Staff: Adele Costabile & Michelle Sahai
Description. Research to date from mouse models and clinical trials associate reductions in bifidobacterial populations with various immune-mediated conditions, indicating that strategies based on bifidobacterial and/or immunogenic signals from bifidobacteria may beneficially modulate immune responses to improve clinical outcomes and provide cost-effective and potentially non-toxic therapies. This Project aims to investigate the impact of Bifidobacterium extract on tolerance, gut microbiota composition and blood markers of inflammation in healthy females aged >50 yrs. We will also aim to demonstrate the contribution of host and environmental factors to the variance of the identified gut microbiome features via computational models. The proposed project will combine Dr Costabile’s interest in gut microbiome research with her strong track-record in gut bacteria and nutrition and Dr Sahai’s expertise in HPC and bioinformatic tools that contributing to the predictive modelling in this study. These multiple components (immunological, microbiome and computational) increase the likelihood for a strong impact beyond the immediate research field to the fields of translational research, with potential for scientific innovation and important implications for both applied and basic science.