top of page
solak_1.jpg

Curriculum Vitae

Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Zoology, Charles University, Prague

Position

Post-doctoral Researcher

2024 - Present

Zoology Dept, Science Faculty, Charles University, Prague.

PI: Jakub Kreisinger

Education

PhD

2020 - 2024

Biology Dept, Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences, Zonguldak Bülent Ecevit University.

Supervisor(s): Alexey Yanchukov & Jakub Kreisinger

Thesis: The Effect of Altitude on Gut Microbiome Composition Accounting for Diet and Host Genetics: A Study on Anatolian Blind Molerats (Nannospalax xanthodon) in Central Taurus Mountains. January 2024.

Master's Degree

2017 - 2019

Biology Dept, Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences, Zonguldak Bülent Ecevit University.

Supervisor(s): Alexey Yanchukov and Jamie Winternitz.

Thesis: Altitudinal Effects on Innate Immune Response and Local Population Genetic Structure of Nannospalax xanthodon (Anatolian Blind Mole Rat). December 2019.

Bachelor's Degree

2012 - 2017

Biology (English) Department of Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University

CV: CV

Awards and Experience

WAME Research Exchange Visit

24.04.2023 - 08.05.2023

Wild Animal Microbiome Evolution – WAME

A Special Topic Network funded by ESEB

Host Supervisor: Jakub Kreisinger

EMBO Scientific 
Exchange Grant

07.06.2022 - 07.09.2022

Laboratory of Evolutionary Interactions of Holobionts, Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences.

Project Title: "Variation in the composition of gut microbiota of Anatolian Blind Mole Rat (Nannospalax xanthodon) across the altitude gradient".

Host Supervisor: Dagmar Čížková

Best Student Publication

Best Student Publication by the EkoEvo student awards, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Society of Turkey.

August 2020

Erasmus Internship

Animal Behaviour Department of Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany

Host Supervisor: Jamie Winternitz

04.09.2018 – 04.11.2018

CV: CV

Publications

Yanchukov A, Çetintaş O, Çolak F, Nedyalkov N, Rusin M, Solak HM, Bilgin R, et al. (2026). Genome-wide SNP and mtDNA phylogeny of blind mole rats (Spalacinae Gray, 1821) reflects a complex history of relictualism, expansion, and speciation. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 206(1): zlaf186. doi:10.1093/zoolinnean/zlaf186

Solak HM, Kreisinger J, Čížková D, Sezgin E, Schmiedová L, Murtskhvaladze M, Henning Y, Çolak F, Matur F, Yanchukov A (2024). Altitude shapes gut microbiome composition accounting for diet, thyroid hormone levels, and host genetics in a subterranean blind mole rat. Frontiers in Microbiology 15: 1476845. doi:10.3389/fmicb.2024.1476845

Solak HM, Sezgin E, Čížková D, Kreisinger J, Çolak F, Çetintaş O, Yanchukov A (2023). The microbiota of long-living and cancer-free blind mole rat (Nannospalax xanthodon) from the edge of its distribution in Northern Anatolia. Communications Faculty of Sciences University of Ankara Series C Biology 32(2): 105–118.

Uludüz N, Yanchukov A, Solak HM, Sözen M (2023). Cetacean stranding events at Zonguldak, southwestern Black Sea coast of Türkiye. Acta Zoologica Bulgarica 75(1): 123–131.

Solak HM, Yanchukov A, Çolak F, Matur F, Sözen M, Ayanoğlu C, Winternitz JC (2020). Altitudinal effects on innate immune response of a subterranean rodent. Zoological Science 37(1): 1–11. doi:10.2108/zs190067

Posters and Presentations

Oral Presentation
Solak HM, Kreisinger J, Čížková D, Sezgin E, Schmiedová L, Murtskhvaladze M, Çolak F, Matur F, Yanchukov A. Altitude shapes gut microbiome composition accounting for diet and host genetics in a subterranean mole rats. Zoologıcké Dny 8-9 February 2024, Ostrava, Czech Republic.

Oral Presentation
Solak HM, Sezgin E, Čížková D, Kreisinger J, Çolak F, Matur F, Yanchukov A. Altitudinal Effect on Gut Microbiome Composition of Long-Living and Cancer-Free Blind Mole Rat (Nannospalax xanthodon). 8th Ecology And Evolutionary Biology Symposium. 17-19 July 2023. Ankara, Türkiye.

Oral Presentation
Solak HM, Winternitz JC, Yanchukov A, Ayanoğlu C, Çolak F, Matur F, Sözen M. Altitudinal effects on ecoimmunology of Turkish blind mole-rats. Subterranean Rodent Workshop, VII. EGSM. 01.10.2018, Budapest, Hungary.

Poster Presentation
Solak HM, Sezgin E, Čížková D, Kreisinger J, Çolak F, Matur F, Yanchukov A. Altitudinal Effect on Gut Microbiome Composition of Anatolian Blind Mole Rat (Nannospalax xanthodon). 7th Ecology And Evolutionary Biology Symposium. 7-9 September 2022. Ankara, Türkiye.

Poster Presentation
Solak HM, Sezgin E, Čížková D, Kreisinger J, Çolak F, Matur F, Yanchukov A. Altitudinal Effect on Gut Microbiome Composition of Anatolian Blind Mole Rat (Nannospalax xanthodon). ESEB2022. 14 August 2022. Prague, Czechia.

Poster Presentation
Solak HM, Yanchukov A, Çolak F, Matur F, Sözen M, Ayanoğlu C, Winternitz JC. Altitudinal effects on innate immune response and local population genetic structure of Anatolian blind mole-rats (Nannospalax xanthodon), Zoologıcké Dny 6-7 February 2020, Olomouc, Czech Republic.

Poster Presentation
Solak HM, Yanchukov A, Çolak F, Matur F, Sözen M, Ayanoğlu C, Winternitz JC. Altitudinal effects on innate immune response of Turkish blind mole-rats (Nannospalax xanthodon), 6th Ecology And Evolutionary Biology Symposium. 10.07.2019, Izmir, Türkiye.

Poster Presentation
Solak HM, Winternitz JC, Çolak F, Matur F, Yanchukov A. Altitudinal effects on evolution of globin gene clusters and host adaptation on Nannospalax xanthodon (Turkish Blind Mole Rat). 5th Ecology And Evolutionary Biology Symposium. 21.07.2018, Izmir, Türkiye.

CV: CV
bottom of page