Nelson is a prominent expert in microbial genomics and metagenomics, with applications to human health. She is noted for her research on
Thermotoga maritima at
The Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR) which resulted in the publication of the genome of that bacterium, and which demonstrated the existence of
horizontal gene transfer. Nelson is also known for her work in human
microbiome research and her current research focuses on interactions between human microbiome and various diseases. Her extensive expertise involves areas of microbial ecology, microbial genomics, microbial physiology and metagenomics, which led to her team publishing the first human microbiome study in 2006. Nelson was appointed president of JCVI in 2012 after serving as the director of its Rockville Campus since 2010. Prior to being appointed President, she held a number of other positions at the Institute, including Director of JCVI's Rockville Campus, and Director of Human Microbiology and Metagenomics in the Department of Human Genomic Medicine at JCVI. ==Boards and panels==