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Archna Bhasin
Microbial competition in a bacterium/nematode/insect tripartite system Archna Bhasin, Assistant Professor, abhasin@valdosta.edu Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2003-2006 |
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Teaching : Biol 2900, Microbiology in Heath and Disease
Research Interests:
Within a single biological community, there are numerous microorganisms constituting a diverse array of species. Among this multitude of microorganisms, only a portion form specific associations, either beneficial or pathogenic, with host organisms. A key factor in formation of these host-microbe associations is competition between microbes in a community. Many bacteria produce a variety of compounds that kill related bacteria, termed bacteriocins, but the ecological role of these compounds has hardly been investigated. My research goal is to explore the mechanisms microbes employ to compete with one another for a host niche. To do this, I will use the Xenorhabdus bacteria/Steinernema nematode/insect model system. In this sytem, Xenorhabus has a mutualistic relationship with the Steinernema nematode, but has a pathogenic relationship with insect larvae.
Bacteriocin assay with X. nematophila as indicator strain
Publications
Steiniger-White, M., Bhasin, A., Lovell, S., Rayment, I., Reznikoff, W.S. (2002) Evidence for “unseen” transposase-DNA contacts. Journal of Molecular Biology 322, 971-82.
Twining, S.S., Goryshin, I.Y., Bhasin, A., and Reznikoff, W.S. (2001) Functional characterization of arginine 30, lysine 40, and arginine 62 in Tn5 transposase. Journal of Biological Chemistry 276, 23135-43.
Bhasin, A., Goryshin, I.Y., Steiniger-White, M., York, D., and Reznikoff, W.S. (2000) Characterization of a Tn5 pre-cleavage synaptic complex. Journal of Molecular Biology 302, 49-63.