Master of Science Theresa Maria Wagner disputerer for ph.d.-graden i helsevitenskap og vil offentlig forsvare avhandlingen:
“How to Be a Bad Bug: Virulence Determinants of Enterococcus faecium”
Kort sammendrag av avhandlingen:
Enterococci are a normal part of the human intestinal flora, but they can infect our body via the bloodstream. Usually, immune cells protect us from infection. In the hospital, however, especially weak patients face bacteria, which evade their defense system. A treatment challenge is the enterococci’s resistance to many antimicrobial drugs.
In the first project, we identified proteins exclusive to hospital enterococci, which help bacterial immune evasion. Small spheres released by enterococci, called membrane vesicles, which can transport proteins related to resistance and virulence, are described in the second project. In the third project, we explore large genetic structures, called megaplasmids, which promote the survival of enterococci in blood.
The knowledge gained in this thesis will help to understand the differences between enterococci naturally inhabiting our intestine and those entering our blood. This will lead the way to the development of new treatment strategies and drugs.
Veiledere
Hovedveileder Professor II Kristin Hegstad
Biveileder Professor Mona Susan Johannessen
Biveileder senior forsker Torunn Pedersen
Bedømmelseskomiteen
Professor Johannes Hübner, Dr. von Hauner Children’s Hospital, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, München, Tyskland – 1. opponent
Professor Emeritus Anne-Brit Kolstø, Farmasøytisk institutt, UiO – 2. opponent
Forsker Sören Abel, Institutt for farmasi, Det helsevitenskapelige fakultet, UiT Norges arktiske universitet– leder av komité
Disputasleder
Professor Ingebrigt Sylte, Institutt for medisinsk biologi, Det helsevitenskapelige fakultet, UiT – Norges arktiske universitet
Prøveforelesning over oppgitt emne holdes kl. 10.15, samme sted: “The use of membrane vesicles from Gram positive bacteria: possibilities and limitations”