Insights on the Molecular Events that Unleash Resistance to beta-lactam antibiotics in Staphylococcus aureus

LLARRULL, L.I.

Encuentro; Pew Latin American Fellows Program in the Biomedical Sciences Reunion; 2014

The PEW Charitable Trusts

Staphylococcus aureus is the main cause of hospital- and community-associated infections, and it is the most frequent cause of surgical, lower respiratory tract, and cardiovascular infections. Methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) is a high priority concern in the world and in particular in Latin America, where it has become the first cause of hospital-associated infections, and where an increasing number of community acquired MRSA infections have been reported. Also, there is great concern for the appearance of strains resistant to vancomycin, the last resort antibiotic used to treat S. aureus infections. Research efforts in my lab focus on the characterization of membrane proteins from S. aureus, which have been proposed to sense different classes of antibiotics (beta-lactams and glycopeptides) and to elicit the expression of resistance factors. These sensor proteins are promising targets for the design of inhibitors that would restore the efficiency of these antibiotics. We are currently working on the elucidation of the topology and structure of the sensor proteins BlaR1 and MecR1.