The Johnson Lab
Gut microbiome | Sphingolipids | Infant Nutrition
The Johnson Lab is in the Division of Nutritional Sciences at Cornell University in the beautiful town of Ithaca, NY.
Research Interests
Sphingolipid dependent host-microbe interactions
Sphingolipids are potent bioactive signaling molecules that are produced by both mammals and some of the beneficial microbes that colonize the mammalian gut. Beneficial microbes are known to have an effect on host health but the mechanisms defining these processes are not well understood. Our lab is dedicated to characterizing the effects that microbe-produced lipids have on host signaling pathways involved in lipid metabolism, insulin signaling, and cell proliferation. Together this work should give us a greater understanding on how beneficial microbes contribute to protection against the related diseases of obesity, diabetes, and cancer.
Sphingolipids in human milk and the development of the infant microbiome
Sphingolipids have the potential to affect the growth of beneficial gut microbes and are a significant component of the lipid content in human milk. Our lab is interested in understanding how the sphingolipid content in early infant nutrition is involved in shaping the infant gut microbiome.
Our lab is interested in understanding mechanisms of lipid dependent host-microbe interactions and how these interactions influence human health. We use techniques in high-throughput sequencing, mass spectrometry based lipidomics, and general molecular biology to address these topics.
