Goodman-Luskin Microbiome Center

Microbiome lactobacillus
Brain Gut Relationship

UCLA receives $20 million to establish Goodman-Luskin Microbiome Center

Among the most promising areas of scientific inquiry is the study of the human microbiome and its effect on health. To fuel more rapid progress in this field, Andrea and Donald Goodman and Renee and Meyer Luskin have made a $20 million gift to establish the Goodman-Luskin Microbiome Center. Research at the center will focus on the microbiome’s role in disease prevention and the body’s immune response with the goal of developing new treatments.

Endowed Fellowship in Microbiome Research

Applications are being accepted for the center's inaugural Goodman-Luskin Endowed Fellowship in Microbiome Research. The award of approximately $100,00 includes support for salary and project-related expenses to support excellence in microbiome research related to the center's focus areas.

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GLMC Seminar Series

Seminar Series

Join us for this monthly seminar series where invited guest speakers, Goodman-Luskin Microbiome Center faculty and UCLA trainees present their latest research findings and discuss evolving areas of interest in the many ways the microbiome interacts with human health.

Latest News

Elaine Hsiao, PhD

Elaine Y. Hsiao, PhD, named among world’s most influential researchers

Dr. Hsiao, director of the Goodman-Luskin Microbiome Center, was one of 40 UCLA faculty members named among the world’s most influential researchers in the sciences and social sciences. The Highly Cited Researchers list, compiled annually by analytics firm Clarivate, identifies scholars whose work has most often been cited in papers published by other researchers in their fields over the past decade. Those named to the 2023 list have authored studies that rank in the top 1% worldwide in scholarly citations. 

Newborn Mice

A mouther mouse needs a diverse gut microbiome to form a healthy placenta

The bacteria found naturally in the digestive tract do a lot more than help digest food. Scientists have established that these microbial communities are also involved with the immune system and play a role in mental health. Now, they can add helping grow a healthy placenta during pregnancy to the list of unexpected ways the gut microbiome influences health and well-being.

Mother holding baby

Hardship affects the gut microbiome across generations

This study draws on a large longitudinal cohort to demonstrate that adversity experienced prenatally or during early childhood, as well as adversity experienced by the mother during her childhood, impacts the gut microbiome of second-generation children at two years old.

 

Eggs on a plate

The keto diet protects against epileptic seizures. Scientists are uncovering why

The high-fat, low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet is more than just a trendy weight-loss tactic. It has also been known to help control seizures in children with epilepsy, particularly those who don’t respond to first-line anti-seizure medications.

Environmental influences

The association between disadvantaged neighborhoods and cortical microstructure and their relation to obesity

According to newly published research in Nature, living in a disadvantaged neighborhood can affect food choices, weight gain and even the microstructure of the brain.

Paul S. Weiss, PhD

Paul S. Weiss, PhD, named to National Academy of Inventors

Dr. Weiss was chosen as a 2023 fellow by the National Academy of Inventors. Election to an academy fellowship is the highest professional distinction awarded to inventors. He holds the UC presidential chair in chemistry and leads an interdisciplinary research group at UCLA that studies the atomic-scale properties of surfaces and supramolecular assemblies.