Luis Teixeira, Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, on Bacterial symbionts of Drosophila melanogaster

CRC1182-speaker Thomas Bosch leads a series of interviews with the leading experts in the emerging field of metaorganism research: Dr. Luis Teixera, Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciencia is a microbiologist focusing on the interaction between Drosophila flies and various microorganisms, including intracellular Wolbachia endosymbionts. In his projects, Luis uses a combination of evolutionary, genetic, and molecular approaches. His work revealed for example a key influence of Wolbachia on Drosophila resistance against viruses and also the fly’s ability to adapt to viral pressure. Recently, he also characterized stability of gut colonizing microbes of Drosophila.