Kim Lewis
Degrees/Education
B.Sc., Biology, Moscow University, Moscow, USSR
Ph.D., Biochemistry, Moscow University, Moscow, USSR
Area(s) of Expertise
Molecular Microbiology
Research Interests
The focus of my research is on antimicrobial drug tolerance and drug discovery. Microorganisms produce persister cells, which are dormant variants that are highly tolerant to killing by all known antibiotics. Persisters are largely responsible for relapsing chronic infections caused by biofilms. Using transcriptome analysis, cell sorting and whole genome sequencing we are identifying genes responsible for persister formation. Both drug tolerance and conventional drug resistance require development of new antibiotics, and our discovery efforts include screening compounds from previously “uncultured” species of microorganisms, and high-throughput screening for compounds with novel mode of action.
Location
306C Mugar Life Sciences Building
Study: Antibiotics are unique assassins
In recent years, a body of publications in the microbiology field has challenged all previous knowledge of how antibiotics kill bacteria.