Samuel Buck

Samuel Buck is an Associate Professor (tenure) at the Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine. He holds multiple key roles including faculty membership in the Immunology and Microbiology Graduate Program, Development Disease Models and Therapeutics Program, and Genetics and Genomics Program. His research focuses on understanding how host genetics and microbiomes interact to shape physiology and health.

Education:
- PhD in Molecular Microbiology and Genomics from Washington University in St. Louis (Lab: Jeffrey Gordon)
- Postdoctoral Fellowship in Genetics and Metabolism at Harvard Medical School/Massachusetts General Hospital (Lab: Gary Ruvkun)

Research Interests:
- Host-microbe interaction genetics
- Microbiome programming of development and physiology
- Invertebrate models of dysbiosis/IBD
- Space biology & microbial health impacts

Grants & Funding:
- NIH New Innovator Award: Microbiome programming of host physiology (2022-2025)
- NASA/TIDES: Microbiome effects in space exploration
- NIH NIDDK: High-throughput analysis of IBD genetic risk

Labs & Resources:
- Principal investigator in the Alkek Center for Metagenomics and Microbiome Research
- Developed C. elegans microbiome analysis platform
- Co-created CeMbio resource for microbiome research