Erin Shanahan

Dr Erin Shanahan is a microbiologist affiliated with The University of Sydney's BIO department. Her research interests include gastroenterology and hepatology, clinical nutrition, nutrigenomics and personalised nutrition, microbial genetics, microbiology, and nutrition and dietetics. She leads the Microbiome and Gut Health Group at the Charles Perkins Centre, focusing on the role of the gut microbial community in gut health, colorectal cancer development, and cancer treatment. Her work explores interactions between gut microbial communities and dietary intake, and how this influences the intestinal epithelium and local and systemic immunity. She is also investigating the role of the microbiota and diet in shaping cancer immunotherapy outcomes.

Erin Shanahan is a researcher at The University of Sydney specializing in the microbiome, with a focus on its interactions with diet, disease, and immune function. Her work explores how dietary factors influence gut microbiota composition and its implications for health conditions such as dyspepsia, chronic liver disease, and cancer immunotherapy. Shanahan's research also investigates the role of the microbiome in small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, duodenal microbiota, and the impact of lifestyle factors like cigarette smoking. She emphasizes methodological rigor in microbiome studies and has contributed to guidelines for preventing contamination in low-biomass research. Her studies highlight the potential of prebiotics like honey and the importance of microbial ecology in shaping host responses.