Research
Our laboratory studies persister cells, uncultured bacteria, Lyme Disease and has an active natural products drug discovery program
Research Fields
Persisters
Persisters are dormant variants of regular cells which are tolerant to antibiotics and responsible for recalcitrance of a variety of chronic infections, including tuberculosis and those caused by microbial biofilms. We identified a number of mechanisms for persister formation, and the first compound that kills them, acyldepsipeptide.
Raleb Taher
Associate Research Scientist
Persisters
Mike Gates
PhD Student
Persisters
Uncultured Bacteria
Uncultured bacteria make up the majority of species on the planet, but do not grow in the lab. We developed a general method to grow these organisms by cultivation in their natural environment. In marine sediment, siderophores from neighbors serve as growth factors for uncultured bacteria. We have recently identified growth factors for uncultured bacteria from the human microbiome. We also use uncultured bacteria as a source for discovering new antibiotics.
Yongchao Yin
Senior Research Scientist
Uncultivatable Bacteria, Drug Discovery
Vladimir Tikhonov
Associate Research Scientist
Uncultivatable Bacteria, Drug Discovery
Hui Wang
Senior Research Technician
Uncultivatable Bacteria, Drug Discovery
Microbiome
The human microbiome harbors a vast array of microbial species, the majority of which have remained elusive to cultivation in laboratory settings. These uncultured microbiota represent a significant portion of the microbial diversity within our bodies.
Norman Pitt
PhD Student
Microbiome
Lyme Disease
Our goal is to understand the nature of PTLDS (Chronic Lyme Disease) and identify treatments for this debilitating condition. We are exploring this through several parallel approaches, gathering data on the microbiome and metabolome of PTLDS patients as well as epidemiological analysis of large datasets. We are conducting experiments to understand the nature of persistence in Borrelia burgdorferi, and have a high-throughput drug discovery program to identify novel antimicrobials with potent and specific activity against the pathogen.
Nikita Gupta
Senior Research Technician
Lyme Disease, Drug Discovery
Katerina Piyedra Sobolevskaya
Senior Research Technician
Lyme Disease, Drug Discovery
Rachel Bargabos
PhD Student
Lyme Disease, Drug Discovery
Drug Discovery
We have an active natural product drug discovery program with a focus on compounds active against Gram Negative pathogens, Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Borrelia burgdorferi.
Monique Theriault
Manager, Postdoctoral Research Associate
Drug Discovery
Akira Iinishi
Principal Research Scientist
Drug Discovery
Yongchao Yin
Senior Research Scientist
Uncultivatable Bacteria, Drug Discovery
Sangkeun Son
Associate Research Scientist
Drug Discovery