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Prof Francine Marques

@fzmarques.bsky.social
1.2K followers 1.2K following 164 posts

Viertel, NHMRC & Heart Foundation Fellow & #Hypertension Lab Head at Monash University. Gut #microbiome, 🐶 lover, #Cancer survivor, Australian Academy of Science Gottschalk🏅she/her. Always an ally

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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 16/06/2026
📢New paper alert Cardiovascular-Kidney-Metabolic (CKM) syndrome is officially recognised as a single, multi-organ continuum Our new review in Gut Microbes points to a critical, overlooked culprit: the gut microbiome ➡️https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/19490976.2026.2685906#abstract
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Gut Microbiota for Health @gmfhx.bsky.social · 18/02/2026
Gut‑derived bacteria can migrate into the brain after a stroke  ‪@fzmarques.bsky.social & colleagues‬ found that blocking sympathetic tone decreases gut permeability, brain bacterial load, and improves motor outcomes without changing infarct size:
tinyurl.com
Gut bacteria presence in the brain is increased after ischemic stroke in mice
Systemic infections are a common cause of complications and death after stroke. These infections can occur due to the breakdown of the gut epithelial barrier and the translocation of bacteria from ...
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 02/02/2026
New paper from our team 🧠🦠 After stroke, gut‑derived bacteria can migrate into the brain Blocking sympathetic tone ↓ gut permeability, ↓ brain bacterial load, and improves motor outcomes—without changing infarct size Congrats to Dr Alex Peh! www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
tandfonline.com
Gut bacteria presence in the brain is increased after ischemic stroke in mice
Systemic infections are a common cause of complications and death after stroke. These infections can occur due to the breakdown of the gut epithelial barrier and the translocation of bacteria from ...
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Svetlana Ugarcina Perovic @svetlanaup.bsky.social · 14/01/2026
New #MicrobiomeDigest is OUT microbiomedigest.com/2026/01/14/j... • gut microbiome / @fasnicar.bsky.social • maternal microbiome / @fzmarques.bsky.social • bark microbiome / @bobpmleung.bsky.social See you next week at #MVIF 45 (@microbiomevif.bsky.social)!
microbiomedigest.com
January 14, 2026
See you at MVIF next week! Gut microbiomeEarly-life colonization by aromatic-lactate-producing bifidobacteria lowers the risk of allergic sensitization – Pernille Neve Myers – Nature Microbiology&n…
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 13/01/2026
Excited to host Tim at the Victorian Heart Institute Limited space, please sign up below And thanks for sharing @monashnutrition.bsky.social
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 13/01/2026
Our first paper of 2026 is out When we began this project, this was not the paper we set out to publish But science has a way of redirecting us toward the questions we should be asking #Microbiome researchers-this one’s for you www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.... 🧵
tandfonline.com
The maternal microbiome influence on pregnancy success: breeding comparison of germ-free and conventionalized mice
Germ-free (GF) animals, which are entirely devoid of all microorganisms, are one of the most powerful tools for studying the role of the microbiome in a phenotype, moving the microbiome field from ...
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 08/01/2026
Excited to welcome Tim to our institute If you are in Melbourne and are interested in heart health and diet this will be a great event 👇👇👇
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 08/01/2026
I was asked to share my Hypertension Australia Colin Johnston lecture, delivered at the joint Hypertension Australia-@ASCEPTanz last month in Adelaide So if you missed it, here it is: www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qZn... #microbiome #hypertension #bloodpressure #resistantstarches #shortchainfattyacids
youtube.com
2025 Hypertension Australia Colin Johnston Lecture, delivered by Prof Francine Marques
YouTube video by Francine Marques
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 05/01/2026
Announcing our lab annual award winners 🏆 Every year, our team votes on team members who contributed towards helping behaviours, something we fail to capture in promotion and fellowship applications Here are the 2025 award winners:
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 09/12/2025
Lab presentations at the joint @ascept.bsky.social and Hypertension Australia meeting this week 🤩 #hypertension #microbiome #immunesystem
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 09/12/2025
✅ New preprint alert, led by final year PhD student Evany Dinakis 📄 Read it here: www.medrxiv.org/content/10.6... 🧬 Key insights: Gut microbiome composition and colonic pH are linked to systemic immune profiles in humans #microbiome #microbiota #immunesystem @microbiomevif.bsky.social
medrxiv.org
The gut microbiome and colonic pH shape the peripheral immune landscape in humans
The physicochemical environment of the gut, particularly colonic pH, plays a critical role in shaping host-microbe interactions; yet its influence on systemic immunity in humans remains poorly underst...
