Deciphering genetic regulation in bacteria.
I have a master's degree in the field of pathogen-host interactions and did my PhD in molecular microbiology. Now I am a postdoc in Sun Nyunt Wai lab at Umeå University.
Currently, my research is focused on the mechanisms of gene regulation underlying the adaptation of bacteria to environmental variables such as temperature, nutrient availability, or population density. Despite their small size, bacteria have sophisticated ways of fine-tuning their gene expression in response to multiple stimuli and changes in their surroundings.
My main focus at the moment is the regulation of the well-described bacterial operon MakABCDE, which encodes a tripartite pore-forming toxin - MakABE - produced by the human pathogen Vibrio cholerae, the causative agent of cholera. Apart from its role as a component of the MakABE heterotrimeric toxin, the MakA protein can also have a distinct toxic activity as a monomer. My aim is to better understand the role of the MakABCDE genes in the life cycle of V. cholerae outside the human host, and how their expression is regulated.