Elaine Hsiao
@pipethero.bsky.social
microbes, guts & brains at UCLA
www.hsiao.science
www.hsiao.science
Reposted by Elaine Hsiao
Please repost and share widely - winter break is a perfect time to assemble application materials 😅
Consider applying for the Robert E. Chason Endowed Chair in Translational Research at the UC Davis MIND Institute!
Join a vibrant community of colleagues studying neurodevelopment conditions like autism. UC Davis is an excellent place to work and live.
Find more details here: lnkd.in/gZRyViNa
Join a vibrant community of colleagues studying neurodevelopment conditions like autism. UC Davis is an excellent place to work and live.
Find more details here: lnkd.in/gZRyViNa
Robert E. Chason Endowed Chair in Translational Research, MIND Institute
University of California, Davis is hiring. Apply now!
lnkd.in
December 22, 2025 at 11:24 PM
Please repost and share widely - winter break is a perfect time to assemble application materials 😅
Reposted by Elaine Hsiao
Microbe-mediated stress?
Microbial metabolite Imidazole propionate reaches brain, dampens hypothalamic activity & promotes stress-related behaviors. In humans, higher ImP is associated w/reduced hypothalamic responses & emotional eating
@pipethero.bsky.social
www.cell.com/cell-host-mi...
Microbial metabolite Imidazole propionate reaches brain, dampens hypothalamic activity & promotes stress-related behaviors. In humans, higher ImP is associated w/reduced hypothalamic responses & emotional eating
@pipethero.bsky.social
www.cell.com/cell-host-mi...
The microbial metabolite imidazole propionate modulates hypothalamic activity and stress-induced behaviors
Agirman et al. find that imidazole propionate, a microbiome-derived metabolite, reaches
the brain, dampens hypothalamic activity, and promotes stress-related behaviors. Human
data show that higher ImP...
www.cell.com
December 1, 2025 at 5:25 PM
Microbe-mediated stress?
Microbial metabolite Imidazole propionate reaches brain, dampens hypothalamic activity & promotes stress-related behaviors. In humans, higher ImP is associated w/reduced hypothalamic responses & emotional eating
@pipethero.bsky.social
www.cell.com/cell-host-mi...
Microbial metabolite Imidazole propionate reaches brain, dampens hypothalamic activity & promotes stress-related behaviors. In humans, higher ImP is associated w/reduced hypothalamic responses & emotional eating
@pipethero.bsky.social
www.cell.com/cell-host-mi...
Excited to share new work by Guli Agirman + co that identifies a direct mechanism linking gut microbial imidazole propionate to stress! 🧠🦠 Btw this image was made by Nano Banana Pro 🍌. First time I've gotten a model to accurately generate a science graphic 🤯 authors.elsevier.com/a/1mA5M6t8JE...
November 25, 2025 at 5:45 PM
Excited to share new work by Guli Agirman + co that identifies a direct mechanism linking gut microbial imidazole propionate to stress! 🧠🦠 Btw this image was made by Nano Banana Pro 🍌. First time I've gotten a model to accurately generate a science graphic 🤯 authors.elsevier.com/a/1mA5M6t8JE...
Happy to share this paper in final form rdcu.be/eH8tj, with more info on neuronal responses and potential mechanism of actions! The results suggest that there is neural interoception of microbial metabolic state 🧠🦠 We hope they can inspire more work in this area!
September 25, 2025 at 3:36 PM
Happy to share this paper in final form rdcu.be/eH8tj, with more info on neuronal responses and potential mechanism of actions! The results suggest that there is neural interoception of microbial metabolic state 🧠🦠 We hope they can inspire more work in this area!
