Help fellows prepare for NIH predoctoral fellowship applications by learning from current or recent F31 grantees. Support students nearing graduation in exploring postdoctoral mentorship, training opportunities, and future fellowship planning, with a perspective from an F32 grantee.

Bacteriophages, viruses that infect bacteria, have recently reemerged as a topic of interest in dozens of fields including the treatment of bacterial infections, food safety, veterinary medicine, agriculture, wound care, biotechnology, and even cancer research! Despite their ubiquity and increasing relevance, many researchers outside of microbiology remain unfamiliar with foundational phage biology and the range of their potential applications. The workshop is organized by Kayla Raygoza (a STEER fellow) and aims to provide an introduction to phages through the lens of food and human health. The lectures will be inspired by current literature as well as her own research isolating and characterizing novel phages for clinical use, using chemical adjuvants to improve phage efficacy, and studying phage-host evolution. She will discuss phage history, the basics of phage biology, and a phage's influence on the gut. Afterwards, the participants will cook a microbiome-friendly meal with Executive Chef Jess at UCI’s teaching kitchen. While the food is cooking/baking/resting, there will be a second lecture on current research and applications of phages across many fields and the future uses of phages.