Mo Kaze
Research Experience
Skills
Publications
Research interests
Microbial & Viral Ecology
Metagenomics & Functional Genomics
Antibiotic Resistance
Global Climate Change
Contact me:
mokrobial@gmail.com
“Total nerd.”
“Brings formidable skills.”
“Joyful and curious with an excitement-infecting nature.”
“Rambunctious, inspiring, epic, phenomenal, and funny.”
Research Interests
I am currently a postdoctoral scientist, supervised by Jonathan Eisen at University of California, Davis, researching SARSCov2 surveillance from wastewater and best bioinformatics practices.
I am also currently working with the Alameda County Public Health Department to process their backlog of SARSCov2 and carbapenem resistant enterobacteriaceae genomic data. I have also provided streamlined and automated analysis pipelines to cut down on manual data validation and procedural workflows. I am very proud to be serving my community in this capacity.
My current research as a DOE Fellow, supervised by Susannah Tringe at JGI, focuses on engineered transitional systems, such as aqueducts and networks of irrigation canals. These terrestrial aquatic interfaces cover large regions and are not currently being routinely measured for carbon flux and the microbial communities of these waterways and their potential contribution of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere have yet to be investigated. These engineered interfaces may be acting as “hotspots” with impacts disproportionate to their geographic area. Human-made waterway sediments likely contain microorganismal communities that impact carbon gas flux. The research project I developed involves mapping the biogeographical distribution of organisms and defining their functional potential across the water distribution system. My field green house gas sampling and metagenomic analysis will provide input data for predictive models of landscape features not currently reflected in climate models.
My doctoral research involved investigating genetic movement across environmental gradients with a focus on biopesticides. These commercial products’ genomic content contain antibiotic resistance genes and viral signals which have clinical and environmental consequences. My publications regarding biopesticides indicate these widely-used microbial products are behaving as unexpected reservoirs and vectors for antibiotic resistance.
Education
University of California, Merced - PhD Quantitative Systems Biology, 2020
California State University, East Bay, Hayward, CA - MS (terminal) Biology [Molecular Microbiology focus], 2017
Mills College, Oakland, CA - BA Biology [Molecular Cell Biology focus], 2013
Publications
Kaze, Mo, Mark Sistrom, and Lauren Brooks. "Antibiotic Resistance in Bacillus-based Biopesticide Products." bioRxiv (2021). accepted for publication, Microbiology, 2021
Kaze, Mo, Lauren Brooks, and Mark Sistrom. "Genomic Sequence Analysis of Methicillin-and Carbapenem-Resistant Bacteria Isolated from Raw Sewage." Microbiology Spectrum 9.1 (2021): e00128-21.
Brooks, Lauren, Mo Kaze, and Mark Sistrom. "A curated, comprehensive database of plasmid sequences." Microbiology resource announcements 8.1 (2019): e01325-18.
Brooks, Lauren Elisabeth, Mo Kaze, and Mark Sistrom. "Where the plasmids roam: large-scale sequence analysis reveals plasmids with large host ranges." Microbial genomics5.1 (2019).
Awaiting submission
Mo Kaze, Lauren Elisabeth Brooks, and Mark Sistrom. "Assessing the diversity of antibiotic resistant bacteria in waste water using a whole genome approach.”
Mo Kaze, Lauren Elisabeth Brooks, and Mark Sistrom. “Welcome to Thunderdome: The Resistome and Virome of the Plasmidome.”
Mo Kaze, Lauren Elisabeth Brooks, and Mark Sistrom. “Mixing with a Bad Crowd: ARG exchange between Klebsiella pneumoniae and Bacillus based-Biopesticides Leads to Carbapenem Resistant Phenotypes.”
In process
Mo Kaze, “The Phage, Prophage, AMG and IME Content of Biopesticides.”
Doctoral thesis
Mo Kaze, “Biopesticides as Unintentional Reservoirs and Vectors of Antibiotic Resistance Genes and Mobilizable Elements.”
