Ami Bhatt, MD, PhD

Assistant Professor, Medicine and Genetics, Stanford

Humans are now understood to live in complex symbiosis with microbes. While the majority of interactions between the host and microbiota are considered to be symbiotic, alterations of the microbiota are associated with various disease states. It is hypothesized that perhaps the patients most susceptible to adverse outcomes of microbiota dysbiosis are patients whose immune systems are challenged. The goal of the Bhatt lab is to understand the interplay between the microbial environment in immunocompromised patients, especially those with hematological malignancies (leukemia and lymphoma). The laboratory focuses on (1) the use of next generation sequencing to define the microbiome and host immunologic features in patients with hematological diseases and (2) developing custom computational tools for the identification of novel human commensals and pathogens in these immunosuppressed patient populations, and (3) using statistical and functional biological methods to understand the interplay between the human microbiome and the development of immunological diversity.

In addition to her academic efforts, Dr. Bhatt is committed to improving cancer care, education and research in resource-limited settings. She is the Director of Global Oncology for the Center for Innovation in Global Health at Stanford University and has also served as a visiting lecturer at the University of Botswana and Tokyo Medical and Dental University. She, along with Franklin Huang, is a co-founder and co-president of the non-profit organization Global Oncology (http://globalonc.org). This all-volunteer organization spearheads creative, multi-disciplinary projects focused on improving cancer outcomes in impoverished settings.