Dr Anastasios (Tasos) Tsaousis is Reader in Molecular and Evolutionary Parasitology in the School of Natural Sciences at the University of Kent, where he leads the Laboratory of Molecular and Evolutionary Parasitology. His research sits at the intersection of parasitology, microbial evolution and microbiome science, anchored in a One Health framework that links human, animal, plant and environmental health.
Dr. Tsaousis studied Biology at the University of Crete (1999–2003) and completed his PhD at Newcastle University in 2007. He then took up a postdoctoral position with Professor Andrew J. Roger at Dalhousie University (Canada, 2008–2012), working on the evolution of mitochondrial pathways in anaerobic protists and the role of lateral gene transfer in microbial adaptation. In 2012, he moved to Charles University in Prague as a Marie Curie Fellow in Professor Jan Tachezy's group, where he studied the biochemistry and protein composition of mitochondria-related organelles in microbial eukaryotes. He joined Kent in July 2013 and has since built an interdisciplinary programme that combines comparative genomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics, cell biology, biochemistry, and fieldwork to investigate medically, veterinary, and agriculturally important microbial eukaryotes.
He currently chairs the European COST Action on Blastocystis under One Health, coordinating an international network of clinicians, microbiologists, veterinarians, environmental scientists, and agronomists, and collaborating with partners across Europe, the Americas, Africa, and Asia.
The Tsaousis lab studies the biology, evolution, and ecology of parasitic and symbiotic microbial eukaryotes – including Blastocystis, Cryptosporidium, Entamoeba, Giardia, Naegleria, gregarines, and ciliates- and the roles they play across human, animal, and environmental systems. Work is organised around four interconnected themes.
One Health parasitology
We investigate how protist parasites circulate among people, livestock, wildlife, and the environment, and how host, microbial, and ecological factors shape transmission and disease outcomes. This includes molecular epidemiology, comparative genomics, and in vitro infection models of Blastocystis and Cryptosporidium, as well as coordination of international One Health surveillance through the COST Action Blastocystis under One Health.
Gut microbiome
We examine how eukaryotic parasites and commensals interact with bacterial, fungal, and viral members of the gut community in humans and animals, and how these interactions influence host physiology, immune function, and gastrointestinal health. A central aim is to bring microbial eukaryotes – long overlooked in microbiome research – firmly into the picture.
Agriculture and environmental microbiomes
We explore the contributions of protists and other eukaryotic microbes to soil health under regenerative agricultural practices, and we engineer the gut microbiomes of black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae to improve their performance as a sustainable feed source and waste-valorisation platform. These projects connect microbiome science to food security and the circular bioeconomy.
Molecular and evolutionary parasitology
We dissect the origins and adaptations of mitochondrion-related organelles, anaerobic energy metabolism, and lateral gene transfer in microbial eukaryotes, using them as windows into how parasitic and anaerobic lifestyles evolve. This fundamental work underpins our translational and One Health programmes.
Opportunities: PhD students, postdocs and visiting researchers
The Tsaousis lab is actively recruiting motivated PhD students, postdoctoral researchers and visiting scientists to join ongoing and new projects in:
Funded studentships and postdoctoral positions are advertised as they become available. We also warmly welcome self-funded applicants and prospective fellowship candidates – including Marie Skłodowska-Curie, UKRI, Royal Society, Wellcome, EMBO and Leverhulme schemes – and are happy to co-develop competitive applications.
Prospective applicants should email a CV, a short statement of research interests (one page), and the names of two referees to a.tsaousis@kent.ac.uk. Further information about current projects, publications and lab members is available at adtsaousis.com
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