Post-Docs

Elijah (Eli) Mehlferber:

Eli received his Ph.D. in Integrative Biology from the University of California, Berkeley, completing his dissertation which examined the role that phyllosphere-associated bacterial communities play in modulating their host health and functions. While at U.C. Berkeley, Eli worked under the mentorship of Ph.D. Britt Koskella, whose research focused on the coevolution of hosts and their symbionts in the environment. Eli is currently a NSF postdoctoral fellow in our lab, and is interested in understanding the traits that underly Pseudomonas aeruignosa’s success as a generalist and opportunistic pathogen. Specifically focusing on linking genomic features to phenotypic traits, he employs both experimental and computational approaches to answer several important questions:

1). Why are some strains of P. aeruginosa more successful than others when transitioning between different environments? 2). Can we find evidence in the genomes of these strains to indicate which environments they have previously adapted to? 3). Does the evolutionary and environmental history of P. aeruignosa strains influence their ability to adapt to future environments? and 4). Can the preceding information be leveraged to determine the risk of a strain invading a new habitat using only genomic information on that strain?

Canan Karakoc (pronounced John-an):

Starting on a whirlwind journey that spanned continents, career paths, and scientific horizons, Canan (pronounced John-an) finalized her PhD in 2019, just before the world turned upside down with the pandemic, from the University of Leipzig in Germany. Unraveling the mysteries of community dynamics, species interactions, coexistence, and stability, she found herself working with the cool minds at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, and the German Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), leaving a mark across Europe until 2021. But wait, there’s a plot twist! Canan stumbled upon a new passion for the tiniest life forms: microbes. Diving into bacteria, bacteriophages, and the evolution of antibiotic resistance, she fearlessly navigated through the chaos of a viral world. Seeking yet another adventure, she moved to the stateside, where she called upon yet another microbial odyssey, this time teaming up with the legendary Jay Lennon at Indiana University. Together, they have worked on enigmatic realms of energy limitation, dormancy, and evolutionary bioenergetics, crafting a scientific saga. And then, the stars aligned once more, guiding Canan to the doorstep of the admirable Brown Lab at the beginning of 2024. Here, she tackles the darker side of the microbial world: disease dynamics. Armed with experimental evolution, ecological modeling, and the fine art of clinical data mining, she focuses on the dance of lethal infections and the symphony of death dynamics. Brace yourselves, her microbial adventures are just beginning!

Maria Martignoni:

Dr. Maria Martignoni is a postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Microbial Dynamics and Infection at Georgia Tech, under the mentorship of Prof. Sam Brown and Prof. Rachel Kuske. Maria is a mathematical biologist, interested in developing theoretical frameworks to improve our predictive understanding of the eco-evolutionary dynamics of host species and their microbial or molecular symbionts. While much research has focused on characterizing the spread and evolution of parasites and pathogens, little is known about the dynamics occurring when symbionts are beneficial to their hosts and how evolutionary forces (such as symbiont mutation and selection), and ecological forces (such as symbiont competition, host-symbiont and host-host interactions), interact in these systems to determine community assemblage, stability, dispersal, and resilience to invasion.

Maria was born and raised in the mountainous Italian-speaking part of Switzerland. She obtained a BSc in nanosciences at the University of Basel and an MSc in physics at Helmoltz-Zentrum Berlin. After working for some years as a teacher of mathematics and sciences in secondary schools in Tanzania, she moved to Canada, where she completed her PhD in mathematics at the University of British Columbia, focusing on mechanisms for coexistence and competitive exclusion in host-symbiont communities. She continued her research as a postdoctoral fellow at Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador and at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, as part of the Azrieli Fellow Program. Maria is a mother of five, who loves hiking, traveling, and writing novels, and believes that achieving a gratifying work–life balance is a key element in maintaining creativity, motivation and productivity in the academic world.

Linnea Bavik:

Linnea is a postdoctoral fellow under the mentorship of Sam Brown and Rachel Kuske. After completing bachelor’s degrees in physics and mathematics, Linnea completed a PhD under the mentorship of Daniel Weissman studying abstract models for the evolution and maintenance of prosocial (altruistic) behaviors that can accommodate the destabilizing effects of cheater mutations and intra-species competition. Eager to apply her modeling experience to real-world data, Linnea was excited to join the Brown lab and begin studying Pseudomonas aeruginosa, an organism that evolves very quickly relative to us and in large, highly variable populations. Of particular interest to Linnea is the social traits of these bacteria, which play a pivotal role in virulence and transmission over the course of a human infection. She is currently working on the evolution of P. aeruginosa in environmental reservoirs, and identifying the conditions under which environmental opportunistic pathogens can evolve traits that are perilous to human health.

Originally hailing from foggy seclusions of Seattle, Washington, Linnea has become increasingly ectothermal after years of soaking up the rays in Atlanta, Georgia. Lately, Linnea has been enjoying reading mystery novels and playing D&D or trivia in her free time.