Jillian Taormina

Human evolution, disease, human gut microbiome, ancient DNA, adaptation to extreme environments

I am a biological anthropologist largely interested in how the human gut microbiome evolves in response to disease and extreme environments. I received my BA in Anthropology and Biology in 2025 from the University of Maine at Farmington, then completed a post-baccalaureate program at the University of Connecticut. My recent projects include sequencing bat microbiome samples to analyze bacterial, fungal, and viral composition of guano as it ages, and extracting DNA from ancient human samples to determine genomic signatures of selection and adaptation through time in Fuego-Patagonia.