LAB MEMBERS
Michelle R. Gibbs
Principal Investigator
My career in microbiology began at Miami University in Ohio, where I studied pathogenesis in Mycoplasma. I earned my PhD from Ohio State University, focusing on the role of translational GTPases in ribosome assembly. I completed two postdoctoral fellowships at NIH and UCLA as an IRACDA fellow. Throughout my career, I have taught courses in microbiology, biochemistry, and biology at Wittenberg University and California State University, Los Angeles. I am broadly interested in microbial adaptation to nutrient stress, genetic regulation, and ribosome assembly and function. I started my position as Assistant Research Professor in January 2024.
Pierce Meinert
Undergraduate Researcher
My name is Pierce Meinert, and I’m from here in Auburn, Alabama. I’m currently majoring in Microbiology with a specific interest in environmental microbiology and bioremediation. I joined the lab spring 2024, and it has been such a great experience! My future plans include attending a graduate program to continue researching and learning about these topics and eventually receive my PhD in environmental microbiology. War Eagle!
Tieran Sullivan
Undergraduate Researcher
My name is Tieran Sullivan and I am from Davidson, North Carolina. I am a rising Junior at Auburn and I am pursuing a concurrent degree in Biomedical Sciences and History. After college, I hope to go onto med school and pursue my dream of becoming a doctor. I have been working with Dr. Gibbs and her lab for a little under a year now. In our lab, I am working on a new project I created that studies interactions between probiotics and resident gut bacteria.
John Michael Williamson
Mackenzie Spencer
My name is Mackenzie Spencer, and I am from Virginia Beach, Virginia. I am a senior at Auburn majoring in Biomedical Sciences, graduating this August. I joined Dr. Gibbs' lab this summer, and I am loving the work we are doing. After graduation, I am hoping to work in a lab in Virginia Beach that specializes in taking tissue donations and using them to create grafts for ACLs, PCLs, cervical vertebrae, and more.
Undergraduate Researcher
My name is John Michael Williamson, and I joined Dr. Gibbs' lab this summer. I'm a senior studying Biomedical Sciences, and I will be graduating in August. My future goals are to go to medical school and become a doctor in the military.
Undergraduate Researcher
Isaiah Fowler
Undergraduate Researcher
My name is Isaiah Fowler and I will be starting my sophomore year in the fall continuing my studies in Biomedical Sciences as well as Auburn's AUTEACH program. In the lab my primary goal is to gain experience, however, my passion would be to study microbiology in terms of exercise science, (i.e., the impact of exercise on gut microbiota). I joined the lab in March and will continue to stick with it throughout the rest of my undergraduate career. My long-term goals are to narrow down my interests while simultaneously gaining exposure to new fields.
Lab Alumni
Jordan White - Spring 2024