Janelle Ayres, PhD

Professor and Laboratory Head

Gene Expression Laboratory

Molecular and Systems Physiology Laboratory

NOMIS Center for Immunobiology and Microbial Pathogenesis

Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator

Salk Institute Legacy Chair

Salk Institute for Biological Studies - News

News


Salk Professor Janelle Ayres named Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator

LA JOLLA—Salk Professor Janelle Ayres has been selected as a 2024 Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Investigator. The HHMI Investigators program awards established scientists with approximately $9 million in funding …


Salk Professor Janelle Ayres elected to American Academy of Microbiology

LA JOLLA—Salk Institute Professor Janelle Ayres has been elected to the American Academy of Microbiology’s Fellowship Class of 2024. Fellows of the Academy, an honorific leadership group within the American …


Why we lose fat and muscle during infection

LA JOLLA—Although infections can present with many different symptoms, one common symptom is the loss of fat and muscle, a process called wasting. Salk scientists wanted to know whether wasting …


All the immunity, none of the symptoms

LA JOLLA—Worldwide, more than a million deaths occur each year due to diarrheal diseases that lead to dehydration and malnutrition. Yet, no vaccine exists to fight or prevent these diseases, …


Salk Professor Janelle Ayres joins Cancer Grand Challenges team tackling cancer cachexia

LA JOLLA—An international team of researchers, including Salk Institute Professor Janelle Ayres, has been selected to receive a $25 million Cancer Grand Challenges award to tackle the challenge of cancer …


Salk Professor Janelle Ayres named inaugural recipient of the Salk Institute Legacy Chair

LA JOLLA—Professor Janelle Ayres has been recognized for her contributions and dedication to advancing science through research by being named the inaugural recipient of the Salk Institute Legacy Chair, effective …


Specific bacteria in the gut prompt mother mice to neglect their pups

LA JOLLA—As scientists learn more about the microorganisms that colonize the body—collectively called the microbiota—one area of intense interest is the effect that these microbes can have on the brain. …


Salk researchers accelerate, expand COVID-19 research

LA JOLLA—As the COVID-19 pandemic continues across the globe, the Salk Institute joins in efforts to understand the fundamental science behind the novel coronavirus to pave the way to treatments …


Salk promotes three leading scientists in the fields of infectious disease, neurobiology and biological networks

LA JOLLA—Three Salk Institute faculty members have been promoted after the latest round of faculty reviews determined they are scientific leaders who have made original, innovative and notable contributions to …


Salk’s Janelle Ayres awarded $1.8 million by NOMIS Foundation for novel research on mechanisms to promote health

LA JOLLA—Associate Professor Janelle Ayres has been awarded $1.8 million over two years by the NOMIS Foundation to study health as an active process in which microbes—including the trillions of …


Salk’s Janelle Ayres receives NIH Pioneer Award for novel approaches to infectious disease

LA JOLLA—Associate Professor Janelle Ayres has been awarded a 2018 NIH Director’s Pioneer Award by the National Institutes of Health for her innovative research into host-pathogen interactions that promote the …


Bribing bacteria to play nicely is good for everyone

LA JOLLA—Antibiotic use is driving an epidemic of antibiotic resistance, as more susceptible bacteria are killed but more resilient strains live on and multiply with abandon. But if antibiotics aren’t …


Janelle Ayres receives $1 million from W. M. Keck Foundation for infectious disease research

LA JOLLA—Associate Professor Janelle Ayres is the recipient of a $1 million grant from the W. M. Keck Foundation to study new ways to treat deadly infections including sepsis and …


Salk Institute’s Janelle Ayres wins Blavatnik National Award for Young Scientists

LA JOLLA—Salk Associate Professor Janelle Ayres has been named one of three winners of the Blavatnik National Awards for Young Scientists, one of the world’s largest unrestricted prizes for early …


Janelle Ayres is finalist for Blavatnik National Award for Young Scientists

LA JOLLA—Associate Professor Janelle Ayres is one of 31 US finalists selected to compete for the world’s largest unrestricted prizes for early career researchers, the Blavatnik National Awards for Young …


Salk promotes two dynamic scientists who study the microbiome and neurobiology

LA JOLLA—Two Salk Institute faculty members have been promoted based on their innovative and notable contributions to biological research.

Janelle Ayres and Axel Nimmerjahn were each promoted to the rank of …


Feed a cold, starve a fever? Not so fast, according to Salk research

LA JOLLA—The last time you had a stomach bug, you probably didn’t feel much like eating. This loss of appetite is part of your body’s normal response to an illness …


Genetic switch turned on during fasting helps stop inflammation

LA JOLLA—A molecular pathway that is activated in the brain during fasting helps halt the spread of intestinal bacteria into the bloodstream, according to a new study by a team …


‘Superhero’ microbiome bacteria protect against deadly symptoms during infection

LA JOLLA–As concerns over deadly antibiotic-resistant strains of ‘superbug’ bacteria grow, scientists at the Salk Institute are offering a possible solution to the problem: ‘superhero’ bacteria that live in the …


Janelle Ayres receives Young Faculty Award from DARPA

LA JOLLA–Salk Institute scientist Janelle Ayres has received an award of $500,000 over two years from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to further her research on bolstering a …


Salk scientist receives 2014 Ray Thomas Edwards Foundation Career Development Award

Janelle Ayres, Salk assistant professor in the Nomis Foundation Laboratories for Immunobiology and Microbial Pathogenesis, has been selected to receive the prestigious Ray Thomas Edwards Foundation Career Development Award. Only …


Salk microflora researcher Janelle Ayres named Searle Scholar

LA JOLLA—Janelle Ayres, assistant professor at Salk Institute’s Nomis Foundation Laboratories for Immunobiology and Microbial Pathogenesis, has received the prestigious Searle Scholar award, which each year is given to only …


Education

BA, Molecular & Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley
PhD, Microbiology & Immunology, Stanford University
Postdoctoral Fellow, University of California, Berkeley


Awards & Honors

  • Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, 2024
  • National Institutes of Health Pioneer Award, 2018
  • Blavatnik National Award for Young Scientists, 2018
  • Crohn's And Colitis Foundation Senior Research Award
  • DARPA Young Faculty Award, 2015
  • Ray Thomas Edwards Foundation Career Development Award, 2014
  • Searle Scholarship Award, 2014
  • Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award Postdoctoral Fellowship, NIH, 2010-2013
  • Sidney Raffel Award, Stanford University, Department of Microbiology & Immunology, 2008
  • Predoctoral Fellowship, National Science Foundation, 2004 - 2007
  • I.L. Chaikoff Memorial Award, University of California, Berkeley, 2002