Description:

Title: Characterization of Virulence Factors in Shanghai Fever Isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Description: My research focuses on understanding why certain Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) strains cause Shanghai Fever (SF), a rare but often fatal infection in previously healthy children. Unlike typical PA infections, we hypothesize that these strains originate in the gut and rapidly spread to sepsis. Using a murine sepsis model, we’ve found that Shanghai Fever isolates are significantly more virulent than samples from Northwestern Memorial Hospital. We hypothesize SF strains may express type III secretion system effectors like ExoU and ExoS at unusually high levels, and have developed a modified quantitative Western blot assay to measure PA secretion.