UK GIBA Network+ Seminar Series (27 March 2026)

Discover the latest advances in understanding of the gut-immune-brain axis in the UK GIBA Network+ Seminar Series. 

These online sessions feature presenters from across our five working groups.

Date: Friday 27th March

Time: 12.30pm – 1.30pm

Speakers: Amisha Modasia and Frederick Clasen

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Dr Amisha Modasia

Title: Beyond gelation: How fibre chemistry shapes microbial communities and gut–brain signalling

Institute: Quadram Institute Bioscience

Three keywords: dietary fibre; microbial fermentation; enteroendocrine signalling

GIBA working groups: 3, 4, 5

Dr Modasia completed her undergraduate, Master’s, and PhD degrees at the University of East Anglia, with her doctoral research conducted at the Quadram Institute Bioscience (QIB). During her PhD, she developed a keen interest in gut–brain health, employing in vitro cell culture models to study how bacterial metabolites influence gut–brain communication.

She is now a postdoctoral researcher in the Fred Warren group at QIB, focusing on the role of dietary fibre in alleviating symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). In collaboration with the University of Nottingham, her work integrates colonic fermentation models to evaluate the impact of fibre on gas and microbial metabolite production, alongside cell-based assays to unravel the mechanistic pathways driving gut health. Her research aims to bridge microbiome science and host physiology, advancing understanding of how diet can modulate microbial and neuroendocrine interactions to improve gastrointestinal function and wellbeing.

Dr Frederick Clasen

Title: Microbiome signatures of virulence in the oral-gut-brain axis influence Parkinson’s disease and cognitive decline pathophysiology

Institute: King’s College London

Three keywords: Microbiome, Parkinson’s Disease, Oral-gut-brain axis

GIBA working groups: 1, 5

Dr Clasen completed his BSc and MSc degrees in bioinformatics and biotechnology at the University of Pretoria in South Africa. He then moved to London where for his PhD in bioinformatics and systems biology at the Francis Crick Institute and King’s College London. During his PhD he developed computational mathematical models to study metabolism of the host and the microbiome.

Currently, he is a Research Associate in the Quantitative Systems Biology Laboratory of Dr Saeed Shoaie at the Centre for Host-Microbiome Interactions at King’s College London where his research focusses on the development of computational frameworks for a deeper mechanistic understanding of the functional role of the microbiome in the pathophysiology of different diseases, including Parkinson’s Disease. In this context, he is interested in the role of the oral and gut microbiome in cognitive impairment and applies computational approaches in this context including multi-omics, systems biology, and network analysis.

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