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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black">From: </span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black">Chelsea Catania <cataniac@mit.edu><br>
<b>Subject: </b>MIT Microbiome Club Seminar Series - 1/21 @ 1 PM in 56-614<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<span style="font-size:18.0pt;font-family:"Avenir Book";color:#77984C">MIT Microbiome Club </span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<span style="font-size:18.0pt;font-family:"Avenir Book";color:#77984C">Seminar Series</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<img width="150" height="146" style="width:1.5625in;height:1.5208in" id="_x0033_07E53F5-C7A2-4C17-ABE4-C21DD8172F6F" src="cid:image001.jpg@01D5CC5B.792F2240"><o:p></o:p></p>
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<b><span style="font-size:24.0pt;font-family:"Avenir Book";color:#28916B">Vayu Maini Rekdal</span></b><o:p></o:p></p>
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<i><span style="font-size:18.0pt;font-family:"Avenir Book";color:#28916B">Discovery of enzymes and organisms that metabolize drugs, neurotransmitters, and dietary components in the human gut microbiota</span></i><o:p></o:p></p>
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<span style="font-size:18.0pt;font-family:"Avenir Book";color:#3A3E44">Tuesday, January 21st at 1 pm in MIT 56-614 </span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<a href="https://www.eventbrite.com/e/mit-microbiome-club-seminar-vayu-maini-rekdal-tickets-88523438989"><b><span style="font-size:18.0pt;font-family:"Avenir-Book",serif">RSVP</span></b></a><o:p></o:p></p>
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<span style="font-family:"Avenir-Book",serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.4pt;background:white">Possessing 150-fold more genes than the human genome, the trillions of organisms that make up the human gut microbiota harbor metabolic capabilities that expand the
range of chemistry taking place in the body. To decipher the biological roles of gut microbial metabolism, it is critical that we uncover the enzymes responsible for prominent transformations. However, the vast majority of gut microbial metabolic reactions
have not yet been linked to specific enzymes. Here, we will present our work on the discovery and characterization of gut microbial organisms and enzymes that metabolize L-dopa, the main drug treatment for Parkinson’s disease. We will also present recent work
on the discovery of a new class of widely distributed enzymes that enable gut microorganisms to metabolize catecholamine neurotransmitters and diet-derived compounds ingested by the host. This work showcases the importance of enzyme discovery for hypothesis-driven
microbiome research and highlights new strategies to manipulate and predict widespread and clinically relevant chemical transformations in the human gut.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><b><span style="font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#6F7287;letter-spacing:.4pt">Bio:</span></b><span style="font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#6F7287;letter-spacing:.4pt"> Vayu Maini Rekdal is a Scientist, Chef,
Educator, and a 5th-year PhD candidate working in Emily Balskus lab in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Harvard. In the lab, Vayu focuses on the identification and characterization of microbes and enzymes that metabolize neurotransmitters,
pharmaceutical drugs, and dietary compounds in the human gut microbiota. Outside the lab, Vayu has worked in restaurants and gastronomic research centers around the world to explore the intersection of science and cooking through research and education. Among
other endeavors, he is the founder of the Young Chefs Program (<a href="http://youngchefsprogram.org/" target="_blank"><span style="text-decoration:none">http://youngchefsprogram.org</span></a>), an organization using cooking to communicate science to youth.
His research has been featured in New York Times among other places. After his PhD, he plans to combine his expertise in microbiology and chemistry background in gastronomy and food with to create novel foods for enhanced flavor, sustainability, and human
health.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#6F7287;letter-spacing:.4pt">Website: <a href="http://vayumainirekdal.com" target="_blank"><span style="text-decoration:none">http://vayumainirekdal.com</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span style="font-family:"Avenir Book";color:black">______________________________ </span><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><i><span style="font-family:"Avenir Book";color:#16191F">The MIT Microbiome Club, part of the Center for Microbiome Informatics and Therapeutics, brings together inquisitive MIT
undergrads, grad researchers, postdocs, faculty, and clinicians in the emerging field of microbiome studies and microbiome-based medicine.<a href="https://www.facebook.com/MITmicrobiomeclub/"><span style="color:#16191F"> </span><span style="color:#386EFF">Learn
more on our Facebook page. </span></a>Or follow us on </span></i><span style="color:black"><a href="https://twitter.com/MITubiomeclub"><i><span style="font-family:"Avenir Book"">Twitter</span></i></a></span><i><span style="font-family:"Avenir Book";color:#16191F">. </span></i><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family:"Avenir-Book",serif;color:black">Chelsea Catania, Ph.D.</span></b><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Avenir-Book",serif;color:black">MIT Microbiome Club Publicity Chair</span><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Avenir-Book",serif;color:black">Postdoctoral Associate</span><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Avenir-Book",serif;color:black">Laboratory for Energy and Microsystems Innovation</span><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Avenir-Book",serif;color:black">Department of Mechanical Engineering</span><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Avenir-Book",serif;color:black">@<a href="https://twitter.com/MITubiomeclub">MITubiomeclub</a> </span><span style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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