Research Interests

The focus of my previous work was centered around biocomplexity and how our immune system communicates with our microbiome, as well as how these interactions affect female reproductive disorders such as endometriosis and preterm birth. Thus, as my next step in my career, I want to continue to focus on using molecular biology techniques in order to gain a mechanistic understanding of the interactions between the immune system and mucosal microbial dynamics.

Molecular and Cellular Biological Techniques

• Quantitative PCR
• ELIZA’s
• FACs
• Immunohistochemistry
• Western Blot
• Mammalian Cell Culture
• Microbiome Bioinformatics

Education and training

2016 – 2021  Ph.D., Medical Microbiology, Immunology and Cell Biology, Southern Illinois University School of Medicine

2014 – 2016  M.S., Public Health, Southern Illinois University Carbondale

2009 – 2010  M.S., Epidemiology, Washington University in St. Louis

2004 – 2008  B.A., Biochemistry, Westminster College

Peer-reviewed Publications

1. Le N, Cregger M, Brown V, Loret de Mola J, Bremer P, et al. (2021)Association of microbial dynamics with urinary estrogens and estrogen metabolites in patients with endometriosis. PLOS ONE 16(12): e0261362. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0261362
2. Le NXH, Loret de Mola JR, Bremer P, Groesch K, Wilson T, Diaz-Sylvester P, Braundmeier-Fleming AG. Alteration of systemic and uterine endometrial immune populations in patients with endometriosis. Am J Reprod Immunol. 2021 Mar;85(3):e13362. doi: 10.1111/aji.13362. Epub 2020 Oct 29. PMID: 33070438.
3. Brazel DM, Jiang Y, Hughey JM, Turcot V, Zhan X, Gong J, Batini C, Weissenkampen JD, Liu M; CHD Exome+ Consortium; Consortium for Genetics of Smoking Behaviour, Barnes DR, Bertelsen S, Chou YL, Erzurumluoglu AM, Faul JD, Haessler J, Hammerschlag AR, Hsu C, Kapoor M, Lai D, Le N, de Leeuw CA, Loukola A, Mangino M, Melbourne CA, Pistis G, Qaiser B, Rohde R, Shao Y, Stringham H, Wetherill L, Zhao W, Agrawal A, Bierut L, Chen C, Eaton CB, Goate A, Haiman C, Heath A, Iacono WG, Martin NG, Polderman TJ, Reiner A, Rice J, Schlessinger D, Scholte HS, Smith JA, Tardif JC, Tindle HA, van der Leij AR, Boehnke M, Chang-Claude J, Cucca F, David SP, Foroud T, Howson JMM, Kardia SLR, Kooperberg C, Laakso M, Lettre G, Madden P, McGue M, North K, Posthuma D, Spector T, Stram D, Tobin MD, Weir DR, Kaprio J, Abecasis GR, Liu DJ, Vrieze S. Exome Chip Meta-analysis Fine Maps Causal Variants and Elucidates the Genetic Architecture of Rare Coding Variants in Smoking and Alcohol Use. Biol Psychiatry. 2019 Jun 1;85(11):946-955. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2018.11.024. Epub 2018 Dec 6. Pubmed PMID:30679032
4. Erzurumluoglu AM, Liu M, Jackson VE, Barnes DR, Datta G, Melbourne CA, Young R, Batini C, Surendran P, Jiang T, Adnan SD, Afaq S, Agrawal A, Altmaier E, Antoniou AC, Asselbergs FW, Baumbach C, Bierut L, Bertelsen S, Boehnke M, Bots ML, Brazel DM, Chambers JC, Chang-Claude J, Chen C, Corley J, Chou YL, David SP, de Boer RA, de Leeuw CA, Dennis JG, Dominiczak AF, Dunning AM, Easton DF, Eaton C, Elliott P, Evangelou E, Faul JD, Foroud T, Goate A, Gong J, Grabe HJ, Haessler J, Haiman C, Hallmans G, Hammerschlag AR, Harris SE, Hattersley A, Heath A, Hsu C, Iacono WG, Kanoni S, Kapoor M, Kaprio J, Kardia SL, Karpe F, Kontto J, Kooner JS, Kooperberg C, Kuulasmaa K, Laakso M, Lai D, Langenberg C, Le N, Lettre G, Loukola A, Luan J, Madden PAF, Mangino M, Marioni RE, Marouli E, Marten J, Martin NG, McGue M, Michailidou K, Mihailov E, Moayyeri A, Moitry M, Müller-Nurasyid M, Naheed A, Nauck M, Neville MJ, Nielsen SF, North K, Perola M, Pharoah PDP, Pistis G, Polderman TJ, Posthuma D, Poulter N, Qaiser B, Rasheed A, Reiner A, Renström F, Rice J, Rohde R, Rolandsson O, Samani NJ, Samuel M, Schlessinger D, Scholte SH, Scott RA, Sever P, Shao Y, Shrine N, Smith JA, Starr JM, Stirrups K, Stram D, Stringham HM, Tachmazidou I, Tardif JC, Thompson DJ, Tindle