Azad Lab research featured by Cell Host & Microbe

Research co-led by Azad Lab members Kelsey Fehr and Shirin Moosavi was featured on this week's cover of Cell Host & Microbe, and in an accompanying commentary by Noel Mueller & Moira Differding (Johns Hopkins University). The cover image depicts a breastfeeding mother-infant dyad, and the sharing of microbes between them. The artistic ‘Tree of Life’ imagery is a popular way for mothers to share “brelfies” (breastfeeding selfies). This version includes microbes, highlighting their role as a key bioactive component of human milk. In the CHILD Cohort Study, we found that certain bacteria co-occur in mothers’ breast milk their infants’ stool, suggesting that microbes in milk may transfer to the infant and influence their developing microbiota. The research was a collaboration with Brett Finlay and Stuart Turvey at UBC.  Cover Art was created by AllerGen NCE's Marshall Beck.