Latifa S. Abdelli, Ph.D., is a lecturer in the Department of Health Sciences at the University of Central Florida. She holds MS and PhD degrees in Biomedical Sciences from the UCF Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences – College of Medicine (BSBS-COM). Her research initially focused on the investigation of stem cell technology for cardiac tissue repair and regeneration following myocardial infarction and other cardiovascular events. She subsequently expanded her research interest to encompass the role of the gut brain axis in auto-immune disorders such as inflammatory bowel disease, cardiometabolic and autism spectrum disorder.

As an educator, Abdelli has served as a visiting assistant professor at Stetson University Health Science Department where she taught Anatomy and Physiology, Research Proposal and Project, Medical Terminology, and Pathology. Concurrently,  she was an adjunct lecturer for Molecular Diagnostics, a graduate-level course at UCF BSBS-COM, and Pathophysiology I at UCF Department of Health Sciences.