Zuzana is currently in a postdoctoral position at the Laboratory of Parasitic Therapy (BC CAS), where she continues her research on the effects of the intestinal protozoan Blastocystis on the host organism. She is also involved in other projects within the laboratory. Her scientific journey began during her first year at the University of South Bohemia (JU), where she decided to focus her bachelor’s and master’s theses on Blastocystis. During her studies, she received two grants from the JU Student Grant Agency, both of which she successfully defended. Her bachelor’s project focused on the in vitro axenization of Blastocystis, while her master’s thesis concentrated on an epidemiological study of the occurrence of this protozoan in the healthy human population in the Czech Republic. During her PhD studies, Zuzana investigated the role of Blastocystis in the gut microbiome and the factors that influence its bacterial composition.
Education:
8/2019 – 5/2024: Ph.D. study; University of South Bohemia (Faculty of Science) and Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences; programe - Infectious Biology
2019: State rigorous exam in Parasitology
9/2017 – 6/2019: master studies at University of South Bohemia (FSci); program - Parasitology
9/2013 – 6/2017: bachelor studies at University of South Bohemia (FSci); program - Biology
2009 – 2013: Secondary Vocational School of Veterinary, Mechanization and Horticulture - veterinary field
Career outline:
3/2024 - now: postdoc - Laboratory of parasitic therapy; Biology Center, Institute of Parasitology, The Czech Academy of Sciences
12/2014 - 2/2024: research assistant - Laboratory of parasitic therapy; Biology Center, Institute of Parasitology, The Czech Academy of Sciences
Further work experience:
molecular biology, molecular diagnostics and cloning
sequence processing
experimental work with laboratory animals
axenic and xenic cultivation methods for intestinal protists
coproscopic techniques for the detection of intestinal parasites
analysis of the gut microbiome
non-invasive sampling and other common laboratory methods
Projects & internship
9-10/2022 – internship at the Statens Serum Institut (Copenhagen, Denmark) focused on the analysis of the gut microbiome
2020-2022 - Principal investigator of the individual GAJU project, entitled “Changes in the transcriptome of a commensal protist with possible functional impact on the host gut”
2018 - Principal investigator of the project supported by the Student Grant Agency (SGA) of the Faculty of Science of the University of South Bohemia, entitled „Study of Blastocystis in Human Microbiome“
6 –7/2017 – a short-term internship at the University of British Columbia (Canada): CD4 T-cell transfer model of colitis; Department of Microbiology and Immunology; under the direction of Lisa Osborne Ph.D.
2015 - Principal investigator of the project supported by the Student Grant Agency (SGA) of the Faculty of Science of the University of South Bohemia, entitled “Introduction of a Suitable Experimental in vitro Model for the Study of Intestinal Protozoa of the Genus Blastocystis”
Participation in the conferences:
9/2024: Blastocystis conference, Crete, Greece. "Occurrence of Blastocystis sp. in a Gut-Healthy Human Population and Their Animals in the Czech Republic and its impact on the gut microbiota" (poster)
8/2023: 29th International Conference of the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology, Chennai, India. „Occurrence of commensal intestinal protist, Blastocystis sp., in a gut-healthy human population and their animals in the Czech republic“ (oral presentation)
6/2022: 51. Jírovcovy protozoologické dny; Svratka: „Blastocystis colonization alters the gut microbiome and, in some cases, promotes faster recovery from induced colitis“ (poster)
5/2021: 3rd International Blastocystis conference, „Blastocystis colonization alters host immune response and gut microbiome“ (oral presentation)
4/2017: 47. Jírovcovy protozoologické dny; Nové Hrady: „Axenizace buněk střevního prvoka rodu Blastocystis“ (poster)
Supplementary education:
2024 -Blastocystis and the Gut Microbiome - a bioinformatics training school, Barcelona, Spain
2021 - Osvědčení o odborné způsobilosti k navrhování pokusů a projektů pokusů podle § 15d odst. 3 zákona č. 246/1992 Sb., na ochranu zvířat proti týrání, ve znění pozdějších předpisů
2021 – Osvědčení o odborné způsobilosti k navrhování pokusů a projektů pokusů podle § 15d odst. 3 zákona č. 246/1992 Sb., na ochranu zvířat proti týrání, ve znění pozdějších předpisů
