Dr Katarina Oracova

Title: ESBL Enterobacteriaceae – from Babies to Bats

Abstract:

Extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Enterobacteriaceae are a major global health challenge, bridging clinical, community, and environmental boundaries. In this talk, I will trace the journey of ESBL-producing E. coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae, spanning neonatal colonisation and infection in low-resource hospitals and community, hospital and regional transmission in a European setting, and long-term maintenance in wildlife reservoirs. Drawing on molecular and genomic epidemiology and surveillance, I will illustrate how these resistant bacteria share and move through interconnected ecosystems, and how modern tools can help us detect, track, and respond to them. The talk highlights key findings from studies in Africa, Europe, and South America, emphasising the urgent need for integrated One Health approaches to antimicrobial resistance.

 

Bio:

Katarina Oravcova is a Lecturer in Bacteriology at the School of Biodiversity, One Health and Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow. Her research focuses on bacterial pathogens affecting both human and animal health. Combining microbiology, molecular biology, genomics and transcriptomics, her group investigates the spread, transmission, and evolution of bacteria, with a particular emphasis on the emergence and dissemination of antimicrobial resistance from a One Health perspective. Much of this work is based in Scotland and Tanzania.

More recently, the lab has expanded into rapid molecular and sequencing-based diagnostics for bloodstream infections and the evaluation of novel antimicrobial compounds and natural products. Current research targets include Escherichia coli, Klebsiella spp., Group A Streptococcus, Streptococcus canis, Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, and Mycoplasmaspp.

Katarina holds a PhD in Molecular Biology from Comenius University (thesis on Listeria monocytogenes). Before joining Glasgow, she worked as a postdoctoral researcher at themedical School, University of St Andrews (healthcare-associated infections, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Mycoplasma) and as a research scientist at the Food Research Institute Bratislava, Slovakia and in Valladolid, Spain.

In addition to her research, she is actively involved in postgraduate and undergraduate teaching, with a portfolio spanning microbiology, antimicrobial chemotherapy, and antimicrobial resistance.

First published: 19 August 2025

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