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 04/12/2025
Congratulations to @rikeish.bsky.social, awarded the Victorian Cardiovascular Research Network inaugural award for best ECR paper of the year in the discovery category #microbiome #bloodpressure Kicking goals 👏👏👏 Full paper 👇👇👇 www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/...
ahajournals.org
Gut Microbiota Metabolites Sensed by Host GPR41/43 Protect Against Hypertension | Circulation Research
BACKGROUND: Fermentation of dietary fiber by the gut microbiota leads to the production of metabolites called short-chain fatty acids, which lower blood pressure and exert cardioprotective effects. Sh...
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 01/12/2025
Congratulations to Rikeish R Muralitharan His major PhD paper published in Circulation Research in February 2025 is already a WoS Highly Cited paper 🤩 lnkd.in/gMbx5HyA
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 01/12/2025
As our former PhD student Dr Anna Beale used to say: ✨ Women are not small men ✨ Last year, we showed in Circulation Research that maternal fibre intake during pregnancy protects offspring hearts via gut microbial metabolites (SCFAs) 🔗https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.124.324614
ahajournals.org
Maternal Diet and Gut Microbiota Influence Predisposition to Cardiovascular Disease in Offspring | Circulation Research
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Rikeish R Muralitharan MD, PhD @rikeish.bsky.social · 17/11/2025
Thank you for the recognition! Grateful for the support from @fzmarques.bsky.social and Malindi, PhD student, lead coordinator for the study. Also to High BP Foundation for the seed funding!
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 30/10/2025
Or as Brene Brown wrote “You can either invest a reasonable amount of time attending to fears and feelings, or squander an unreasonable amount of time trying to manage ineffective and unproductive behavior"
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 30/10/2025
Gold thesis titles in this thread 🤣
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 30/10/2025
A great honour to receive the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences Jian Zhou Medal last night from the Minister Mark Butler and AAHMS President Prof Louise Baur, alongside the other amazing medalist Prof Britta Regli-von Ungern-Sternberg
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 12/10/2025
Congratulations Dr Lizzie Kleeman, Dr Carol Gubert, @anthonyjhannan.bsky.social & co-authors 👏👏👏 Thank you for the invitation for @rikeish.bsky.social and I to help with the #microbiome analysis requested by reviewers - a pleasure to work with you as always @natureportfolio.nature.com
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 02/10/2025
Congratulations to our PhD student Evany Dinakis who completed her final milestone today, delivering a fantastic presentation 👏👏👏 an example of great science communication skills + great science #microbiome #bloodpressure @monashuniversity.bsky.social
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 20/09/2025
If you missed Dr Chudan Xu's talk on what happens when we don't eat enough fibre, the preprint is now live 👇 www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1... #EESMicrobiome @events.embl.org
medrxiv.org
Lack of dietary fibre increases gut microbiome-derived uremic toxins that contribute to increased blood pressure
Insufficient dietary fibre intake is a known risk factor for high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease, yet its mechanistic basis remains unclear. Here, we identify a gut microbial pathway linkin...
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 20/09/2025
Big thank you to @events.embl.org, @cibiocm.bsky.social, @borklab.bsky.social, Mani Arumugam & @amibhatt.bsky.social for a wonderful microbiome conference #EESMicrobiome My team and I had a great time, learned lots, met lots of inspiring researchers & made friends ✅ @monashuniversity.bsky.social
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 18/09/2025
Thank you so much for having me @events.embl.org What a great conference this has been! We are definitely coming back 🤩 #eesmicrobiome
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 17/09/2025
Proud of our team members Dr Chudan Xu and Phoebe Cheong for being brave and asking (great) questions at @embl.org #EESMicrobiome 👏👏👏
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 17/09/2025
Incredibly honoured to be the recipient of the 2025 Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences Jian Zhou medal aahms.org/news/two-pio... Presenting on this topic tomorrow at @embl.org #EESmicrobiome in the beautiful Heidelberg @monashuniversity.bsky.social
aahms.org
Two pioneering researchers awarded 2025 Jian Zhou Medals - AAHMS
The Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences has awarded the 2025 Jian Zhou Medal to two outstanding mid-career researchers whose work is transform ...