HA, Tragante V, Trompet S, Turcot V, Tyrrell J, Vaartjes I, van der Leij AR, van der Meer P, Varga TV, Verweij N, Völzke H, Wareham NJ, Warren HR, Weir DR, Weiss S, Wetherill L, Yaghootkar H, Yavas E, Jiang Y, Chen F, Zhan X, Zhang W, Zhao W, Zhao W, Zhou K, Amouyel P, Blankenberg S, Caulfield MJ, Chowdhury R, Cucca F, Deary IJ, Deloukas P, Di Angelantonio E, Ferrario M, Ferrières J, Franks PW, Frayling TM, Frossard P, Hall IP, Hayward C, Jansson JH, Jukema JW, Kee F, Männistö S, Metspalu A, Munroe PB, Nordestgaard BG, Palmer CNA, Salomaa V, Sattar N, Spector T, Strachan DP; Understanding Society Scientific Group, EPIC-CVD, GSCAN, Consortium for Genetics of Smoking Behaviour, CHD Exome+ consortium, van der Harst P, Zeggini E, Saleheen D, Butterworth AS, Wain LV, Abecasis GR, Danesh J, Tobin MD, Vrieze S, Liu DJ, Howson JMM. Meta-analysis of up to 622,409 individuals identifies 40 novel smoking behaviour associated genetic loci. Mol Psychiatry. 2019 Jan 7. doi: 10.1038/s41380-018-0313-0. Pubmed PMID:30617275
5. Wetherill L, Agrawal A, Kapoor M, Bertelsen S, Bierut LJ, Brooks A, Dick D, Hesselbrock M, Hesselbrock V, Koller DL, Le N, Nurnberger JI Jr, Salvatore JE, Schuckit M, Tischfield JA, Wang JC, Xuei X, Edenberg HJ, Porjesz B, Bucholz K, Goate AM, Foroud T. Association of substance dependence phenotypes in the COGA sample. Addict Biol. 2015 May;20(3):617-27. doi: 10.1111/adb.12153. Epub 2014 May 16. Pubmed PMID:24832863
6. Kapoor M, Wang JC, Wetherill L, Le N, Bertelsen S, Hinrichs AL, Budde J, Agrawal A, Almasy L, Bucholz K, Dick DM, Harari O, Xiaoling X, Hesselbrock V, Kramer J, Nurnberger JI Jr, Rice J, Schuckit M, Tischfield J, Porjesz B, Edenberg HJ, Bierut L, Foroud T, Goate A. Genome-wide survival analysis of age at onset of alcohol dependence in extended high-risk COGA families. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2014 Sep 1;142:56-62. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2014.05.023. Epub 2014 Jun 11. Pubmed PMID:24962325
7. Wetherill L, Kapoor M, Agrawal A, Bucholz K, Koller D, Bertelsen SE, Le N, Wang JC, Almasy L, Hesselbrock V, Kramer J, Nurnberger JI Jr, Schuckit M, Tischfield JA, Xuei X, Porjesz B, Edenberg HJ, Goate AM, Foroud T. Family-based association analysis of alcohol dependence criteria and severity. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2014 Feb;38(2):354-66. doi: 10.1111/acer.12251. Epub 2013 Sep 9. Pubmed PMID:24015780
8. Wang JC, Foroud T, Hinrichs AL, Le NX, Bertelsen S, Budde JP, Harari O, Koller DL, Wetherill L, Agrawal A, Almasy L, Brooks AI, Bucholz K, Dick D, Hesselbrock V, Johnson EO, Kang S, Kapoor M, Kramer J, Kuperman S, Madden PA, Manz N, Martin NG, McClintick JN, Montgomery GW, Nurnberger JI Jr, Rangaswamy M, Rice J, Schuckit M, Tischfield JA, Whitfield JB, Xuei X, Porjesz B, Heath AC, Edenberg HJ, Bierut LJ, Goate AM. A genome-wide association study of alcohol-dependence symptom counts in extended pedigrees identifies C15orf53. Mol Psychiatry. 2013 Nov;18(11):1218-24. doi: 10.1038/mp.2012.143. Epub 2012 Oct 23. Pubmed PMID:23089632
9. Wang JC, Spiegel N, Bertelsen S, Le N, McKenna N, Budde JP, Harari O, Kapoor M, Brooks A, Hancock D, Tischfield J, Foroud T, Bierut LJ, Steinbach JH, Edenberg HJ, Traynor BJ, Goate AM. Cis-regulatory variants affect CHRNA5 mRNA expression in populations of African and European ancestry. PLoS One. 2013 Nov 26;8(11):e80204. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0080204. eCollection 2013. Pubmed PMID:24303001
10. Kapoor M, Wang JC, Wetherill L, Le N, Bertelsen S, Hinrichs AL, Budde J, Agrawal A, Bucholz K, Dick D, Harari O, Hesselbrock V, Kramer J, Nurnberger JI Jr, Rice J, Saccone N, Schuckit M, Tischfield J, Porjesz B, Edenberg HJ, Bierut L, Foroud T, Goate A. A meta-analysis of two genome-wide association studies to identify novel loci for maximum number of alcoholic drinks. Hum Genet. 2013 Oct;132(10):1141-51. doi: 10.1007/s00439-013-1318-z. Epub 2013 Jun 7. Pubmed PMID:23743675

