Qiyun Zhu is a computational biologist with expertise in phylogenetics, comparative genomics, metagenomics and multiomics. His research interests include the development of computational tools and resources to improve the analytics of microbiome data, the study of various host and environmental microbiomes and their influence on human health, and the investigation of the evolution of microbes and their hosts, with focus on vertical and horizontal genetic connections between organisms. He led or made significant contributions to a number of microbiome research projects, covering diverse topics such as pathology, nutrition and anthropology, from a variety of sources including host gut, cancer tissue, build environment, ocean and more. He strives to expand understanding of the microbial world through its multiple levels: genes, genomes, lineages, communities, hosts and environments.