Description:

Bacteriology Faculty Search Candidate

"Urinary Catheterization: Microbial Window of Opportunities"

Ana Flores-Mireles, PhD / Washington University Medical School

Description

Urinary catheterization elicits bladder inflammation in both mice and humans, and mechanically disrupts the host defenses allowing pathogen such as Enterococcus faecalis to colonize, persist, and disseminate. Our work has unveiled key interaction factors between the host and pathogen and by blocking this interaction we were able to protect mice against the infection. Identification of these key interactions could lead to the development of antibiotic-sparring treatments, which are desperately needed since several uropathogens are becoming resistant to last-line of defense antibiotics.