Hello all!
We, the Steering Committee of the SPAAM community would like to take a moment to introduce ourselves and give you all a quick idea of what we do.
The steering committee is intended to guide the SPAAM community in a more formalized way; this involves brainstorming and proposing new initiatives and helping new initiatives get off the ground (like the successfully launched SPAAMtisch), increasing engagement and support for SPAAM members and events, helping with ongoing organization efforts, publicization of SPAAM, and sourcing funds for the maintenance of SPAAM.
We all are volunteers on the Steering Committee and we are really excited to work with all of you and help improve the SPAAM community. From 2026 onwards, we will hold yearly elections for the Steering Committee, please contact the current Steering Committee if you would like to join for the next term. The roles within the Steering Committee are outlined here.
Introducing the new Steering Committee
Aida Andrades Valtueña (she/her) - Chair
I am a postdoc at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology working in the Computational Pathogenomics group. My main interest lies in pathogen emergence, dispersal and ecology and exploring new computational methods to make the most out of our little data! I am a passionate gardener, dog lover and a knitter.
Contact: aida_andrades@eva.mpg.de, X
Marcel Keller (he/him) - Secretary
I am a research fellow based at the University of Basel and affiliated with the University of Tartu. I work primarily on pathogens and humans and I am particularly interested in the integration of different methodologies and disciplines to explore the past. Contact: marcel.keller@unibas.ch
Maria Lopopolo (she/her) - Secretary
I am a postdoctoral researcher at the Institut Pasteur, Paris, France. I am interested in applying interdisciplinary approaches to the study of past populations from a genetic, anthropological, and metagenomic point of view. My passions include ballet training, reading novels, roller skating, and Italian food.
Contact: maria.lopopolo@pasteur.fr, X
Davide Bozzi (he/him) - Engagement Team
Hello! My name is Davide! I am a PhD student in the field of Ancient Metagenomics with a focus on the study of the evolution of human pathogens. Originally from Italy, I am currently based at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland in the computational biology department.
Contact: davide.bozzi@unil.ch
Sierra Blunt (she/her) - Engagement Team
I’m a PhD candidate in Biological Anthropology at the University of Bordeaux at the PACEA lab. My research mainly focuses on investigating the evolution of ancient oral microbiomes in response to cultural and demographic changes in the past. In my free time, I enjoy cooking, hiking, gardening, knitting, and hanging out with my dog and two cats!
Contact: sierra.blunt@u-bordeaux.fr
Wenqin Yu (he/him) - Engagement Team
I’m a PhD student in the school of life sciences at Peking University. My research primarily focus on analyzing the oral microbiome from ancient dental calculus and screening potential pathogens by metagenomics tools. I enjoy hiking, running, climbing and martial arts in my spare time.
Contact: yuwq@stu.pku.edu.cn
Anastasia Brativnyk (she/her) - Engagement Team
I am a PhD student at the Ancient Genomics Laboratory at the Francis Crick Institute, London. My research focuses on paleoepidemiological analysis of metagenomes from Britain, aiming to understand the prevalence and dynamics of infectious diseases in the past. Outside of the lab, I enjoy bouldering, salsa, and roller skating. When I visit wintery landscapes, I happily trade these for ice skating, snowboarding, and cross-country skiing with my family dog.
Contact: anastasia.brativnyk@crick.ac.uk
Mariana Escobar-Rodríguez (she/her) - Social Media Team
I’m a PhD student at the Microbial Paleogenomics unit of the Pasteur Institute, Paris. I am interested in investigating the impact of European colonization of the Southern Cone of the Americas from both a microbial and human genetics perspective. I enjoy cinema and Mexican pastries.
Contact: mescobar@pasteur.fr
Joanna H. Romeyer-Dherbey (Bonczarowska) (she/her) - Social Media Team
I am a physical and molecular anthropologist interested in studying health and disease in past populations. My research integrates genomics of bacterial pathogens and multicellular parasites, human immuno- and population genetics, and osteological analysis of human skeletal remains. Currently, I am a postdoc at the Massilani Lab, Yale School of Medicine.
