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Università Vita – Salute San Raffaele,
Fondazione Centro San Raffaele del Monte Tabor, Milano-ItalyAlessandra Bragonzi -
University of Nottingham, Nottingham-United KingdomMiguel Cámara
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Eberhard Karls Univerität Tübingen, Tübingen-GermanyGerd Döring
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Actar AB, Stockholm-SwedenBjörn Kull
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University of Zürich, Zürich-SwitzerlandJohn A. RobinsonLeo Eberl
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Università degli Studi di Milano, Milano-ItalyGiovanni Bertoni
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Greenpharma S.A.S., Orléans, FranceQuoc-Tuan Do
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University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen-DenmarkPeter E. Nielsen
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Polyphor, Allschwil-SwitzerlandChristian Ludin
Alessandra Bragonzi
(Coordinator)
Infections and Cystic Fibrosis Unit
Division of immunology, Transplantation and Infectious Diseases
Division of immunology, Transplantation and Infectious Diseases
Università Vita – Salute San Raffaele,
Fondazione Centro San Raffaele del Monte
Fondazione Centro San Raffaele del Monte
address:
Via Olgettina 58, 20132 Milano, Italyph:
+39 02 26434189fax:
+39 02 26435183email:
bragonzi.alessandra@hsr.itAlessandra Bragonzi is the group leader of Infections and Cystic Fibrosis Unit and Director of Cystic Fibrosis animal Core Facility (CFaCore). She has major expertise on pathogenesis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and preclinical mouse model of infection. Her research laboratory is focused on cellular and molecular mechanisms that are involved in the host-pathogen interactions during persistent infection with the aim of devising new therapeutic approaches to treat respiratory infections.
Alessandra Bragonzi has established the CFaCore to support investigators by providing CF animal models and access to specialized expertise, tool and technologies. The project is funded by the Italian Cystic Fibrosis Research Foundation. The overall objective is to favour the translation of basic research projects into pre-clinical applications, thus enabling a faster development of new strategies for the treatment of CF.
Alessandra Bragonzi has established the CFaCore to support investigators by providing CF animal models and access to specialized expertise, tool and technologies. The project is funded by the Italian Cystic Fibrosis Research Foundation. The overall objective is to favour the translation of basic research projects into pre-clinical applications, thus enabling a faster development of new strategies for the treatment of CF.
Miguel Cámara
University of Nottingham
address:
Nottingham NG7 2RD, United Kingdomph:
+44 (0)115 9515036fax:
+44 (0)115 8467951Miguel Cámara is a leader of the Quorum Sensing research group at Nottingham University. Since 1994 he has been working on the molecular biology behind the global coordination of gene expression in bacterial populations through quorum sensing. The main organisms he is currently working on are Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Yersinia species in which quorum sensing is reaching a high level of complexity as a result of the vast gathering of information from microarray studies. To understand how quorum sensing cascades integrate with the different regulatory networks within cells he interested in the analysis of genomic, proteomic and metabolomic responses of some of these bacteria to environmental changes. He is also interested in the signaling between bacteria and eukaryotic organisms in both the human host and marine environments. His ultimate aim is to identify novel antibacterial targets that can be exploited to treat from infectious diseases to marine biofouling.
Gerd Döring
Institute of Medical Microbiology and Hygiene
Eberhard Karls Univerität Tübingen
address:
Wilhelmstrasse 31, 72074 Germanyph:
+49 7071 298 2069fax:
+49 7071 29 30 11Prof. Döring has an established reputation in the field of chronic bacterial lung infections in patients with the hereditary disorder cystic fibrosis (CF), concerning P. aeruginosa and S. aureus diagnosis, pathogenicity, antibiotic treatment, vaccine development and molecular epidemiology. Specifically, the research activities of the group include the investigations of (a) mechanisms of colonization, adaptation and virulence of CF-related pathogens in CF airways, (b) mechanisms of inflammation and tissue remodelling in chronically infected CF airways, (c) antibiotic therapy strategies against CF-related pathogens, (d) vaccine and immunotherapy against P. aeruginosa and (e) tyrosine nitration in eosinophils.
Björn Kull
Actar AB
address:
Nobels väg 3, SE-17177 Stockholmph:
+46 (8) 52484801fax:
46 (8) 52484800email:
bjorn.kull@actar.seBjörn Kull, Director of assay development and screening, has a solid background in the early phase of drug discovery and development including target identification, validation and assay development. MSc in molecular pharmacology at the University of Lund 1994, PhD in neuropharmacology at Karolinska Institutet 2000. Björn Kull is since 2005 responsible for the assay development and screening at Actar AB.
