Forschungszentrum
Programmbereich Infektionen
Mission
Tuberculosis is the most important bacterial infection of humans worldwide. The tuberculosis agent, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, is a facultative intracellular pathogen, which can survive and proliferate inside host macrophages and other innate defense cells. The research group Cellular Microbiology studies host-pathogen interactions in tuberculosis on the molecular, cellular and animal model level. We focus on the question how the intracellular niche of Mycobacterium tuberculosis determines the pathogens fate and transmission as well as innate and acquired immune responses as well pathogenesis in tuberculosis and, ultimately, anti-mycobacterial drug efficacy.
Topics
- Characterizing the intracellular trafficking of mycobacteria
- Role of mycobacterial cell wall lipids in mycobacterial virulence and immunity
- Neutrophil - macrophage interactions in TB
- Host-directed-therapy and Point-of Care diagnostics in TB
- Transmission of mycobacteria containing aerosols
- Nano-particle based delivery of anti-TB drugs
- Imaging of infection and immune processes in TB
- Pulmonary micro ecology and lower respiratory tract microbiota
- Biology of the emerging pulmonary pathogen, Stenotrophomonas maltophilia