Streptococcus pneumoniae remain one of the leading causes of infection-related death globally. Macrophages play a critical role in regulating pneumococcal replication in the airway and are essential in clearing bacteria from the lower respiratory tract. To mediate their antibacterial host defence roles macrophages need to be appropriately activated to optimize bacterial ingestion and killing. Pattern recognition receptors play a key role in optimizing bacterial macrophage activation and these shifts in phenotype are linked to shifting reliance on oxidative phosphorylation and glycolytic metabolism. The project will examine how different pattern recognition receptors influence metabolism and link this to generation of reactive oxygen species by mitochondria. The project will use a variety of approaches to analyse metabolic function and link these to features of macrophage polarization, generation of microbicidal molecules and antibacterial killing. |
The Team
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