Do prophage integration sites influence disease-causing potential in Enterococcus faecalis?
Supervisors:
Dr Suzanne Humphrey, Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Science, University of Strathclyde
Dr Giuseppina Mariano, School Infection of Immunity, University of Glasgow
Summary:
Many opportunistic pathogens lack conserved virulence factors, leaving the mechanisms driving the commensal-to-pathogen switch poorly understood. Enterococcus faecalis is an opportunistic pathogen that can cause severe infections if it escapes from the gut, though why certain strains have higher capacities for extra-intestinal spread remains unclear. This PhD will investigate the impact of phage on the ability of E. faecalis to respond to oxidative stress, linking this to bacterial fitness during infection.
The student will investigate the effect of phage presence on expression of key metabolic genes using qRT-PCR, fluorescence and microscopy approaches. They will use cutting-edge metabolomics approaches to interrogate the impact of phage insertion on the metabolic profile of the cell and will develop non-vertebrate infection models to test the impact of metabolic flux on bacterial fitness during infection. Finally, bioinformatics training will equip the student with the skills to undertake analyses of large genome datasets to determine if genes linked to redox poise are common sites for phage integration in other opportunistic pathogens.
The project offers hands-on training in microbiology, molecular biology, metabolomics, infection models, genome sequencing, and bioinformatics. Working across the lab groups of the dynamic supervisory team, the student will gain valuable professional skills training in quantitative data analysis, project management, communication, and research integrity.