John A. Robinson
Institute of Organic Chemistry
University of Zürich
address:
Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zürich, Switzerlandph:
+41 4463 5 4242fax:
+41 4463 5 6833email:
robinson@oci.uzh.chJohn Robinson is a professor of organic chemistry at the University of Zurich. His research interests lie in the area of bioorganic chemistry and chemical biology. Presently, major research projects include the design and study of novel protein epitope mimetics - novel small peptidomimetics which mimic the epitopes on naturally occurring peptides and proteins responsible for biological activity - and the biosynthesis of the glycopeptide family of natural products (vancomycin). In the NABATIVI project, a family of novel peptidomimetics will be studied that possess potent antimicrobial activity against Pseudomonas sp. Of particular interest is the mechanism of action of these novel antibiotics, as well as efforts to produce related molecules active against other Gram-negative bacteria.
Leo Eberl
Dept. of Microbiology
Institute of Plant Biology
Institute of Plant Biology
University of Zürich
address:
Zollikerstrasse 107, CH-8008 Zürich, Switzerlandph:
+41 4463 4 8220fax:
+41 4463 4 8204email:
leberl@botinst.uzh.chLeo Eberl is full Professor of Microbiology at the University of Zürich. The main theme of his research is to understand the molecular basis and ecological importance of cell-to-cell communication between bacteria, in particular in multicellular aggregates, and to elucidate how these signals interfere with higher organisms. The research group has longstanding experience in the genetic manipulation of P. aeruginosa and Burkholderia sp., cultivation of biofilms in flow-through cells and the use of different non-mammalian infection models.
Giovanni Bertoni
Dept. of Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology (DSBB)
Università degli Studi di Milano
address:
via Celoria 26, 20133 Milano, Italyph:
+39 02 50315027fax:
+39 02 50315044email:
giovanni.bertoni@unimi.itGiovanni Bertoni is team leader within the Research Unit of Molecular Microbiology and Bacterial Biotechnology at DSBB. Since 1990 he has been working on the molecular genetics of soil bacteria (mainly Pseudomonas) with emphasis on the expression of catabolic genes for the degradation of aromatic compounds. His expertise covers the fields of gene regulation, biochemistry of transcription and functional genomics. He is currently working on Pseudomonas aeruginosa, performing programs of functional genomics, both in flask and in animal models of infection, accompanied by focused studies of gene expression, genetic complementation and gene inactivation. His aim in this context is to identify and characterize unprecedented essential and/or host/pathogen interaction functions as targets of novel antibacterial treatments.
Quoc-Tuan Do
Greenpharma S.A.S.
address:
Allée du Titane 3, Orléans, 45100 Franceph:
+33 2 38259980fax:
+33 2 38259965email:
quoctuan.do@greenpharma.comGreenpharma is specialised in drug discovery based on natural compounds and
chemoinformatic tools. Our strategy termed GreenOvation for accelerating hit
and lead finding, is based on four approaches supported by cutting edge
molecular modelling tools and lab chemistry: natural compounds, drug
repositioning, drug mimicry and drug association. GreenOvation has allowed
us to file several patents on bioactive compounds. Greenpharma technical
platform is dedicated to R&D. We supply: (i) products: natural compound
library, plant extract library, biofocused library; (ii) services: research
contracts, ethnopharmacological studies, virtual screening, QSAR, analytical
and medicinal chemistry.
Peter E. Nielsen
University of Copenhagen
address:
Blegdamsvej 3c, DK 2200N Copenhagen, Denmarkph:
+45 35327762fax:
+45 35396042email:
pen@imbg.ku.dkPeter Nielsen is one of the inventors of PNA and has been a driving force in studying and developing this class of molecules during the past close to twenty years. These studies have ranged from pure chemistry over structural chemistry, diagnostics, molecular biology, drug discovery to the prebiotic evolution of life on earth. Specifically, the group has discovered and studied antibacterial PNAs. The group is primarily interested in studies of PNA in terms of chemistry, molecular and cellular biology and medicine, and is presently devoting special focus to cellular and in vivo delivery of PNA through chemical modification and formulation.
Christian Ludin
Polyphor
address:
Hegenheimermattweg 125, CH-4123 Allschwil, Switzerlandph:
+41 61 567 16 00fax:
+41 61 567 16 01email:
christian.ludin@polyphor.comPolyphor has developed in collaboration with the University of Zurich the Protein Epitope Mimetics (PEM) Technology, a truly innovative, proprietary discovery platform for addressing difficult targets including protein-protein interactions The PEM discovery platform is fully integrated and comprises: structure-based design, high throughput synthesis and purification, lead optimization, screening and in vitro ADMET profiling. Polyphor’s in-house resources are supported by an extensive network of academic and biotech partners with complementary expertise (e.g. NMR and crystallographic structural studies, PET imaging, formulation). By applying PEM Technology, Polyphor has developed potent and selective compounds for the treatment of Pseudomonas infections, whose mechanism of action involves a recently identified, novel target (undisclosed) involved in outer membrane biosynthesis.