Delighted to share this perspective piece by Lewis Yu on microbial regulation of serotonin and neuroimmune interactions. Looking forward to sharing more on this topic soon 🤞 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Microbial regulation of serotonin and neuroimmune interactions
Bidirectional communication between the gut microbiota and neuroimmune system is essential during host–microbiome interactions. Recent research has be…
www.sciencedirect.com
August 20, 2025 at 2:21 AM
Delighted to share this perspective piece by Lewis Yu on microbial regulation of serotonin and neuroimmune interactions. Looking forward to sharing more on this topic soon 🤞 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reposted by Elaine Hsiao
5/5 Awardee @chuchuzhang.bsky.social explores how different body states (eg, pregnancy) may change what neurons sense & how they respond. Her work may lead to new ways to address nausea associated w/ pregnancy🤰 & chemo.
🍾Congrats Dr. Zhang! @dgsomucla.bsky.social
🙏 #HFScout @pipethero.bsky.social
🍾Congrats Dr. Zhang! @dgsomucla.bsky.social
🙏 #HFScout @pipethero.bsky.social
July 17, 2025 at 6:01 PM
5/5 Awardee @chuchuzhang.bsky.social explores how different body states (eg, pregnancy) may change what neurons sense & how they respond. Her work may lead to new ways to address nausea associated w/ pregnancy🤰 & chemo.
🍾Congrats Dr. Zhang! @dgsomucla.bsky.social
🙏 #HFScout @pipethero.bsky.social
🍾Congrats Dr. Zhang! @dgsomucla.bsky.social
🙏 #HFScout @pipethero.bsky.social
Reposted by Elaine Hsiao
🧪our paper in @cp-cellhostmicrobe.bsky.social selected as NIEHS papers of the month! 🔥🔥 pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40315838/ @pipethero.bsky.social @scrippsocean.bsky.social
Extramural papers of the month
urldefense.com
June 4, 2025 at 2:26 PM
🧪our paper in @cp-cellhostmicrobe.bsky.social selected as NIEHS papers of the month! 🔥🔥 pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40315838/ @pipethero.bsky.social @scrippsocean.bsky.social
Thrilled to share this collaborative work by Kristie Yu, Francis Chandra, Amina Schartup and teams @Scripps_Ocean and @UCLA showing that an engineered gut bacterium can be used to reduce the neurotoxic effects of dietary methylmercury www.cell.com/cell-host-mi...
An engineered gut bacterium protects against dietary methylmercury exposure in pregnant mice
Yu and Chandra et al. engineered a commensal gut microbe, Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron,
to detoxify methylmercury (MeHg). The engineered bacterium reduces MeHg in the intestinal
lumen, limits its accu...
www.cell.com
May 2, 2025 at 2:08 AM
Thrilled to share this collaborative work by Kristie Yu, Francis Chandra, Amina Schartup and teams @Scripps_Ocean and @UCLA showing that an engineered gut bacterium can be used to reduce the neurotoxic effects of dietary methylmercury www.cell.com/cell-host-mi...
Reposted by Elaine Hsiao
Curious about how the gut microbiome modulates the neurological health of pregnant women and their offspring? Check out my recent review with @pipethero.bsky.social out now @jclinical-invest.bsky.social! 🦠🤰👶🧠
www.jci.org/articles/vie...
www.jci.org/articles/vie...
JCI -
The microbiome as a modulator of neurological health across the maternal-offspring interface
www.jci.org
February 17, 2025 at 9:51 PM
Curious about how the gut microbiome modulates the neurological health of pregnant women and their offspring? Check out my recent review with @pipethero.bsky.social out now @jclinical-invest.bsky.social! 🦠🤰👶🧠
www.jci.org/articles/vie...
www.jci.org/articles/vie...
Delighted to highlight new work by Kelly Jameson and colleagues showing that select microbial metabolites in the small intestinal lumen regulate vagal activity
www.cell.com/iscience/ful...
www.cell.com/iscience/ful...
