William DePas
University of Pittsburgh, PA·Microbiology & Immunology
Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are relatives of the tuberculosis bacterium. They are becoming dangerous, antibiotic-resistant lung pathogens, especially in people with cystic fibrosis (CF), a genetic disease that fills the lungs with thick mucus.
- Fields
Microbiology & Immunology
Medicine & Clinical Research
- Topics
nontuberculous mycobacteria
Mycobacterium
cystic fibrosis
- Grants
- 1 known grant, through Feb 2028
What they work on
- Determine how the chemical environment of cystic fibrosis sputum regulates biofilm formation by nontuberculous mycobacteria and how biofilms affect antibiotic tolerance, using a new aggregation assay and MiPACT-HCR imaging.
- Determine how dormancy caused by lack of oxygen affects NTM antibiotic tolerance and biofilm formation, using the 3D Agar Block Biofilm Assay that models the CF lung environment.
- Measure NTM biofilm structure and growth rate directly in samples from people with CF, using MiPACT-HCR tissue clearing and bacterial labeling.
More about the research
Bacteria can form biofilms, slow-growing communities stuck together, and can enter dormancy, a resting state. Both states can sharply reduce how well antibiotics and immune defenses work. Yet little is known about whether NTM actually use these states during human infection.
Why it matters
People with cystic fibrosis who get NTM lung infections face long, often failing antibiotic treatments. Knowing whether NTM grow as slow biofilms or go dormant during infection could guide doctors' choice and dosing of antibiotics. It could also reveal molecular targets for new treatments that break up biofilms or wake dormant bacteria.
Known grants
From NIH and NSF research grants. Labs often have other funding we can't see.
Closest labs
Daniel J Wozniak
Ohio State University, OH·Microbiology & Immunology
Define how Psl, a secreted sugar polymer of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, suppresses Staphylococcus aureus growth and interacts with S. aureus protein A (SpA), using several complementary strategies.
Emily Henkle
Oregon Health & Science University, OR·Medicine & Clinical Research
Enroll three cohorts of patients with NTM lung disease, at diagnosis (NTM-WATCH), at treatment start (NTM-TREAT) and at treatment end (NTM-TRACK), and collect patient-reported outcomes and clinical data for up to 24 months.
Stephen Dolan
Clemson University, SC·Microbiology & Immunology·Early-career
Define the molecular basis of communication between Aspergillus fumigatus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, mediated by the toxins gliotoxin and hydrogen cyanide, by co-culturing them in synthetic cystic fibrosis sputum.
The school
University of Pittsburgh: 83 labs on PI Pages, $1.5B a year on research, 403 research doctorates a year.
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