Moran Lab Research
My long-term interests are in the biology of symbiosis, particularly that between multicellular hosts and microbes. Symbioses are central in the evolution of complexity, have evolved many times and are critical to the lifestyles of many animals and plants and also to whole ecosystems, in which symbiotic organisms are key players. The primary reason that symbiosis research is suddenly active, after decades at the margins of mainstream biology, is that DNA technology and genomics give us enormous new ability to discover symbiont diversity, and more significantly, to reveal how microbial metabolic capabilities contribute to the functioning of hosts and biological communities.
> Read MoreLAB NEWS
- The Moran lab has an open Postdoc position. (June 2025)
- Maya Cabrera joins the lab as a summer intern from Princeton University, and Caroline Robinson & Zoë Walker join the lab as an Undergraduate Research Assistants. (June 2025)
- Congratulations to Associate Professor of Practice, Jo Holley on being one of Alcalde: The 2025 Texas 10. (June 2025)
MEDIA COVERAGE
- Science & Art: Exploring Bee Microbiomes in UT Biodiversity Center News. (September 18, 2024)
- Boosting Bee Health With Probiotics and Vaccines in American Society for Microbiology. (May 24, 2024)
- Engineering a bee-gut bacterium to prevent a deadly parasite from spreading in Phys.org. (June 13, 2023)