Ph.D.
Trinh Nguyen Thi

"1. Seoul National University College of Medicine, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Seoul/ 2. Seoul National University Medical Research Center, Institute of Endemic Diseases, Seoul "

**Title: Investigation of mucus-degradation pathway in Selenomonas sputigena and its potential in maintaining lung homeostasis**

Trinh Nguyen Thi^1,2, Yukyung Kim^1,3, Ye-Ji Bang^1,2,3

¹Seoul National University College of Medicine, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Seoul, Republic of Korea

²Seoul National University Medical Research Center, Institute of Endemic Diseases, Seoul, Republic of Korea

³Seoul National University College of Medicine, Department of Biomedical Science, Seoul, Republic of Korea

Abstract

Asthma is one of the most common non-communicable diseases in adults and the single most common chronic disease among children. Symptoms of asthma may include trouble breathing, wheezing, coughing, and tightness in the chest, whereas asthma attacks are characterized by progressively increasing symptoms and severe breathing difficulties. Overall, the underlying pathogenic mechanisms of asthma remain poorly understood, though genetic studies have been increasingly able to identify more gene markers and loci related to asthma susceptibility (Salman et al., 2023). Our research collaboration showed that the asthma group had a significant reduction in the abundance of several bacteria, including Selenomonas, compared to non-asthma controls. Administration of Selenomonas alleviated asthma symptoms in a mouse model, suggesting its potential as a microbiome therapeutic (Kim et al., 2022). Selenomonas sputigena was discovered decades ago, but there is little knowledge about its physiological and genetic characteristics, both in vivo and in vitro. Interestingly, some studies suggest Selenomonas as an oral pathogen, but the virulence factors and disease-causing abilities remain unknown. Therefore, it is necessary to dissect the molecular mechanisms by which Selenomonas interacts with the human immune system and regulates health to inform its therapeutic applications. We have developed the genetic toolbox (Nguyen et al., 2025a) and accessed the central metabolic pathways and functional genes (Nguyen et al., 2025b). In our next study, we aimed to investigate the mucin-degrading pathways present in this bacterium to explore its potential to reduce mucus thickness in asthma patients and maintain lung homeostasis.

Keywords: Selenomonas sputigena, Central metabolism, Genetic Toolbox, Asthma, Human microbiome

Biography of the presenting author

I am a Postdoctoral Research Fellow specializing in bacterial cell biology, metabolic engineering, and microbial-host interactions. I graduated with my Ph.D. degree in Chemical Engineering from Pusan National University (South Korea), and master’s degree in microbiology from VNUHCM (Viet Nam). I have developed expertise in pathway engineering, bacterial strain modification, and gene regulation to construct the industrial strains which yielded high titer of 3-hydroxypropionic acid from cheap carbon sources, glycerol using our lab isolated strain Pseudomonas asiatica. Currently at Seoul National University, my research explores host–microbe–nutrient interactions, including Selenomonas sputigena in asthma and other gut microbiome regulation in colorectal cancer.