Emma Allen-Vercoe

Emma Allen-Vercoe is a British-Canadian Molecular biologist who is a Professor and Canada Research Chair at the University of Guelph. Her research considers the gut microbiome and microbial therapeutics to treat Escherichia coli.

Emma Allen-Vercoe
Alma materVeterinary Laboratories Agency
Health Protection Agency
Scientific career
InstitutionsUniversity of Calgary
University of Guelph
ThesisThe role of fimbriae and flagella in the pathogenesis of Salmonella enteritidis phage-type 4 infections. (1999)

Early life and education

Allen-Vercoe was an undergraduate student at the Veterinary Laboratories Agency. She moved to the Health Protection Agency for her graduate studies, where she worked under the supervision of Martin Woodward. Here she studied Salmonella enterica and the processes by which enteric pathogens cause disease. She was a postdoctoral researcher at the Health Protection Agency. During her doctorate, she studied Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Campylobacter jejuni.[1]

Research and career

In 2001, Allen-Vercoe moved to Canada, where she joined the University of Calgary. Allen-Vercoe worked on Escherichia coli. In 2004, she was awarded a Canadian Association of Gastroenterology Fellow-to-Faculty Transition Award.[1][2] She moved to the University of Guelph in 2007.[1] Her research considers the gut microbiome.[3][4] She worked with the biotechnology company Infors to create a bioreactor that can maintain biological samples in specific anaerobic atmospheres whilst her research team studying the constituents microbes.[4]

Allen-Vercoe isolates bacteria from human stool samples, places them in the so-called robo-gut and monitors their behaviour in precise conditions.[5][6] For example, the robo-gut (or mechanical colon) can recreate environments that allow for particular genes and bacteria to thrive, which allows Allen-Vercoe to study the microbiobes associated with certain medical conditions.[4][7] Allen-Vercoe has identified the general bacteria that exist in all microbiomes, as well as monitoring the microbiome's metabolomics.[8] She has worked on microbial therapeutics to treat various diseases, including Clostridioides difficile infection and cancer.[9][10]

Allen-Vercoe launched the NuBiyota in 2013, a biotechnology company that looks to grow microbes in a controlled environment.[11] She was awarded a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in 2019, which allowed her to study the influence of the gut microbiome on health and disease.[12]

Selected publications
  • M. Ross; M. Nathalia Garcia; Vivien Bonazzi; et al. (14 June 2012). "Structure, function and diversity of the healthy human microbiome". Nature. 486 (7402): 207–14. doi:10.1038/NATURE11234. ISSN 1476-4687. PMC 3564958. PMID 22699609. Wikidata Q24626370.
  • Stephen R Clark; Adrienne C Ma; Samantha A Tavener; et al. (April 2007). "Platelet TLR4 activates neutrophil extracellular traps to ensnare bacteria in septic blood". Nature Medicine. 13 (4): 463–9. doi:10.1038/NM1565. ISSN 1078-8956. PMID 17384648. Wikidata Q28294906.
  • Matthew Ross; Fah Sathirapongsasuti; M. Nathalia Garcia; et al. (14 June 2012). "A framework for human microbiome research". Nature. 486 (7402): 215–21. doi:10.1038/NATURE11209. ISSN 1476-4687. PMC 3377744. PMID 22699610. Wikidata Q24602401.

References
  1. "Dr. Emma Allen-Vercoe | Molecular and Cellular Biology". www.uoguelph.ca. Retrieved 2021-01-24.
  2. "Dr. Emma Allen-Vercoe PhD – Town Hall Medicine". Retrieved 2021-01-24.
  3. "Biomedical Science Ambassador Award Winners – Partners In Research Canada". Retrieved 2021-01-24.
  4. "Guts and glory". The Chemical Institute of Canada. 2019-09-24. Retrieved 2021-01-24.
  5. Pardi, Dr Darrell. "'Robogut' Makes Synthetic Poop To Treat Stubborn Infections". NPR.org. Retrieved 2021-01-24.
  6. Newton, Casey (2013-08-09). "Researchers build 'robogut' to make fake feces for safer transplants". The Verge. Retrieved 2021-01-24.
  7. Hamzelou, Jessica. "Healing by faeces: Rise of the DIY gut-bug swap". New Scientist. Retrieved 2021-01-24.
  8. Boodman,STAT, Eric. "A Trip to “the Poopy Lab” In the Interest of Drug Development". Scientific American. Retrieved 2021-01-24.
  9. "U of G Gets $2.4 Million Via New Canada Research Chairs". U of G News. 2019-06-19. Retrieved 2021-01-24.
  10. "Could our gut microbiome help treat cancer?". Cancer Research UK - Science blog. 2019-03-21. Retrieved 2021-01-24.
  11. "NuBiyota Canada". Mitacs. Retrieved 2021-01-24.
  12. "Dr. Emma Allen-Vercoe awarded Tier 1 Canada Research Chair | Molecular and Cellular Biology". www.uoguelph.ca. Retrieved 2021-01-24.
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