John R. Kirby

John R. Kirby is the Chair of the Department of Microbiology & Immunology and holds the Walter Schroeder Professorship at the Medical College of Wisconsin. He also serves as Associate Director for Microbiome research at both the Mellowes Center for Genomic Sciences and Precision Medicine and the Center for Microbiome Research. His research focuses on bacterial signal transduction, microbial communities, predator-prey dynamics, and xenobiotic effects on gut microbiomes.

Dr. Kirby earned his PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (1998). His work integrates computational biology, microbial interaction studies, and translational models to address disease mechanisms linked to microbiome dysbiosis. Notable projects include investigating how antipsychotics and dietary factors disrupt gut microbiota leading to metabolic disorders, and exploring probiotic candidates derived from metagenomic analyses.

His research demonstrates strong translational potential, evidenced by a filed patent (US 2020/0016124 A1) targeting weight management through microbiome modulation, and plans to launch a startup based on this work. His articles consistently bridge basic microbiology with clinical applications, focusing on hypertension, obesity, and microbial predator-prey systems.

Dr. Kirby’s leadership roles include membership on the Finance Committee of the Board of Trustees, reflecting his institutional impact beyond research. The Kirby Lab actively collaborates across disciplines, employing fecal microbiota transplantation, 16S rDNA sequencing, and metagenomic analyses in rodent models.