In order to thrive in multispecies environments, such as the gut microbiota, many bacteria engage in collective behaviours that include, for example, virulence factor production or biofilm formation, that are often regulated by cell-cell signalling. As a PhD student in Karina's lab, my research focuses on the identification of the signalling mechanisms involved in regulating group behaviours in Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron, a prominent member of the gut microbiota. Moreover, I study the role of these mechanisms both in successful colonization of B. thetaiotaomicron and in host physiology.