Dr. Thao Ho

Associate Professor in Pediatrics, University of South Florida

I am a physician-scientist in the Pediatrics department at the USF College of Medicine with a focus on clinical translational research of the impact of anemia and enteral iron on gut microbiota in preterm infants. I hold an associate professor position in the USF division of Neonatology where my research effort is supported by an NIH K23 career development award and other NIH grants. I have conducted three patient-oriented gut health related studies as principal investigator and participated as co-investigator in five other clinical studies. I was a co-investigator for the USF site on the NIH funded Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) project, which studied the relationships between intestinal microbiome and childhood neurodevelopment. I was a co-investigator on the NIH funded R01 (PI-Groer) to investigate preterm infant intestinal microbiome during NICU and their health at 2-4 years. I have an independent laboratory to process patient samples and conduct basic science experiments. I have established enteroid models to test the effects of nutrients and microbes on immature epithelium.