Multidrug antimicrobial resistance is a rapidly developing global concern, which by estimate can lead to ten million deaths per year due to antimicrobial resistance by 2050. On the WHO list of antibiotic-resistant priority pathogens Priority 1: CRITICAL states the three most critical pathogens: carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Enterobacteriaceae. These are also on the list of six so-called ESKAPE bacteria as the leading cause of hospital-acquired infections globally, and most difficult to treat because they are multidrug-resistant. Among them, A. baumannii exhibits high tolerance to harsh environment such as disinfectant, oxidative stress and complementary killing, as well as long survival on surface. Moreover, A. baumannii exhibits high genetic diversity and phenotypic switches. Therefore, it is of great importance to understand the mechanistic details of A. baumannii responses and physiology under different environment settings. In general, our research will focus on the following topics:
1. what/how cellular responses coordinate in Acinetobacter during polymicrobial interaction
Polymicrobial infection is widespread and prevalent in clinical setting, including co-infection of problematic ESKAPE pathogens. As co-infections including A. baumannii become severe problems in our health system, by for example altering the reaction to antibiotic treatment and the pharmacodynamics of antibacterials. The goal is to investigate the mechanistic details of how A. baumannii interacts with others in multispecies communities, which can help us understand how such interactions shape bacterial life in the community.
Moreover, I aim to study how surface and envelope proteins of Acinetobacter contribute to such interaction.
2. dynamics and regulation of important virulence factors in A. baumannii during contact with host cells
A. baumannii is an opportunistic pathogen that shows increasingly importance as nosocomial infections. There are multiple virulence factors identified in A. baumannii including efflux pump, capsules, Lipopolysaccharide LPS, Lipooligosaccharide LOS, and outer membrane porin A OmpA, which contribute differently to its ‘persist and resist’ infection strategy; In my lab, I aim to investigate the regulation of the most important virulence factors during A. baumannii virulence process in molecular level, as well as the dynamics of such in single-cell level.
1. what/how cellular responses coordinate in Acinetobacter during polymicrobial interaction
Polymicrobial infection is widespread and prevalent in clinical setting, including co-infection of problematic ESKAPE pathogens. As co-infections including A. baumannii become severe problems in our health system, by for example altering the reaction to antibiotic treatment and the pharmacodynamics of antibacterials. The goal is to investigate the mechanistic details of how A. baumannii interacts with others in multispecies communities, which can help us understand how such interactions shape bacterial life in the community.
Moreover, I aim to study how surface and envelope proteins of Acinetobacter contribute to such interaction.
2. dynamics and regulation of important virulence factors in A. baumannii during contact with host cells
A. baumannii is an opportunistic pathogen that shows increasingly importance as nosocomial infections. There are multiple virulence factors identified in A. baumannii including efflux pump, capsules, Lipopolysaccharide LPS, Lipooligosaccharide LOS, and outer membrane porin A OmpA, which contribute differently to its ‘persist and resist’ infection strategy; In my lab, I aim to investigate the regulation of the most important virulence factors during A. baumannii virulence process in molecular level, as well as the dynamics of such in single-cell level.