Crakes, Katti Robin
Education
Education- DVM, University of California, Davis
- PhD, University of California, Davis
- Residency, Johns Hopkins University
- Post-doc, Johns Hopkins University
- BS, Cornell University
Professional Certifications
- Diplomate, American College of Veterinary Pathologists
Research Interests
- Host-microbe interactions
- Gut microbiome
- Spatial microbiome organization
- Microbial metabolites and host metabolism
- Comparative and experimental pathology
- Immunohistochemistry
- Digital pathology
Academic Interests
- Veterinary anatomic pathology
- Research and histopathology consultation
- Comparative medicine
- Animal models of human diseases (rodents, pigs, primates)
Links
Biography
Dr. Katti Crakes is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Clinical Veterinary Medicine. As a veterinary pathologist and research scientist, she investigates how host–microbe interactions shape gastrointestinal, hepatic, and metabolic disease.
Dr. Crakes earned her combined DVM/PhD through the Veterinary Scientist Training Program at the University of California, Davis. Under the mentorship of Dr. Satya Dandekar, she studied epithelial barrier dysfunction during chronic HIV/SIV infection and the effects of Lactobacillus plantarum and Bifidobacterium infantis on host metabolism and mitochondrial function. Her doctoral training was supported by an NIH F30 fellowship and included collaborative studies of HIV prevention technologies and metabolic disease in diabetic dogs.
She completed anatomic pathology residency training at Johns Hopkins University and a postdoctoral fellowship with Dr. Jotham Suez, where she used conventional and germ-free mouse models, microbiological methods, and multi-omics approaches to define how artificial sweeteners alter the gut microbiome and impair glycemic responses.
Her current work combines microbiology, sequencing, cell culture, diverse in vivo models, and spatial/digital pathology to explore how microbe-host interactions drive inflammation and metabolic disease. She also develops new approaches to pathology workflows for diagnostic and research applications, including a patent-pending device designed to reduce fixation-associated tissue distortion. Dr. Crakes is committed to interdisciplinary collaboration, bridging veterinary and human medicine, and advancing basic discoveries toward translational applications. She is dedicated to inclusive teaching and mentorship that supports trainees from diverse backgrounds and welcomes new perspectives, experiences, and ideas