About me:

My research group focuses on bacterial signal transduction and in particular on multikinase-networks, which are two-component signalling networks comprising multiple sensor kinases. In these networks, the sensor kinases work together to detect and integrate signals and to decide upon an appropriate response. We are interested in mechanisms of signal integration and amplification and particularly on how complex behaviour can be controlled by these sensory circuits built from such simple components. The main focus of my group is on the GacS multikinase network which controls the transition between acute and chronic modes of virulence in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

I am a member of:

The Microbes and Disease Research Theme

The Biochemistry, Chemical Biology and Structural Biology Research Theme

Two-component signalling pathways are employed by bacteria to perceive their environment and to effect appropriate responses. The vast number of processes regulated includes transcription, virulence, antibiotic resistance, development and chemotaxis. The simplest two-component pathways comprise a single sensor histidine kinase (HPK) and its cognate response regulator (RR). Sensory stimuli control the activity of the HPK, which in turn modulates the activity of the RR by phosphorylation. For some processes eg virulence and development, a simple pathway is not sufficient to detect the multitude of different signals that modulate behaviour and instead a sensory network employing several different HPKs and RRs is used. Research in my laboratory is focussed on understanding the mechanisms used by these complex networks to process and integrate sensory data from numerous sources to produce appropriate physiological responses.

1998-2002 D.Phil. (Biochemistry), Jesus College, University of Oxford
1994-1998 M.Biochem. (Biochemistry) First class honours. Jesus College, University of Oxford

2015-present Senior Lecturer in Biochemistry, Biosciences, University of Exeter

2009-2015 Lecturer in Biochemistry, School of Biosciences, University of Exeter
2006-2009 Postdoctoral Research Assistant, Oxford Centre for Integrative Systems Biology, University of Oxford
2001-2006 Junior Research Fellowship (BTP Research Fellow), Pembroke College, University of Oxford
2001-2006 Postdoctoral Research Assistant, Department of Biochemistry, University of Oxford