Our team

Prof. Gene Tyson

Director, Centre for Microbiome Research

Professor Gene Tyson founded the Centre for Microbiome Research in 2020 and currently serves as Director of the AHMB. Gene is an internationally recognised expert in the development and application of meta-omic and bioinformatic approaches to understand complex microbial communities.

His current research focuses on disentangling the role of the human microbiome in human health and disease, including inflammatory bowel disease, anxiety and depression, among others.

Over the past few years, Gene’s dedicated team has focused on developing the innovative high-throughput cultivation platform that forms the foundation of the AHMB.

A/Prof. Simon McIlroy

Deputy Director, Centre for Microbiome Research

Dr Simon McIlroy is an expert in the application of single-cell visualisation techniques for studying complex microbial communities. He has used these methods to study microbial communities from diverse ecosystems, spanning wastewater treatment plants, thawing permafrost and the human microbiome.

Simon has been involved in the development of the innovative cultivation platform that is the foundation of the AHMB.

Charlotte Vivian

AHMB Facility Co-ordinator, Centre for Microbiome Research

Charlotte joined AHMB in 2024, where she oversees day-to-day operations, quality systems, and governance processes, ensuring the biobank meets all ethical, legal and regulatory requirements related to biobanking and donor confidentiality. She also manages key projects that support the strategic development and continuous improvement of the facility, including AHMB’s accreditation process with the National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA).

Prior to that, Charlotte worked at Microba Life Sciences where she isolated fastidious gut bacteria and helped assess their therapeutic efficacy in support of Microba’s Therapeutics programs. Several of these species were previously uncultured and her efforts have provided new insights into the functional capacities of these species.

Dr. James Volmer

Postdoctoral Researcher, Centre for Microbiome Research

Having completed his PhD in Microbiology at the University of Queensland in 2022, James has since been working to develop innovative high-throughput methods for culturing novel bacterial and archaea from human and other animal microbiomes.

James plays a leading role in AHMB’s scientific direction, overseeing research and development initiatives that advance our understanding of the human microbiome and its role in health and disease. He also provides expert input into the validation of biobanking processes to support AHMB’s compliance with national and international standards, including the ongoing accreditation process with the National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA).

Dr. Allison McInnes

Senior Flow Cytometry Scientist, Centre for Microbiome Research

As the Senior Flow Cytometry Scientist, Dr Allison McInnes oversees the Centre’s flow sorting facility. With a PhD in Biological Oceanography, Dr. McInnes has a strong background in microbial ecology. She has over 10 years in flow cytometry and cell sorting and has led the development of the high-throughput single-cell identification and isolation platform that feeds into the biobank.

Allison’s professional goal is to develop and optimise methodologies that will allow scientists to conduct microbial ecology on ecologically relevant time and space scales. High-throughput, inexpensive, yet detailed knowledge is required to understand microbes, their interactions, and their effects on their environments.

Ana Astorga Alsina

AHMB Senior Research Assistant, Centre for Microbiome Research

Ana is a Senior Research Assistant at AHMB, with a Research Masters in Infection and Immunity obtained from Erasmus University Rotterdam.

She has been a vital member of the AHMB laboratory team since joining in 2023 where she specialises in both anaerobic and aerobic isolation, cultivation and banking of microorganisms sourced from a wide range of microbiome body sites.

Beyond these technical responsibilities, Ana plays a key role in maintaining the biobank’s infrastructure and expertly manages sample tracking and data entry through AHMB’s custom-built Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS), ensuring accuracy and traceability throughout the biobanking process.

Siobhan Ingram

AHMB Senior Research Assistant, Centre for Microbiome Research

Siobhan is a Senior Research Assistant within the AHMB laboratory team, with an MPhil in Genomic Medicine from the University of Cambridge.

Since joining AHMB in 2022, Siobhan has been an essential contributor to the successful isolation, cultivation, and banking of both aerobic and anaerobic microorganisms derived from diverse microbiome body sites. As a skilled member of the flow cytometry (FACS) team, she is trained in the high-throughput isolation of microorganisms from complex mixed community samples, playing a pivotal role in advancing AHMB’s cutting-edge scientific research and capabilities.

Siobhan is also integral to the validation of biobanking processes, ensuring the accuracy, reliability, and compliance of AHMB’s operations.

Dr. Kaylyn Tousignant

Human Microbiome Project Manager and Scientific Writer, Centre for Microbiome Research

Dr Kaylyn Tousignant is a molecular biologist with a research interest in the role of the microbiome in human health and disease. At AHMB, she contributes to the development of our scientific content—including blog posts, documentation and reporting—to help communicate the biobank’s work to scientific, clinical and public audiences.

In addition to overseeing AHMB ethics, she helps coordinate activities with relevant stakeholders to support the biobank’s ongoing development and engagement efforts.