I seek to understand how variations in the human diet affects the composition and function of the gut microbiome. Using an evolutionary perspective, I aim to probe how these changes in led to unique metabolic functions of the human gut microbiome and how it is both conserved across populations and derived from our closest relatives. Currently, I work on projects that consider how cohabitation shifts microbial communities, investigate if extreme energy expenditure selects for microbes that metabolically benefit the host, and characterize the microbiome of distinct wild chimpanzee populations and environmental factors that may drive variation between populations.