Bio

Dr. Shikuma is an Associate Professor of Cell and Molecular Biology. He has made foundational scientific contributions to the fields of marine microbiology and symbiosis.

Dr. Shikuma’s research combines microbiology, genetics and developmental biology to study how bacteria stimulate the metamorphic development of marine animals and Contractile Injection Systems (CIS) in human gut bacteria that promote host-microbe associations.

Dr. Shikuma is a Sloan Foundation Fellow and recipient of an NSF CAREER award, NIH R35 MIRA grant, multiple Office of Naval Research (DOD, USA) grants and a Moore Foundation Symbiosis in Aquatic Systems grant.