CFH Fellowship: Understanding modulation of host immunity by staphylococcal surface proteins

Staphylococcus aureus is a Gram positive bacterial pathogen that can cause life-threatening infections which are often hard to treat with conventional front-line antimicrobials. One of the factors that contributes to staphylococcal infection is the ability of the bacterium to suppress the host immune response, allowing persistent infections to develop. This project will use molecular, immunological and computational methods to examine the role of staphylococcal cell surface proteins in modulation of host immunity, and explore whether these mechanisms are conserved in other Gram positive pathogens.