Dr. Laura Serbus is an Assistant Professor studying vector biology and host-microbe interaction.
The Serbus group comprises research trainees ranging from high school interns to postdoctoral scholars. Lab members work in teams to tackle new research questions under the mentorship of senior lab members. Results that stand up to robust validation are regarded as new discoveries. The lab communicates findings to others in the form of oral presentations and research papers. The papers are submitted to academic journals, for assessment by colleagues who voluntarily serve as peer reviewers. Their insightful feedback contributes further to finalizing content of the manuscript. Publishing the work then shares the results with everyone. When possible, we aim to publish the work in an open-access format. This format has the advantage of making articles immediately accessible to the public for free.
research interests
Host-microbe interactions, focusing on how Wolbachia bacteria interact with and manipulate insect cells at the molecular level.
Wolbachia bacteria interact with eukaryotic cells. We are interested in several areas, and are especially focused on how bacterial load is regulated within eukaryotic cells. The main model system we use is Wolbachia-infected Drosophila melanogaster (fruit flies). The findings from this work are expected to contribute to fundamental understanding of host-microbe interactions and advancement of human health interests.