University of Redlands
Human serum has multiple components that have the capacity to kill bacteria. I am interested in how some types of bacteria are able to evade the effects of one such component. This component is known as complement. The undergraduate research students and I are examining the bacterial cell wall as a potential key structure in this evasion of the action of complement. Our experimental approach is to treat the cells in ways that perturb the cell wall structure to see if the cells then become sensitive to the effects of complement. This research may reveal new approaches to treating bacterial infections.
