(DR. TANYA L. ALDERETE, PH.D.)

Tanya’s scientific journey began at the University of Pennsylvania, where she earned her BA in Biology with a concentration in neuroscience and a minor in chemistry. While at Penn and the University of Southern California, she discovered her love for research through studying learning and memory in songbirds. From electrophysiology to profusion studies, Tanya spent several years investigating how birds learn to sing — but she realized she wanted to move beyond animal models to study human health more directly.

That shift led her to Dr. Michael Goran’s group where she obtained her PhD. There, she studied the pathophysiology of obesity and type 2 diabetes. Tanya continued her training at USC as a postdoctoral fellow with Dr. Frank Gilliland, expanding her expertise in environmental epidemiology and launching projects at the intersection of air pollution, the gut microbiome, and chronic disease. With support from a prestigious NIH K99/R00 award, co-mentored by Drs. Gilliland and Rob Knight, she built an independent line of research that would become the foundation of her career.

In 2018, Tanya joined the University of Colorado Boulder as an Assistant Professor, where she established her research program and mentored the next generation of scientists. In 2024, she moved to Johns Hopkins University as an Associate Professor and founded the ECLIPSE Lab, which focuses on understanding how environmental exposures — from air pollution and PFAS to plastics — shape human health across the life course.

Today, Tanya leads a dynamic, interdisciplinary team studying the connections between the environment, the microbiome, and chronic diseases like obesity, diabetes, and cancer. Her journey from songbird research to cutting-edge human epidemiology reflects her curiosity, adaptability, and passion for tackling big questions about health and the environment.

When she’s not leading research projects or mentoring students, Tanya enjoys outdoor adventures with her family.