Vanessa Sperandio
Position title: Professor and Chair, Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology
Email: vsperandio@wisc.edu
Department:
Medical Microbiology and Immunology
Education:
Ph.D. in Molecular Genetics, State University of Campinas, Brazil & University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
Postdoctoral in Microbiology, State University of Sao Paulo, Brazil
Postdoctoral in Microbiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
Research Description:
Our research investigates chemical, stress and nutritional signaling at the interface amongst the mammalian host, beneficial microbiota and invading bacterial pathogens. The main tenant of research in my laboratory is the study of how bacterial cells sense several mammalian neurotransmitters leading to rewiring and reprogramming of bacterial transcription towards host and niche adaptation. We have also identified several bacterial receptors to mammalian neurotransmitters and reported that invading pathogens hijack these inter-kingdom signaling systems to promote virulence expression. We also translated these basic science concepts into strategies to develop novel approaches to anti-microbial therapy.
Key Words:
Gut-brain Axis, Intestinal Microbiota and Addiction, Bacterial Recognition of Neurotransmitters