Contact: joanna.bonczarowska@yale.edu
Rémi Denise (he/him) - Treasury Team
I’m a postdoctoral researcher at APC Microbiome Ireland, based at University College Cork. My primary focus is on bacteriophages in ancient metagenomes, particularly dental calculus and paleofeces. I’m particularly interested in developing and applying various methodologies to detect and discover bacteriophages in ancient samples, and exploring their interactions with their bacterial hosts.
Contact: rdenise@ucc.ie
Laura Carrillo-Olivas (she/her) - Treasury Team
I am a PhD candidate in the department of Biological Sciences at the International Laboratory for Human Genome Research (LIIGH), UNAM. Mexico. My main research focuses are ancient pathogens. I love traveling, watching anime and going to the theater.
Contact: lcarrilloolivas@liigh.unam.mx, X
Previous Steering Committee Members
Miriam Bravo-Lopez (she/her) - Chair
I am a Mexican postdoctoral researcher at the International Laboratory for Human Genome Research (LIIGH), UNAM. My passion lies in exploring the evolutionary journey of ancient human pathogens using paleogenomics and paleoproteomics. I find solace hanging out with dogs, and when it comes to activities, running is my top pick.
Contact: mbravo@liigh.unam.mx, twitter
Ian Light-Máka (he/him) - Secretary
I am a PhD student at the Max-Planck-Institute for Infection Biology in Felix Key’s lab. I study ancient pathogen evolution and emergence through a molecular evolution lens! I am also very interested in bioethics and spend lots of time making art.
Contact: light@mpiib-berlin.mpg.de, twitter
Gunnar Neumann (he/him) - Treasurer
I am a PhD candidate in the department of archaeogenetics at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany. My main research focuses are ancient pathogens and pathogen evolution. I love going to the theater, dance and art exhibitions, traveling, hiking and gardening.
Contact: gunnar_neumann@eva.mpg.de, twitter
Betsy (Elizabeth Nelson) (she/her) - Treasurer
I am a postdoc at the Institut Pasteur in Paris, France, and a faculty member of the Summer internship for INdigenous peoples in Genomics (SING) Canada. My research examines the emergence, evolution, and spread of infectious diseases in contexts marked by climatic, cultural, environmental, and socio-political transitions. I’m slightly obsessed with Logan Bean, dog-extraordinaire; But I also love making ceramics, gardening, hiking, and fishing.
Contact: enelson@pasteur.fr, twitter
Maria Lopopolo (she/her) - Social Media Team
I am a PhD student at the Institut Pasteur, Paris, France. I am interested in applying interdisciplinary approaches to the study of past populations from a genetic, anthropological, and metagenomic point of view. My passions include ballet training, reading novels, roller skating, and Italian food.
Contact: twitter, maria.lopopolo@pasteur.fr (email).
Kadir Toykan Özdoğan (he/him) - Social Media Team
I am a PhD student, working on sedimentary ancient DNA to investigate the lifestyle of the Roman Limes people as a part of the “Constructing the Limes” project. I am based at the Utrecht University and Wageningen University & Research. I love basketball, beer-tasting and science fiction!
Contact: k.t.ozdogan@uu.nl, twitter
Aida Andrades Valtueña (she/her) - Engagement Team
I am a postdoc at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology working in the Computational Pathogenomics group. My main interest lies in pathogen emergence, dispersal and ecology and exploring new computational methods to make the most out of our little data! I am a passionate gardener, dog lover and a knitter.
Contact: aida_andrades@eva.mpg.de, twitter, @aidanva
Shreya Ramachandran (she/her) - Engagement Team
I am a PhD student in Dr. Maanasa Raghavan’s lab at the University of Chicago. My research projects span a variety of topics in microbial evolution, from ancient pathogens to modern gut microbiomes. I am also interested in science teaching and communication. Outside of science I love trying new recipes, befriending other people’s dogs, and solving crossword puzzles (sometimes competitively).
Contact: shreya23@uchicago.edu, twitter
