We study how bacterial behaviors impact the evolution of AMR.
The ‘Why’

👉 By 2050, antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is estimated to cause ~10 million global annual deaths†.  Unfortunately, none of the current antibiotic treatment regiments are directly aimed to delay the evolution of AMR. († O’Neill, 2014)

👉Bacteria can exhibit temporary phenotypic survival under antibiotic pressure without requiring mutations. An overlooked aspect of AMR research has been how these transient adaptations contribute to the evolution of resistant mutations.

👉 Majority of research to identify novel targets is performed on sensitive strains while bacterial isolates found in the clinic or farming industry are already resistant to antibiotics.

Our Recent Work

A major contributor to AMR evolution is the temporary survival behaviors of bacteria against antibiotics, enabling rapid genetic resistance acquisition, but the mechanisms of this temporary to genetic transition remain unclear. We recently discovered three such phenomena that accelerate the evolution of AMR: necrosignaling, phenotype surfing, and bacterial iron memory.

Overarching Goals of Our Research

1. Understanding the molecular and evolutionary mechanisms of these temporary bacterial behaviors such as necrosignaling and bacterial memory.

2. Identify genotypic and phenotypic vulnerabilities associated with AMR. 

3.  Identifying novel genetic targets and develop novel approaches to prevent or delay AMR by a combination of drugs that would i) kill bacteria and also ii) target the rate of AMR evolution.