معرفی
Paula Watnick is a Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and Senior Physician in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Boston Children's Hospital. She holds dual MD and PhD degrees, with academic training from California Institute of Technology (PhD) and Yale School of Medicine (MD), followed by clinical training at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Massachusetts General Hospital.
- Education: Caltech (PhD, Biophysical Chemistry), Yale (MD), Beth Israel Deaconess (Internship/Residency), MGH (Fellowship)
Research Focus: Her lab investigates host-microbe interactions using Drosophila and human enteroid models, with emphasis on:
- Bacterial biofilm regulation via metabolite-sensitive transcription factors
- Microbiota-derived acetate's role in intestinal immunity and metabolism via Tip60 histone acetylation
- Quorum sensing mechanisms in Vibrio cholerae and host immune modulation
- Sex steroid-microbiome-immune system interplay
- Development of bioengineered intestinal tissue models
Recent Article Trends (15 most recent) highlight interdisciplinary work spanning microbial metabolism (e.g., methionine sulfoxide consumption), biofilm dynamics, gut immunology (e.g., SCFA effects on inflammation), and translational microbiome research (e.g., testosterone's impact on microbiota). Over 25 years, her work has consistently addressed Vibrio cholerae pathogenesis while expanding into microbiome-endocrine-immune networks.
- Scientific Awards: Fellow of IDSA, AAM, and AAAS
Laboratory explores bacterial transcriptional regulation, develops vaccine platforms using Vibrio biofilms, and investigates microbial control of intestinal homeostasis through innate immune signaling. Current projects include conditional membrane association mechanisms and cross-kingdom signaling between microbiota and host cells.
