Genes required for Mycobacterium tuberculosis to survive the transition from aerosol to pulmonary alveolar lining fluid and early infection in a model of transmission https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.09.15.676370v1

Discovery and Structure Activity Relationship Optimization of a Novel Rv1625c Agonist Chemotype with Antitubercular Activity https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.17.752203v1

Our paper (and my first first-author) is out! The alarmone pGpp inhibits translation through GTP depletion academic.oup.com/nar/article/... 🦠🚨🤠 @narjournal.bsky.social

First paper of my PhD @doerrlab.bsky.social is up! We characterized meropenem tolerance in Enterobacterales species, and then further dissected tolerance mechanisms in Klebsiella pneumoniae. journals.plos.org/plospathogen...

Prevalence and mechanisms of high-level carbapenem antibiotic tolerance in clinical isolates of Klebsiella pneumoniae

Author summary Bacteria can survive exposure to antibiotics by constantly repairing cellular damage induced by the drug. This “antibiotic tolerance” enables diverse bacteria to survive long enough to ...

journals.plos.org

The diderm cell envelope is not a stack of layers but a unified scaffold of Inner Membrane–Peptidoglycan–Outer Membrane. We discuss how tethering the OM to the PG in E. coli preserves integrity — and extend the concept across diderm bacteria. Curr Opin Microbiol: doi.org/10.1016/j.mi... #microsky 🔬

Delighted to share our latest paper - A host-directed adjuvant sensitizes intracellular bacterial persisters to antibiotics. Excellently led by Dr. Kuan-Yi Lu. We think it's a great proof-of-concept that altering immune cell behavior can make antibiotics work better www.nature.com/articles/s41...

A host-directed adjuvant sensitizes intracellular bacterial persisters to antibiotics - Nature Microbiology

The authors developed a screen to find compounds that modulate intracellular Staphylococcus aureus metabolism and discovered KL1, which sensitizes persisters to antibiotics by reversing host-induced tolerance.

nature.com

I am very happy to share that I have started this week as an Assistant Professor of Microbiology at the Richard A. Gillespie College of Veterinary Medicine in Harrogate, Tennessee. It has been a beautiful journey from IAAS to Ohio State to Cornell, and now to LMU-CVM.

We discovered a new family of c-di-NMP receptors, widespread in bacteria & regulating🦠motility @pnas.org A great collab. w/ @mygalperin.bsky.social @vikramalva.bsky.social @thethormannden.bsky.social www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... @hhu.de @cmfi.bsky.social @sfb1381.bsky.social @mibinet.bsky.social

The outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria blocks many antibiotics. Our latest work reveals that L-type pyocins bypass this barrier by inactivating the BAM complex, killing Pseudomonas aeruginosa without entering the cell, providing a new blueprint for beating antibiotic resistance.

A Protein Antibiotic Inhibits the BAM Complex to Kill Without Cell Entry

Many antibiotics are ineffective against Gram-negative pathogens such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa because they cannot penetrate the bacterial outer membrane. Here, we show that protein antibiotics calle...

biorxiv.org

Latest from the lab! Analysis of everyone’s favorite regulatory mechanism in bacteria — the RF2 programmed frameshift! Likely present in the ancestor of bacteria, use of this mechanism is influenced by stop codon usage! Big congrats to @cassidyprints.bsky.social journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

Conservation and evolution of the programmed ribosomal frameshift in prfB across the bacterial domain | mBio

Translation termination is catalyzed by one of two release factors in bacteria, RF1 or RF2. It has been known for decades that RF2 levels in Escherichia coli are regulated by a programmed ribosomal frameshift within the prfB gene that encodes RF2. We ...

journals.asm.org

#microsky We challenge the long-standing view that peptidoglycan alone protects cells from bursting. Our study shows that the periplasm — enclosed by OM–PG connections — acts as a pressure buffer essential for osmoprotection in Gram-negative bacteria. 📄 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Peptidoglycan–outer membrane attachment generates periplasmic pressure to prevent lysis in Gram-negative bacteria - Nature Microbiology

Outer membrane attachment to peptidoglycan enables periplasmic pressure to build up and counter cytoplasmic turgor pressure, preventing lysis during osmotic challenges in Escherichia coli.

nature.com

It is a dream-come-true moment for me! The unique long-chain fatty acid transporter of Legionella pneumophila that we reported in our earlier study made it to the JB cover! journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

A dual-target antibiotic strategy, combining membrane disruption with another cellular pathway, shows promise in reducing bacterial resistance, offering a new direction in combating antimicrobial resistance. doi.org/g855sh

Study uncovers the core principles of low-resistance antibiotics

A study published in Nature Communications has revealed novel insights into bacterial resistance and offers a promising strategy for developing antibiotics that minimize the evolution of resistance.

phys.org

Nature research paper: Macrophages recycle phagocytosed bacteria to fuel immunometabolic responses https://go.nature.com/3XmyOPD

Macrophages recycle phagocytosed bacteria to fuel immunometabolic responses - Nature

Phagocytosed bacteria can serve as an alternative nutrient source for macrophages, influencing their metabolic and immune responses through the recycling of microbial components, with the process regulated by nutrient-sensing mechanisms and bacterial viability.

go.nature.com

My first-author PhD paper is out in @naturecomms.bsky.social: A “double trouble” approach—combining membrane disruption with a key cellular pathway—dramatically limits bacterial #resistance. Discover “Exploring the principles behind antibiotics with limited resistance” #AMR #DrugDevelopment #MEvoSky

Csaba Pal Laboratory@csabapallab.bsky.social · 2y ago

🚨 Our latest research in @naturecomms.bsky.social shows a promising strategy for less resistance-prone #antibiotics. For details, see the thread below and read the paper “Exploring the principles behind antibiotics with limited resistance” here: #MEvoSky www.nature.com/articles/s41...

The new JB is out. We thank ad hoc reviewers for 2024, minireviews on spores, mycobacteria, phages in the gut, formate metabolism and biofilm microenvironments. Check out articles on LD-transpeptidases, Myxo, B12 (my favorite vitamin) & more. journals.asm.org/toc/jb/207/2 @asm.org #JBacteriology

JB Table of Contents Volume 207, Issue 2

Journal of Bacteriology: Table of Contents Volume 207, Issue 2

journals.asm.org

New review out in @NatureRevMicro on the complex rltnshp btween metabolism & AMR! A true labor of love from previous postbac Mehrose, grad students Varun & Zirui, and collaborator @drrobsmith.bsky.social (plus figures I'll likely use for many talks to come 😊) rdcu.be/eaES2

The role of bacterial metabolism in antimicrobial resistance

Nature Reviews Microbiology - In this Review, Ahmad et al. examine how antibiotics influence bacterial metabolism and how metabolism, in turn, affects drug efficacy and the emergence and evolution...

rdcu.be

Excited to share my recent work published in #JBacteriology @asm.org ! We found that LD-transpeptidases drive phenotypic differentiation of Legionella and Coxiella into intrinsically resistant forms. Grateful to all who made this possible ! journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

LD-transpeptidase-mediated cell envelope remodeling enables developmental transitions and survival in Coxiella burnetii and Legionella pneumophila | Journal of Bacteriology

Coxiella burnetii and L. pneumophila cause Q Fever and Legionnaire’s disease in humans, respectively. There is a lack of effective treatments for fatal chronic infections caused by these pathogens, pa...

journals.asm.org