Eleri Ashworth

I am currently a PHD student at the Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences. Before coming to Liverpool, I completed a BSc(Hons) in Microbiology at the University of Glasgow. During my time at UoG, I did a summer research project looking at localization of mitochondrial-IMC tethering proteins in Toxoplasma gondii. In my final year, I did my undergraduate research project at theGlasgow Dental Hospital & School on host pathogen interactions involved with feline chronic gingivostomatitis. After graduating, I worked as a research assistant at the Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, University of Glasgow, looking at Mannheimia haemolytica outer membrane proteins during interaction with bovine airway epithelial cells.

My research interest is developing a novel therapeutic to Pseudomonas aeruginosa (Pa). Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen that causes chronic lung infections in people with cystic fibrosis (CF). The respiratory tract of CF patients becomes dominated by Pa and by adulthood up to 80% of patients are chronically infected. Pa has recently been named by WHO as a key human pathogen for which there is an urgent need for new antibiotics. One potential therapeutic strategy is to use compounds that inhibit quorum sensing. Quorum sensing is a mechanism used by bacteria to communicate with each other and is needed to form antibiotic resistant biofilms. My project will focus on testing a new anti-virulence compound (derived from Ajoene) developed by industrial partner Neem Biotech. Ajoene has previously been shown to have quorum sensing inhibition activity in vitro and enhances bacterial clearance in vivo in combination with antibiotics. This could potentially become a new therapeutic strategy for CF patients.