Host-Pathogen Interactions

Sepsis is estimated to affect more than 30 million people worldwide every year with the mean hospital-wide cost per patient being above $30,000. The pathophysiology of sepsis is a complex and dynamic multifactorial process that results from the host's immune response to a pathogen and differs according to the host’s genotype, immune status, and comorbidities, as well as the type, site, and extent of infection. The impressive survival rates in surgical operations performed on the battlefield during the 19th century with a complete lack of aseptic techniques, blood transfusion, oxygen, or other paraphernalia of modern medicine also support the notion that a person’s genomic and metagenomic makeup may have a protective role in the prevention of infection or prove detrimental if a systemic infection occurs.

Our lab seeks to understand:

  • the mechanisms by which the gut microbiota protects its host from gastrointestinal and lung infections
  • how interactions between the microbiota, pathogens, and host drive the course of infection.

Staff

Xiuqiang (Stephen) Chen
Albert García López
Kexin Li
Mohammadhassan Mirhakkak Esfahani
Tongta Sae-Ong
Sascha Schäuble
Bastian Seelbinder
Le Xu
Lu Zhang

Publications

Machata S, Müller MM, Lehmann R, Sieber P, Panagiotou G, Carvalho A, Cunha C, Lagrou K, Maertens J, Slevogt H, Jacobsen ID (2020) Proteome analysis of bronchoalveolar lavage fluids reveals host and fungal proteins highly expressed during invasive pulmonary aspergillosis in mice and humans. Virulence 11(1), 1337-1351.
Ni Y, Wong VHY, Tai WCS, Li J, Wong WY, Lee MML, Fong FLY, El-Nezami H**, Panagiotou G** (2017) A metagenomic study of the preventive effect of Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG on intestinal polyp formation in ApcMin/+ mice. J Appl Microbiol 122(3), 770-784.

Funding