Ana Maria Porras, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor | J. Crayton Pruitt Family Department of Biomedical Engineering
Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering | University of Florida
Seminar Information
The human extracellular matrix (ECM) is a dynamic network of proteins, glycosaminoglycans, and other molecules that provides mechanical and biochemical signals to support tissue structure and function. Dysregulation of the ECM is a hallmark of numerous diseases, including cardiac fibrosis and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Traditionally, host cells such as fibroblasts and macrophages are considered the primary regulators of ECM remodeling. However, in tissues heavily colonized by microbiota, diseases characterized by high degrees of ECM remodeling like IBD, are also associated with microbiome dysfunction. Despite this, the potential role of microbiota remains largely unexplored in current models of ECM regulation.
In this talk, I will share research from our lab demonstrating that commensal gut microbes can drive ECM remodeling both locally, within the gut, and systemically, through metabolite-driven effects in distant organs. I will also highlight the in vitro approaches we are developing to study these processes in physiologically relevant contexts. Our findings challenge conventional views of ECM regulation, emphasizing the need to consider the influence of the human microbiome in pathological tissue remodeling.
Dr. Ana Maria Porras is an Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Florida, where she leads the Tissue-Microbe Interactions lab. Her group engineers models of disease to study human-microbe interactions mediated by the extracellular matrix. The TMI lab applies these models in the contexts of the gut microbiome, neglected tropical diseases, and cardiovascular health. Her lab is also interested in understanding and broadening global participation in microbiome and biomaterials science. Beyond the laboratory setting, she is also a science artist, and a passionate advocate for inclusive bilingual science communication. Dr. Porras is the co-founder and Senior Advisor of the Latinx in Biomedical Engineering community. She is the recipient of the NSF Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award, the NIH Maximizing Investigators Research Award (MIRA), the AAAS Early Career Award for Public Engagement with Science, and the Biomedical Engineering Society Diversity Lecture Award. Prior to arriving in Florida, Dr. Porras was a Presidential Postdoctoral Fellow at Cornell University. She holds a B.S. in biomedical engineering from the University of Texas at Austin, and a Masters and Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she was an American Heart Association Predoctoral Fellow. When she isn’t doing all that, she loves to read, dance, travel, do puzzles, and, above all, eat ice cream.