Awards & Funding
World Microbe Forum Abstract Award 2021
AI Inclusive Underrepresented Genders Scholarship 2021
UCM QSB Dissertation Award, 2020
Department of Energy Science Graduate Fellowship, 2019
Best Poster Microbiology Student Symposium, 2019
UCM Summer Research Fellowship, 2019
DOE Joint Genome Institute Distinguished Scholar, 2018
Computational Biology Research Fellowship, 2018
UCM Summer Research Fellowship, 2018
Conference Presentations
American Society for Virology 2020: The Viral Content of Widely-used Biopesticides (1st author) talk, poster - postponed
American Society for Microbiology 2020: Microbial Community Structure and Methane Production in a Large-scale Engineered Irrigation System (1st author), poster - postponed
American Society for Microbiology 2020: Title: This Gras Isn't Greener: Biopesticides as Reservoirs and Vectors of Antibiotic Resistance (1st author), talk, poster - postponed
Microbiology Society Annual Meeting 2020: This GRAS Isn't Greener: Biopesticides as Unintentional Reservoirs and Vectors of Antibiotic Resistance genes (1st author), talk
Bay Area Ecology and Evolution of Infection Disease Meeting 2020: Title: Poisoning the Apples? Investigating the Viral Content of Widely-used Biopesticides (1st author), talk, poster
American Society for Microbiology 2019: Title: Factors Influencing Microbial Community Composition of Historic and Restored Wetlands (1st author), talk, poster
Microbiology Student Symposium 2019: Title: This GRAS Isn’t Greener: Biopesticides as Unintentional Reservoirs of Resistance (1st author), talk, poster
Northern California Botanists Symposium 2019: Title: Endophyte community shiKs in response to drought in monkeyflowers (Erythranthe laciniata) grown in native soil, poster
Northern California Computational Biology 2018: Genomic Mining Reveals Reservoir of Resistance Biopesticides Used in California (1st author), poster
American Society for Microbiology 2018: Title: Genomic Mining Reveals Reservoir of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Widely Used Biopesticide (1st author), poster
American Society for Microbiology 2018: Title: Harboring a Fugitive: Identifying Unexplored Vectors and Carriers of Antibiotic Resistance Plasmids (2nd author), poster
American Society for Cell Biology 2016: UCSF and UC Berkeley poster presentation Title: Whole-slide Imaging Approach to Assessing Allogenic Transplantation of hESC-CMs using Histological Analysis and Immunofluorescence (1st author), poster
American Society for Cell Biology 2016: Title: Characterization of the Microbiome of a Geothermal Pool Proximal Species, Pisolithus tinctorius (1st author), poster
Teaching Experience
Teaching assistant UNIVERSITY of cAlifornia merced 2017-2018
Courses: Molecular Basis of Health & Disease, Microbiology Lab
adjunct instructor merritt college 2016 -2017
Course: Advanced Microscopy
teaching assistant California state UNIVERSITY east bay 2015 - 2017
Courses: Microbiology Lab, Intro to Biology Lab, Intro to Microbiology Lab
teaching assistant MILLS COLLEGE 2011-2012
Courses: Immunology, Microbiology, Nursing: Genetics, Nursing: Microbiology
Relevant Coursework
Graduate
Phylogenetics [UCM]
Dynamics of Soil Organic Matter [UCM]
Molecular Cell Biology I & Molecular Cell Biology II [CSUEB]
Advanced Molecular Techniques [CSUEB]
PCR & Fragment Analysis [CSUEB]
Functional Genomics [CSUEB]
Microbial Symbioses [CSUEB]
Protein Chemistry[CSUEB]
Environmental Microbiology [CSUEB]
Parasitology [CSUEB]
Microbial Genetics (audit) [UC Berkeley]
Microbial Diversity and Evolution (audit) [UC Berkeley]
Computational Biology and Genomics [UC Berkeley]
Microbial Physiology [UC Berkeley]
Microbial Ecology [UC Berkeley]
post-baccalaureate
Advanced Microscopy
Live Cell Imaging
Cell Culturing
Immunohistochemistry
Undergraduate
Genetics
Immunology
