E. Coli

In a groundbreaking study led by Sarah Worthan, Ph.D., a postdoctoral researcher in the Behringer Lab at Vanderbilt University, scientists have successfully evolved microbial cultures that possess the ability to sense pH changes, enabling rapid responses to environmental fluctuations. Read More

Led by Neil Osheroff, Vanderbilt researchers are the first to undertake a systematic analysis of the mechanism of action of gepotidacin, a first-in-class triazaacenaphthylene antibacterial, against its targets in Escherichia coli—the type II topoisomerases gyrase and topoisomerase IV—and the mechanistic basis for drug resistance. E. coli is the etiological agent of most urinary tract infections. Read More

Sarah Worthan, along with Robert McCarthy and Megan Behringer, led a new effort to understand the effects of the environment on the outcome of experimental evolution studies. Read More

Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center have discovered why the uropathogenic bacterium E. coli, the leading cause of urinary tract infections, is so tenacious; their findings could lead to new ways to prevent recurrent UTIs. Read More

Bacterial invasion of vaginal cells sets up a protective niche and a reservoir for recurrent urinary tract infections, Vanderbilt researchers demonstrated. Read More

Vanderbilt researchers have identified a unique example of communication between bacterial signaling systems, which may have relevance for antibiotic resistance. Read More

Scott Hultgren, Ph.D., an expert on the interactions between bacteria and human hosts, will deliver the next Flexner Discovery Lecture on Thursday, March 7. Read More