Justin L. Merritt

Justin L. Merritt is a Senior Professor at Oregon Health & Science University. His research integrates molecular microbiology, bacteriology, and infectious disease biology, with a specific focus on oral microbial ecology, biofilm biogeography, and host–pathogen interactions. Recent work includes characterizing inflammophilic microbiome communities from paired clinical specimens, repurposing drugs to inhibit glucosyltransferase for targeted oral biofilm disruption, and elucidating the immunostimulatory effects of Streptococcus sanguinis extracellular membrane vesicles on gingival epithelial cells. He has also engineered Lactiplantibacillus plantarum WCFS1 as a biosensor for lung cancer and advanced fluorescence in situ hybridization methods for oral biofilm analysis. His contributions span applied microbiology, molecular biology, and clinical diagnostics, with ongoing international collaborations in microbiome research.