Fatima started as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biology at Tufts University in the Fall of 2024. For her PhD, she studied bacteriophage-driven evolution of marine microbes with Martin Polz at MIT. Her previous work focused on near-term resistance evolution to lytic phages in bacteria of the genus Vibrio, and the role of lysogenic phages in shaping Vibrio genomic diversity. She then joined the Kwon Lab at the Ragon Institute for her Postdoc where she was awarded the Schmidt Science Fellowship to study the vaginal microbiome from a clinical perspective in the context of (1) designing the first multi-strain Lactobacillus crispatus probiotic to treat bacterial vaginosis and (2) determining efficacy of the first double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial of vaginal microbiota transplantations (VMT) to treat BV. Now, in her own lab, she aims to go back to her roots and take an ecological and evolutionary approach to better understand the bacteria and phages living in the human vagina. Ultimately, she aims to use her research to design ecologically-informed microbial therapeutics for women’s health. Prior to becoming a microbiologist, Fatima studied Environmental Engineering and Women’s and Gender Studies at MIT and Stanford. In her free time, she enjoys hosting dinner parties, culturing sourdough, dismantling the patriarchy, yoga, and gardening.