Research Interests

We study mechanisms underlying mycobacterial persistence against antibiotics. We use biofilms as a growth model in our studies. Biofilms are formed by most microbes including mycobacteria, and are defined as surface-associated, 3D-organized, multicellular communities encapsulated by extracellular matrix.  We hypothesize that inherent heterogeneity in microenvironments of biofilms leads to the development of a specialized subpopulation of cells adapted to extreme nutritional and hypoxic stresses, and that these elite cells develop into persisters. For example, we have observed that zinc depletion in mycobacterial biofilms induce ribosome hibernation, leading to the development of drug tolerant persister cells.

Learn more about our projects and the people behind them. Visit our Projects and People page.

Join us!

We currently have an opening for a postdoctoral fellow to work on mycobacterial persistence. If you are interested in a specific research area on this topic please send your resume and a description of your research interests to Anil Ojha. 
 

Program Updates

Differentiated biofilms of M. abscessus

Wadsworth Center Launches Web Tool to Explore the Mycobacterium abscessus Pangenome

Scientists at the Wadsworth Center have developed a new online resource to help researchers better understand Mycobacterium abscessus (MABS), an opportunistic bacterial pathogen that can cause difficult-to-treat infections.  Drs. Anil Ojha and Pallavi Ghosh of the Division of Genetics, together with Dr. Pascal Lapierre of the Bioinformatics Core, created the MABS Pangenome Explorer, an interactive, web-based tool designed for rapid exploration of the M. abscessus pangenome (https://abscessus.wadsworth.org/)
Seedling News Square

Nine Seed Grants - Quintessentially Wadsworth Center

From environmental projects characterizing and quantitating contaminants in our water, food and even inside us, to infectious disease projects addressing antimicrobial resistance, “one of the world’s most urgent public health problems”, and studying factors that contribute to emerging infections, these seed grant-supported projects span a wide range of fields.
Biofilms of Mycobacterium smegmatis cells

Deciphering the sleep/wake cycle of ribosomes in mycobacteria

Infections with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb),  the etiological agent of tuberculosis (TB) in humans, are difficult to eradicate with antibiotics: a 6-month long multidrug regimen is necessary for the treatment of TB.  The drug recalcitrance of TB infections has been associated with a specialized subpopulation of Mtb cells, that do not replicate or are very slow growing and whose metabolism is significantly decreased.
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