborates with over 120 centres worldwide. He has demonstrated the genetic basis of a wide range of common complex traits, many previously thought to be mainly due to ageing and environment. Through genetic association studies (GWAS), his group have found over 500 novel gene loci in over 50 disease areas. He has published over 800 research articles and is ranked as being in the top 1% of the world’s most cited scientists by Thomson-Reuters as well as the most cited scientist at King’s College London. He held a prestigious European Research Council senior investigator award in epigenetics and is a NIHR Senior Investigator and is a Fellow of the UK Academy of Medical Sciences. His current work focuses on omics and the microbiome and directs the crowdfunded British Gut microbiome project. He is a prolific writer with several popular science books and a regular blog, focusing on genetics, epigenetics and most recently microbiome and diet (The Diet Myth). He is in demand as a public speaker and features regularly in the media.
Dr Trevor Lawley
Trevor obtained his PhD from the University of Alberta, Canada, where he studied the mechanisms that pathogenic bacteria use to disseminate antibiotic resistance genes. In 2010, Trevor was appointed as a Career Development Fellow in the Sanger Institute Faculty and was promoted to Group Leader in 2014. He receives funding from the Medical Research Council. Trevor’s research investigates the mechanisms that underlie how micro-organisms on mucosal surfaces (gut, nasopharnyx, uro-gential tract) interact with their host during periods of health and disease. In particular, he seeks to develop novel ways to treat diseases that are associated with unwanted imbalances in the micro-organism communities.
Professor David Berry
David Berry is Associate Professor at the University of Vienna.
His research interests include:
- Function of the intestinal microbiota in health and disease
- Numerical approaches to study microbial communities
- Development of molecular and isotope-labeling methods for studying uncultivated microorganisms in their natural environment
He has 28 publications in peer-reviewed journals, including in leading multidisciplinary and discipline-specific journals such as: Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, Cancer Res, FEMS Microbiol Rev, and ISME J.
David Kyle
Talk to me about… your research
I am the Chairman and CSO of Evolve Biosystems Inc and a 30-year veteran of biotech having co-founded a range of successful biotech companies in the fields of nutrition and health. These include Martek Biosciences that focuses on DHA and ARA nutrition for infants, which was acquired by DSM in 2011 for $1.1 Billion and Evolve BioSystems the leader in the field of the infant microbiome. I am trained as a biochemist and have spent most of my career working with mothers and babies, focusing specifically on infant nutrition.
Talk to me about…something people may not know about you
I am the named inventor on over 250 patents and was inducted into the US Technology Hall of Fame in 200 for my contributions to Science and Industry. I am passionately engaged in bringing new technologies into commerce to improve the life-long health trajectory of all infants worldwide
Professor Julian Marchesi
Julian Marchesi graduated from Cardiff University with a PhD in biochemistry (1992) and became interested in the role bacteria play in ecosystem function. During his post-doctoral years he developed an interest in the contribution of uncultured microbes to the maintenance and function of ecosystems i.e. molecular microbial ecology. He subsequently secured a Wellcome Trust Fellowship which extended his molecular microbial ecology interest and investigated, with culture independent methods, the diversity and distribution of genes involved in biodegradation of priority pollutants in pristine environments. After a short time investigating the deep biosphere he obtained a Lectureship (2001) in the Department of Microbiology, University College Cork, Ireland where he transferred these “omic” skills into the human gut and started to investigate the human gut ecosystem in health and disease. After 7 years in UCC, he moved back to Cardiff University in 2008 to a senior lectureship, where he investigates the role of the gut microbiome in maintaining host health and initiating diseases not only of the gut, but throughout the host system. In 2013 he was promoted to Reader and also took a half time Readership in Digestive Health at Imperial College London.
Johan van Hylckama Vlieg
Johan E.T. van Hylckama Vlieg is currently Senior Director Microbiome at Chr. Hansen AS, one of the largest microbe producing companies in the world. He is responsible for the microbiome innovation program and heading the microbiome research and pilot facility. He has 20 years of experience and leadership in gut microbiology, probiotics and food biotechnology in industry and academia. He is (co)author of more than 70 peer-reviewed publications and inventor of 13 patents or patent applications.
Dr James Kinross
Dr. James Kinross is a consultant colorectal surgeon, at St. Mary’s Hospital London. His clinical interests are in minimally invasive and laparoscopic surgery for the treatment of colorectal cancer. He also has an interest in surgical nutrition and modulation of the gut microbiota by pro and prebiotics for improved operative outcomes. He was trained in Northwest London, and he was an NIHR Clinical Lecturer in Surgery and an Ethicon Laparoscopic Fellow in Colorectal Surgery. He was awarded a Royal College of Surgeons of England training fellowship during his PhD and he was funded by the Academy of Medical Sciences as an early stage lecturer. He is a visiting Professor at the Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland. He is currently funded by Bowel and Cancer research and the Imperial BRC.
Dr David Cook
David Cook is the Executive Vice President of R&D and Chief Scientific Officer of Seres Therapeutics, Inc. (“Seres”). He has over 20 years of experience as a scientist and entrepreneur and has held senior operating and management positions in the biotechnology industry throughout his career. Prior to joining Seres, he served as the Chief Operating Officer for the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI), a global R&D organization. Prior to IAVI, Dr. Cook was the founding CEO at Anza Therapeutics, a biotechnology startup that focused on developing a microbial vaccine platform to induce cellular immune responses. Before launching Anza, Dr. Cook held positions of increasing responsibility at the biotechnology corporations Cerus and Eligix, overseeing R&D, program management, manufacturing, and clinical and regulatory affairs. He has led teams in the development and commercialization of several biotech products and has been directly responsible for obtaining marketing authorization from the European Union for four medical products. Dr. Cook is also a co-inventor on more than 25 patents. He earned his undergraduate degree from Harvard College and his Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley.
