Rehab El Shehawy Researcher

Researcher (Docent) in Environmental Science.

Dept. of Environmental Science.

About me:

I am a microbiologist/molecular biologist by studies and work experience. 25+ years of research and teaching in Microbiology.

BSc in Microbiology (1993), MSc in Microbiology (1997), Ph.D. in Microbiology (2001), Docent in Environmental Science (2021).

My work coheres around a single theme: how prokaryotic and microbiome-mediated molecular processes control toxin dynamics and neuroactive signaling from aquatic ecosystems to the animal gut.

Over the past 25 years, my research has focused on how prokaryotic and microbiome-mediated molecular processes shape toxin dynamics and synthesis of key neurotransmitter synthesis across aquatic ecosystems and animal gut environments. I first dissected the genetic regulation of cell differentiation and nitrogen fixation in filamentous cyanobacteria, linking heterocyst development to the expression of key nitrogenase and patterning genes, and then characterized the expression of cyanobacterial gene clusters responsible for the biosynthesis of potent hepatotoxic cyanotoxins of concern for wildlife and human health. Building on this, I investigated the gene expression of heterotrophic bacteria that biodegrade cyanotoxins within harmful cyanobacterial blooms, demonstrating how such detoxifying microbial communities modulate toxin exposure and fitness in keystone grazers such as Daphnia. I subsequently extended this work into host–microbiome interactions in Daphnia, showing how the composition and function of the Daphnia gut microbiome influence host development, stress tolerance, and life‑history traits, including the microbiota’s capacity to synthesize the neuroactive metabolite L‑Dopa and Dopamine as components of a gut–brain signaling axis. Currently, I am trying to translate these ecological and mechanistic insights to the human context by quantifying L‑Dopa production by probiotics and exploring how harnessing similar microbial pathways within the human gut microbiome could be leveraged to promote health via microbiome‑targeted neuromodulation.

Examples of Current Projects

• Next-generation probiotics as food supplements.
• Microbiota-dependent and independent production of L-Dopa/Dopamine and role in Daphnia' development and fitness. 
  
• Use of visual artistic methods to communicate Microbiology to the public and to promote youth engagments.