Abstract, Posters, Oral Presentations

1. Le N, Cregger M, Lynn N, Loret de Mola JR, Ghareeb A, Groesch K, Wilson T, Paula Diaz-Sylvester P, Braundmeier-Fleming A. (2019). Alteration of Microbial Communities and Immune Populations in Patients with Endometriosis. The American Society for Reproductive Immunology. Grand Rapid, MI. (oral)
2. Le N, Cregger M, Lynn N, Loret de Mola JR, Bremer P, Ghareeb A, Groesch K, Wilson T, Paula Diaz-Sylvester P, Braundmeier-Fleming A. (2019) Pre- and Postoperative changes in Urinary Estrogen Metabolites in Women with Endometriosis. Illinois Symposium for Reproductive Sciences. Chicago, IL. (oral)​
3. Idusuyi B, Le N, Thompson T, Gong J, Groesch K, Loret de Mola JR, Braundmeier-Fleming A. (2019). Maternal Inflammation and Urogenital Microbial Profiling as Predictors of Preterm Birth. ACOG. Nashville, TN.
4. Portugal A, Le N, Thompson T*, Gong J, Groesch K, Loret de Mola JR, Braundmeier-Fleming A. (2019). Association of Fecal Microbial Profiles and Estrogen Metabolism in Patients with Preterm Birth. ACOG. Nashville, TN.
5. Onyewuenyi T, Le N, Addo J, Groesch K, Loret de Mola JR, Braundmeier-Fleming A. (2019). Chronic peripheral inflammation and perinatal depression in high risk pregnancies. ACOG. Nashville, TN.
6. Ghareeb A, Gibson K, Maxheimer K, Cregger M, Close D, Karr M, Badger T, Le N, Groesch K, Diaz-Sylvester P, Wilson T, Brard L, Braundmeier-Fleming A. (2019). Understanding and Diagnosing endometrial cancer using multi-organ microbial taxonomic signatures. Society for Gynecological Oncology. Honolulu, HI.
7. Gibson K, Ghareeb A, Maxheimer K, Cregger M, Close D, Karr M, Badger T, Le N, Groesch K, Diaz-Sylvester P, Wilson T, Brard L, Braundmeier-Fleming A. (2018). Understanding and Diagnosing endometrial cancer using multi-organ microbial taxonomic signatures. Illinois Symposium for Reproductive Sciences. Carbondale, IL.
8. Acheampong N, Le N, Nicholson K, Idusuyi B, Thompson T, Portugal A, Ghareeb A, Groesch K, Diaz-Sylvester P, Wilson T, Gilber J, Yee A, Loret de Mola JR, Braundmeier-Fleming A. (2018). The Impact of Maternal Inflammation on Preterm Birth. Illinois Symposium for Reproductive Sciences. Carbondale, IL.
9. Le N, Cregger M, Nguyen L, Loret de Mola JR, Groesch K, Wilson T, Diaz-Sylvester P, Braundmeier-Fleming A. (2018). Alteration of microbial communities and immune populations in patients with endometriosis. Illinois Symposium for Reproductive Sciences. Carbondale, IL. (poster)
10. Kendall K, Diaz-Sylvester P, Wilson T, Groesch K, Maxheimer K, Hamilton K, Badger T, Le N, Semaan A, Braundmeier-Fleming A, Brard L. (2018). Potential Biomarkers for Endometrial Cancer. 28th Annual Trainee Research Symposium. SIUSOM, Springfield IL.
11. Maxheimer K, Cregger M, Close D, Karr M, Badger T, Le N, Groesch K, Diaz-Sylvester P, Wilson T, Brard L, Braundmeier-Fleming A. (2018). Understanding and Diagnosing Endometrial Cancer Using Multi-Organ Microbial Taxonomic Signatures. 28th Annual Trainee Research Symposium. SIUSOM, Springfield IL.
12. Le N, Cregger M, Nguyen L, Loret de Mola JR, Groesch K, Wilson T, Diaz-Sylvester P, Braundmeier-Fleming A. (2018). Alteration of Microbial Communities and Immune Populations in Patients with Endometriosis. Society for the Study of Reproduction. New Orleans, LA. (oral and poster)
13. Loret de Mola JR, Le N, Nguyen L, Diaz-Sylvester P, Wilson T, Groesch K, Braundmeier-Fleming A. (2018). Detection of Urinary Estrogen Metabolites in Women with Endometriosis. European Congress on Endometriosis. Vienna, Austria.
14. Le N, Roy S, Diaz-Sylvester P, Wilson T, Groesch K, Braundmeier-Fleming A. (2017). The impact of maternal inflammation on preterm birth. Society for the Study of Reproduction. Washington D.C (poster)