Michael Taylor's Inaugural Lecture

Please join us in celebrating the Inaugural lecture of Professor Mike Taylor – School of Biological Sciences

Topic: LOVE AND OTHER RELATIONSHIPS: ANIMALS AND THE MICROBES THEY LIVE WITH

Event date: Thursday 2 June, 2022

Time: 6:30-7:30pm

Location: Old Government House Lecture Theatre (102-G36)

Light Refreshments : 6:00-6:30pm, Old Government House Members Lounge

Animals (including humans) function as “hosts” to a diverse array of bacteria and other microorganisms. These host-microbe associations span the gamut of potential ecological interactions, from tightly linked mutualistic symbioses – in which all partners may benefit – through to microbes as nutritional parasites or agents of disease. Understanding these interactions is an active research area within the field of microbial ecology, with implications for human health, agriculture, biotechnology and threatened species conservation. In this lecture Mike will describe some of his research experiences in this area, with examples from host animals including the humble sea sponge, the iconic kākāpō and that most enigmatic of all species, Homo sapiens.

Mike was a latecomer to microbiology, with initial training in zoology. His first foray into microbiology only took place during his PhD, and since then he has been a card-carrying microbial ecologist. Since joining Waipapa Taumata Rau | University of Auckland in 2007, Mike’s research has focused on animal-microbe interactions. On top of his research and teaching activities, he is heavily involved in the development of microbial ecology in New Zealand and beyond. He has recently been President of the NZ Microbiological Society, Board Member of the International Society for Microbial Ecology and is Co-Convenor of the NZ Microbial Ecology Consortium.

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COVID-19 Guidelines

The University is committed to protecting the health, safety and wellbeing of members of its community and will be following COVID-19 government legislation.

Please do not attend the event if you are feeling unwell or have cold or flu-like symptoms.

We encourage all attendees to wear masks at all events.