Description:

Whole-Genome Based Approaches to Understanding Pathogenesis and Resistance in Hospital Bacterial Pathogens

Abstract
Next-generation sequencing has allowed for rapid and inexpensive sequencing of microbial genomes. We have used this technology to sequence the genomes of several species of clinical and environmental bacterial isolates. Traditional comparative genomic techniques that sufficed for small numbers of genomic sequences have not scaled well to the dozens or hundreds of strain sequences now available for studies. In response, we have developed bioinformatic techniques and software to identify commonalities and differences among larger collections or populations of multiple bacterial genomes. We have used these approaches to examine genomic determinants of pathogenesis in infections with Pseudomonas aeruginosa, identifying novel virulence factors in the process. We have also applied a whole-genome approach to characterize health care transmissions of Acinetobacter baumannii and Clostridioides difficile and explore the global population structure of P. aeruginosa. As the clinical problem of antibiotic resistance worsens, we are also investigating methods of antibiotic resistance prediction based on the genomic sequence of P. aeruginosa to understand the relative contributions of various resistance mechanisms to phenotype in this pathogen. Together, these studies aim to harness the wealth of information that can be gained from genomic sequencing to understand and combat medically important bacterial infections.

Biography
Dr. Ozer received his MD and PhD in Molecular Biology from the Medical Scientist Training Program at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine in 2006. He joined the Physician Scientist Training Program at Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine and did his internship and residency in Internal Medicine followed by a clinical fellowship in Infectious Diseases. His postdoctoral training was conducted under the mentorship of Dr. Alan Hauser MD PhD studying the contributions of the accessory genome of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to strain-to-strain virulence differences. He joined the faculty of the Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine Division of Infectious Diseases in 2012 where he is currently an Assistant Professor.