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Microbiome Virtual International Forum @microbiomevif.bsky.social · 15/09/2025
#GloMiNe recordings now available!! @cassyni.bsky.social ▶️ cassyni.com/s/mvif-glomi... YouTube ▶️ www.youtube.com/playlist?lis... @microbiotavault.bsky.social #MVIF Thanks @tosina.bsky.social for putting all up.
youtube.com
GloMiNe 2025 by Microbiota Vault and MVIF - 9th/11th September 2025 - YouTube
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 14/09/2025
I’m here 🙌 🥳 If someone wants to catch up for coffee or a meal tomorrow let me know @borklab.bsky.social @cibiocm.bsky.social @luispedrocoelho.bsky.social
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 13/09/2025
Starting my journey from Australia to Heidelberg 🇩🇪 to the @embl.org Human Microbiome conference It’s not every day we get the chance of 4 days of human microbiome research 🤩🤩🤩 I’m so excited Still chance to attend it online 👇 www.embl.org/about/info/c...
embl.org
The human microbiome
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Microbiome Virtual International Forum @microbiomevif.bsky.social · 11/09/2025
Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social talks about Preserving microbial diversity: An Australian perspective
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Katrina Ray @heykatray.bsky.social · 04/09/2025
#microsky #gastrosky 🧪
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 03/09/2025
Our new @natrevgastrohep.nature.com review is now online "Parental diet and offspring health: a role for the gut microbiome via epigenetics" Co-authors Chaoran Yang, @mattsnelson.bsky.social & Sam El-Osta A fascinating area of research with lots of potential nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
Parental diet and offspring health: a role for the gut microbiome via epigenetics - Nature Reviews Gastroenterology & Hepatology
In this Review, Marques and colleagues discuss the evidence regarding the effects of parental diet on the health of offspring, with a focus on how changes to the gut microbiome alter epigenomic respon...
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Microbiome Virtual International Forum @microbiomevif.bsky.social · 22/08/2025
✨Pacific Session speakers✨ Gloria Dominguez-Bello Adrian Egli Safarina Malik @meghanazad.bsky.social ‬ Thomas Sharpton @gilbertjacka.bsky.social David Mills Kate Bowerman Takuji Yamada @fzmarques.bsky.social ‬ @calumwalsh.bsky.social 3/3
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Microbiome Virtual International Forum @microbiomevif.bsky.social · 03/09/2025
#MeetTheSpeakers #GloMiNe2025 Pacific event closing talks: Preserving microbial diversity: An Australian perspective by @fzmarques.bsky.social and Rational Engineering of Live Bacterial Therapeutics from a Human Microbiome Biobank by @calumwalsh.bsky.social 10/10
GloMiNe Pacific event
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 15/08/2025
So proud 🤩 well done @rikeish.bsky.social and Malindi That’s our 2nd RCT and 5th human study, aimed at producing high quality evidence of how the gut #microbiome contributes to #bloodpressure
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ISHR Australasian Section @ishr-aus.bsky.social · 14/08/2025
🌟 Thanks to everyone who joined our ECI Networking Event! We loved seeing such vibrant discussions on career development and research, led by the brilliant @fzmarques.bsky.social, @milesdeblasio.bsky.social and Rebecca Ritchie. Here’s to more collaboration and connection! 💬🔬 #CSANZ2025
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ISHR Australasian Section @ishr-aus.bsky.social · 15/08/2025
🚨 Happening now at #CSANZ2025! Join the ECI panel in Mezzanine 3 for a lively discussion on the pros & cons of doing an overseas postdoc 🌏🔬Hear real experiences, ask questions, and get inspired! @fzmarques.bsky.social @dr-yktham.bsky.social
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ISHR Australasian Section @ishr-aus.bsky.social · 15/08/2025
Huge thank you to our amazing panellists for such thoughtful and inspiring conversations at today’s ECI Luncheon session 🙌 Over 50 attendees joined us to hear about the real pros & cons of doing an overseas postdoc #CSANZ2025 @fzmarques.bsky.social @dr-yktham.bsky.social @milesdeblasio.bsky.social
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 15/08/2025
Congratulations to @rikeish.bsky.social for winning the ISHR Postdoctoral publication prize for his paper “Gut Microbiota Metabolites Sensed by Host GPR41/43 Protect Against Hypertension” published in Circulation Research 👇 www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/... (I received it on his behalf 🙂)
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Seth Bordenstein @symbionticism.bsky.social · 16/06/2025
🎙️ INVITATION to A Special Lecture for World Microbiome Day | Register here: lnkd.in/ejPZMxgP Join us on JUNE 27th at 10 AM EDT for a pivotal webinar featuring Professor CURTIS HUTTENHOWER, a renowned authority in computational biology and microbiome science. www.psu.edu/news/huck-in...