Microbiology
Protein Chemistry & Enzymology
Molecular Cell Biology
Service and Outreach
Panelist - Mills College Women and stem, 2016
Panelist - UC Merced LGBT in Stem, 2017
UC Merced Graduate Dean's Advisory Council on Diversity, 2018 -2020
Research Experience
Clinical & Environmental Microbiology - University of California, Merced
Dissertation research
Investigating Widely Used Microbial Products as Reservoirs and Vectors of Antibiotic Resistance
Environmental Microbiology - Berkeley National Lab - JGI, 2018- PRESENT
Microbial Community Structure and Methane Production in California’s Canal System
Investigating Factors Influencing Microbial Community Composition in Bay Area Historic and Restored Wetlands
Exobiology , NASA; CA, MT, WY, 2016 - 2017
identification of Thermophilic Archaea from Acidic geothermal pools
Research design, literature review, sample collection and environmental analysis at Norris geothermal pools in Yellowstone National Park, archaeal and bacterial cell culturing, archaea isolation and identification, DNA extraction, PCR, next-gen sequencing, biochemical analysis, LCMS and analysis, Super Res microscopy
Masters thesis, California State University East Bay, Completed May 2017
Characterizing the microbiome of a thermophilic fungus
AHL extraction and GCMS analysis, documentation, microscopy and image analysis, protocol design, ran undergraduate research team with journal club and personalized assignments, created a supportive network for women and LGBT STEM students
Microscopist, University of California Berkeley Cancer Research Lab; 2015-2017
Histological Analysis and Immunofluorescence of Allogenic Transplantation of hESC-CMs
Toxicity Effects on Gut TissuE Imaging
Retinal Wound Tissue Imaging
HIV & Aging, University of California San Francisco, 2012-2013
Literature review, PPT presentations on topics and findings, study design, IRB applications and review, data collection & analysis
Biophotonics, Mills College, 2011-2012
bioengineering far red fluorescing cellular tags for HIV infection visualization
Literature review, contamination troubleshooting, organizing samples, PCR, DNA sequencing & analysis, cell culturing, primer design, transformation, protein purification, spectrophotometry, documentation
Skills
Clinical and environmental microbiology
Library prep, Next gen sequencing and analysis (illumina, Nanopore platforms)
Confocal, Super res, fluorescent, light microscopy and image analysis
Immunohistochemistry, immunohistology, FISH, laser-based microdissection
Python, Obj C, R
Experimental design, sample collection and processing
Computational and statistical analysis
Protein extraction
NMR and LCMS analysis, GHG analysis, biogeochemical analysis
Scientific communication, grant writing
Work Experience
Genomic Data Specialist, APHL & Alameda County Public Health Dept, 2021 -present
Bioinformatic analysis of SARSCov2 sequences, SNP analysis, genome submission to GISAID, CRE analysis, MLST workflow development, containerization (docker, WDL, Cromwell)
Metagenomic Data Analyst, California State University San Marcos, 2021-present
Metagenomic and statistical analysis for large scale stormwater project, bioinformatics training, student support (Beckett Lab)
Imaging Assistant, University of California Berkeley Cancer Research Lab, 2015-2017
Maintenance, fluorescent microscopy, sample preparation, technical support utilizing confocal and slide scanning, support staff for conferences and educational courses
iOS Lead Test Engineer, Voxer, San Francisco, 2013 - 2014
Automation development, documentation, issue tracking, managing offsite team, managing internal & external beta projects, presenting performance & progress data, business account liaison, metric analysis
Software Engineer, Apple Inc, Cupertino, CA, 2006-2011
Projects: iPhone, iOS, iTunes, iPhoto