Katy  Johnson

Katy Johnson

Scholar Title

MIT Microbiome Undergraduate Research and Innovation Scholar

Research Title

Microbial Phenotype Association Database to Interpret 16S Studies

Cohort

2016–2017

Department

Biological Engineering

Research Areas
  • Computational Biology
Supervisor

Eric J. Alm

Abstract

Bacterial Enrichment Set Analysis
Current research of human microbial communities focuses on identifying a single bacteria that can cause differences; however in reality these differences could be caused by sets of bacteria. I propose the curation of a comprehensive database that emphasizes the ability of bacteria to be searched for in sets to allow for new types of analyses to be performed including enrichment analyses. Enabling analyses that utilize sets could provide a new way of looking at problems in the field and eventually lead to a heightened understanding of microbial interactions in humans.

Quote

I am a course 6-3 senior who is very interested in applications to biology that could help improve understanding of health and wellness! I will be spending the semester working on a project that combines my computer science skills with microbiome research. I am looking forward to learning more about how I can use my computer science skills to make an impact in another field.

Back to Scholars