Thesis Defense - Natalie Wu-Woods, BE

"Advancing Microbiome and Virome Analysis in Challenging Biological Specimens"

Abstract: This thesis presents the development and application of experimental approaches for characterizing host-associated microbial communities in specimens limited by high host background, low microbial biomass, and inefficient viral recovery. I developed methods for microbial enrichment, ultra-low-input sequencing, and viral enrichment to enable more sensitive and genome-resolved analysis of bacteria and viruses from challenging biological samples. These approaches improved characterization of mucosa-associated microbiomes, enabled viral genome recovery from extremely low nucleic acid inputs, and supported integrated bacterial and viral analyses. I subsequently applied these methods to necrotizing enterocolitis, identifying disease-associated microbial features in matched intestinal tissue and luminal aspirate specimens. 

Zoom link: https://caltech.zoom.us/j/86539179801