(2fi) The inside-out Lab: Engineering Microbial Communities from the inside-out

A promising approach for many environmental and human health crises can be found in our smallest factories: bacteria. Since the discovery of microbes over 300 years ago, we have developed tools to not only understand microbial functions, but to engineer them for specific applications. Synthetic biology has developed tools to engineer inside bacteria by editing genetic material, resulting in control over protein synthesis and gene expression. Biophysics has developed tools to engineer the outside environment that bacterial communities interact with, including bioprinting defined community spatial structure and composition. However, the interplay between microbial behavior at the genetic scale and community scale remains poorly understood; further, there are very few methods to predict these behaviors a priori. My research group will address this gap in knowledge by combining tools from synthetic biology and biophysics to unravel the complex dynamics between microbial genetic expression and community behavior with experimental and theoretical work.

My PhD research on the spatial organization of microbial communities, advised by Prof. Sujit Datta, and my incoming postdoctoral work, advised by Prof. Kevin Solomon and Prof. Mark Blenner, on plastic-degrading microbial consortia provide me the unique scientific foundation to lead the Inside-Out lab: Engineering Microbial Communities from the Inside Out. Specifically, we will utilize the spatial control of bioprinting with the microbial classification tools from synthetic biology to probe (1) enhanced biofilm formation in multispecies communities, (2) division of labor within biofilms, and (3) biofilm-enhanced plastic degradation. With all research areas, we will develop minimal biophysical models to capture the essential physics of these complex systems, underlying our overarching goal of harnessing these communities in our environment and human health.

Teaching Interests

The classroom I envision is one with enthusiasm for the subject matter, active participation and learning among students, and a focus on improved problem-solving skills. During my PhD at Princeton University, I had two opportunities to serve as an assistant instructor for an undergraduate and graduate course; unfortunately, both opportunities occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. To gain more in-person experience, I enrolled in the McGraw Center for Teaching and Learning Certificate Program, which led me to the semester-long course, CTL 501: Scholarly Approaches to Teaching and Learning. Partaking in this course has helped me reimagine what an engineering classroom should look like. My teaching philosophy is founded on utilizing various active-learning activities and emphasizing students’ growth, particularly in problem solving. By rewarding student progress over perfection, I hope to retain more students from minority backgrounds and create a supportive classroom. Implementing active-learning strategies in engineering classrooms will encourage collaborative work, while also challenging students to learn from each other. Finally, my own passion for chemical engineering will help me keep the subject matter exciting and engaging for my students.