Katherine Amato

Katherine Amato is an Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology at Northwestern University. Her research examines host-gut microbe interactions through biological anthropology, focusing on wild primates and human populations. She leads the Amato Lab, which operates under the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, and serves as Associate Editor for Microbiome.

• Education: Dartmouth College (B.A. Biology, 2007); University of Illinois (Ph.D. Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation Biology, 2013)
• Appointments: Northwestern University (2015-present); University of Colorado Boulder (Postdoc)

Research Interests: Dr. Amato investigates how gut microbiota influences host nutrition, health, and evolution. Her work spans:

• Comparative primate microbiome analysis
• Impacts of Western vs. non-Western diets
• Microbial contributions to energy allocation
• Life history theory applications
• Seasonal adaptation mechanisms
• Human-microbe coevolution

Her article trends show microbial responses to dietary shifts, physiological constraints in primate evolution, and microbiome mediation of host fitness. Recent work explores gut-brain axis connections and health inequities.

Scientific Contributions:

• NASA and NSF grants recipient
• Azrieli Global Scholar (CIFAR)
• Karl Rosengren Mentoring Award
• Leakey Foundation and Wenner-Gren support

Advising: Mentors PhD students Melissa Manus, Tabor Whitney, Anthony, and Yan Zeng (visiting). Lab alumni include Dr. Elizabeth Mallott and Dr. Melissa Manus (now postdoc at University of Manitoba).
Lab Environment: The Amato Lab (Evanston, IL) combines fieldwork (Mexico, Philippines, Argentina) with lab analyses, emphasizing microbial ecology, physiological anthropology, and interdisciplinary collaborations with Psychology and Institute for Policy Research.