psu.edu
Human microbiome pioneer to deliver World Microbiome Day lecture | Penn State University
Curtis Huttenhower, professor of computational biology and bioinformatics at the Harvard School of Public Health, will deliver a lecture to the Penn State community in honor of World Microbiome Day. T...
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Helena Klara Jambor @helenajambor.bsky.social · 18/06/2025
I gave in! After students asking for it, I now made a simple figure design checklist. To help all scientists w/o graphic skills create clear, accessible, and truthful charts! -> Out in @nature Cell Biology: rdcu.be/erwl4 #DataVisualization #PhD #SciComm Thx for review @bethcimini.bsky.social + 2
rdcu.be
A checklist for designing and improving the visualization of scientific data
Nature Cell Biology - Creating clear and engaging scientific figures is crucial to communicate complex data. In this Comment, I condense principles from design, visual perception and data...
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 10/06/2025
Today I went to my daughter’s childcare to talk to the toddlers about heart health and gut microbes ❤️ They were very excited to tell me about their fav fruits and veggies Big thanks to @cibiocm.bsky.social for the toy microbes 🦠🙏 @monashuniversity.bsky.social
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 03/06/2025
Love this quote by Ed Catmull (Pixar) “If you give a good idea to a mediocre team, they’ll screw it up. But if you give a mediocre idea to a great team, they’ll make it work.” Team psychological safety is one of the key elements of building great teams
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 02/06/2025
Our paper published in Card Res and our new trial were featured in the Herald Sun today 👇👇👇 Link to newspaper: www.heraldsun.com.au/health/diet/... Link to paper: academic.oup.com/cardiovascre... Link to trial: www.marqueslab.com/trials
heraldsun.com.au
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 27/05/2025
It was graduation day today 🤩 Congratulations to Dr Chudan Xu & 2 of honours students who graduated today 🤩 and a big thanks to our amazing team for helping to celebrate it (wait until she sees her desk tomorrow 🥹) @monashuniversity.bsky.social @monashbiol.bsky.social
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 26/05/2025
Found this awesome paper on building a positive research culture - worth a read "Leaders with empathy and respect, who prioritize people and understand boundaries, set the foundations for a positive research culture." onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
<em>Immunology & Cell Biology</em> | ASI Journal | Wiley Online Library
Positive research cultures provide the environment for scientists to explore ideas, grow as individuals, develop team science and create a positive impact on those around them. Here we focus on key a...
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 26/05/2025
This is in line with building a psychological safe research culture, that is fundamental for innovation and impact www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/...
ahajournals.org
Rethinking Culture to Unlock the Potential of Medical Research | Hypertension
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 26/05/2025
You can also read about our vision, mission and strategy, and how it aligns with our values and stakeholders (summarised in the figure below) on our website www.marqueslab.com/manual
marqueslab.com
Lab manual | Marques Laboratory
Read our lab manual to learn more about our culture
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 26/05/2025
“Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become" James Clear We just updated our #labmanual after our team revisited our key values: -Respect -Curiosity -Fulfilment Read about the behaviours expected & how they apply to DEI at www.marqueslab.com/manual
marqueslab.com
Lab manual | Marques Laboratory
Read our lab manual to learn more about our culture
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 26/05/2025
Our review on the gut-heart axis published in Circ Res is now out www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/... We cover gut #microbiome, 'leaky gut', foods & metabolites, +++ Congratulations @mattsnelson.bsky.social @rikeish.bsky.social and our co-authors 👏
ahajournals.org
American Heart Association Journals
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Prof Francine Marques @fzmarques.bsky.social · 26/05/2025
#microbiome #bloodpressure #hypertension #microbiota #shortchainfattyacids #dietaryfibre
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