معرفی
Nicola Harris is a Professor in the Department of Immunology at Monash University's Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, and is affiliated with the Alfred Hospital. She co-leads the Mucosal Immunology Research Group and is an NHMRC Senior Research Fellow. Her research focuses on understanding the immunological, microbiological, and physiological mechanisms of mucosal health and disease in the gastrointestinal tract and airways.
Research Interests: Her work spans Mucosal Immunology, Host-Microbe Interactions, Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), Lung Fibrosis, and Neuro-Immune Crosstalk. She investigates how diet, the microbiome, and metabolites influence immune responses, aiming to develop science-driven nutritional therapies for IBD and strategies to halt progressive lung fibrosis. Her research also explores the gut-lung axis and the role of type 2 immunity in tissue repair and metabolism.
Recent Research Trends: Analysis of her recent publications reveals a strong focus on the interplay between the microbiome and immunity, particularly how microbial metabolites (e.g., indole-3-propionic acid, short-chain fatty acids) modulate allergic and inflammatory diseases. She utilizes both preclinical models and human tissue studies, with increasing emphasis on neuro-immune interactions in chronic diseases of the gut and lung.
Scientific Awards:
- ERC Starting Grant (2012)
- Leenards Prize (2021)
- Cancer Research Institute Postdoctoral Fellowship
- Human Frontier Science Program Long Term Fellowship
- FRST New Zealand Postdoctoral Fellowship
Grants and Supervision: Professor Harris has led multiple competitive research grants, including an NHMRC Project Grant on Type 2 immunity and metabolism (2018–2023). She is actively accepting PhD and honors students, with current projects focusing on dietary therapies for IBD and immune-neural crosstalk in chronic lung disease.
Laboratory and Team: She co-leads the Mucosal Immunology Research Group at Monash, which investigates the mechanisms of mucosal immunity and disease, integrating immunology, microbiology, and physiology to develop novel therapeutic approaches.
