From corals to the classroom: an interview with Dr Ashley Dungan
It can be a struggle to keep up with the latest bioinformatics tools. Researchers have diverse needs and limited time to shop around for new techniques to analyse their data, let alone troubleshoot a new platform. What better way is there to learn a new approach than from researchers actively using useful tools in their own work? BioCommons collaborates with experts to deliver training workshops that help researchers glean insights and practical tips directly from their peers.
Dr Ashley Dungan, Research Fellow at The University of Melbourne, worked with BioCommons to train researchers from 22 different Australian institutes and organisations to use the bioinformatics platform, Quantitative Insights Into Microbial Ecology 2 (QIIME 2). Ashley originally developed the workshop for a local audience, alongside Melbourne Bioinformatics staff Dr Gayle Philip and Dr Vicky Perreau. Given the success of this all women team, BioCommons was keen to assist them to bring the training to a national audience. You can read about the impact of that training in our related story.
We interviewed Ashley to find out more about her research and why she chose to work with the National Bioinformatics Training Cooperative to uplift the skills of fellow researchers.
Ashley, can you tell us a little bit about your research?
I’m a Research Fellow in conservation microbial ecology. Broadly, I’m interested in the functions of bacteria in a range of systems with the end goal of manipulating those communities to achieve a better outcome for the host/system. To put this in the context of conservation, I’m interested in protecting our biodiversity and preventing the loss of species and ecosystems by providing animals with beneficial bacteria, or probiotics. So far, most of my research has been in coral-associated bacteria.
What motivates you to provide training to other researchers?
I didn’t start off my scientific career as a microbiologist. When I joined my PhD program, the focus was on coral probiotics and I was daunted by the prospect of having to do any bioinformatics. I found that most training resources were written by experts in a language that was really only available to other experts. Where was the dummies guide? Other resources were hidden behind a paywall or required attendance somewhere in Europe or North America. The training I was able to attend wasn’t immediately useful to me, or I’d have to fully rewrite the code (which I wasn’t skilled enough to do).
I was lucky that a fellow PhD student at the time (Dr Leon Hartman, who now works at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research) walked me through everything and gave me lots of code. But the reality is that most students/scientists won’t have this type of resource. So I wanted to come up with a training solution that:
Was written for biologists by biologists, avoiding computer science jargon wherever possible
Was free
Could be attended in-person, virtual, or do it yourself
Where attendees could immediately run the code for their own use.
What’s the best part of training other researchers?
Data analysis isn’t easy but when you can see a community of like-minded people together, that’s powerful. There is nothing more satisfying than giving people the confidence to incorporate new techniques and ask new questions in their research. I’m proud of the team that put this together – it really wouldn’t have happened without Gayle and Vicky. And how cool is it that we are women doing microbiology and bioinformatics! The odds of that happening, even in 2024, in a bioinformatics workshop are still exceedingly low but we are committed to breaking down barriers for women in science.
How did you scale your training to a national audience?
Gayle and Vicky helped me create the QIIME 2 workshop that we ran locally for University of Melbourne participants. But we wanted to bring this training to all Australian researchers, and ensure that anyone could attend virtually. I worked closely with Dr Melissa Burke (Training and Communications Officer at BioCommons) to adapt the workshop to ensure it was fully accessible online. Melissa then coordinated a half-day workshop where we had 45 participants from 22 different institutes/organisations around the country join us, including 60% who identified as female or non-binary. Working with Melissa and the National Bioinformatics Training Cooperative was a fantastic experience and I highly recommend that others interested in providing bioinformatics training get involved.
What’s next for you?
I’ve now trained Laura Geissler (my PhD student) to run the QIIME 2 workshops and she will take over the sessions hosted by Melbourne Bioinformatics. Looking ahead, all my fellowship applications now include creating a new workshop alongside doing primary research. First up, I’d like to create workshops focused on whole genome assemblies and metagenomics.
You can learn more about the BioCommons national training program on our website, or read how Ashley’s QIIME2 training led to an Australian first in respiratory disease research.