Select microbial metabolites in the small intestinal lumen regulates vagal activity via receptor-mediated signaling
Neuroscience; Microbiome
www.cell.com
January 29, 2025 at 9:28 PM
Delighted to highlight new work by Kelly Jameson and colleagues showing that select microbial metabolites in the small intestinal lumen regulate vagal activity
www.cell.com/iscience/ful...
www.cell.com/iscience/ful...
Very happy to share new findings by Ezgi Özcan and colleagues showing that differences in fiber content in medical ketogenic diets can influence their anti-seizure effects! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Dietary fiber content in clinical ketogenic diets modifies the gut microbiome and seizure resistance in mice - Nature Communications
Here, the authors show that different formulations of medical ketogenic diets, and dietary fiber content in particular, differentially impact seizure outcome in mice, via modifying the gut microbiome ...
www.nature.com
January 29, 2025 at 5:43 PM
Very happy to share new findings by Ezgi Özcan and colleagues showing that differences in fiber content in medical ketogenic diets can influence their anti-seizure effects! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Now let me welcome @gdonaldson.bsky.social back to the wild wild West... We are excited to have you join our science family at UCLA #GoodmanLuskinMicrobiomeCenter. Lots more microbiome magic will be on the way! ✨
Goin back to Cali. Find me at UCLA. I’m recruiting at all levels. You can learn more at our lab website: www.donaldsonlab.com
We have an advertisement up for a technician (SRA) position:
jobs.ucla.edu/jobs/5998
We have an advertisement up for a technician (SRA) position:
jobs.ucla.edu/jobs/5998
Gregory P Donaldson, PhD, Assistant Professor at MIMG (starting January 2025) | Microbiology Immunology & Molecular Genetics
Please join us as we welcome Dr. Donaldson to UCLA in his new role as assistant professor in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics.
mimg.ucla.edu
January 4, 2025 at 3:01 PM
Now let me welcome @gdonaldson.bsky.social back to the wild wild West... We are excited to have you join our science family at UCLA #GoodmanLuskinMicrobiomeCenter. Lots more microbiome magic will be on the way! ✨
Happy to kick off 2025 with this new review on gut microbiota-neuroepithelial signaling by the very talented Taka Ohara!
January 4, 2025 at 9:50 AM
Happy to kick off 2025 with this new review on gut microbiota-neuroepithelial signaling by the very talented Taka Ohara!
It was an honor to highlight this fantastic work by Cheng and Venkatesh et al of the Gordon lab. Many thanks to them, and to Francis Chandra for doing all the heavy lifting on this Spotlight! @cp-cellchembiol.bsky.social
Great highlight by Chandra and @pipethero.bsky.social on recently published work by my colleague @flash-point.bsky.social (from his postdoc work) on endocannabanoids produced by specific members of the gut microbiota that likely impact host satiety/appetite. @isbscience.org
doi.org/10.1016/j.ch...
doi.org/10.1016/j.ch...
Redirecting
doi.org
January 4, 2025 at 9:40 AM
It was an honor to highlight this fantastic work by Cheng and Venkatesh et al of the Gordon lab. Many thanks to them, and to Francis Chandra for doing all the heavy lifting on this Spotlight! @cp-cellchembiol.bsky.social
Delighted to share work by Kristie Yu, Celine Son, & co showing that selective fructan metabolism by the gut microbiome can contribute to host associative learning of dietary preference, even when it comes to choosing between diets with the same perceptual salience (and macronutrient composition!)
Complex carbohydrate utilization by gut bacteria modulates host food preference https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.02.13.580152v1
Complex carbohydrate utilization by gut bacteria modulates host food preference https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.02.13.580152v1
The gut microbiota interacts directly with dietary nutrients and has the ability to modify host feed
www.biorxiv.org
February 16, 2024 at 2:10 PM
Delighted to share work by Kristie Yu, Celine Son, & co showing that selective fructan metabolism by the gut microbiome can contribute to host associative learning of dietary preference, even when it comes to choosing between diets with the same perceptual salience (and macronutrient composition!)