Daniel Straume

I am studying antibiotic resistance, horizontal gene transfer and cell division in the important human pathogen Streptococcus pneumoniae. This bacterium is naturally competent for genetic transformation, making horizontal gene transfer an important driving force for the plasticity of its genome and the spread of antibiotic resistance genes among pneumococci. I am also interested in unravelling novel mechanisms that are important for bacterial cell wall synthesis and cell cycle progression. Because both processes are essential for bacterial proliferation, many of the components involved represent potential targets for next generation antibiotics. In addition, I am searching for and characterizing novel antimicrobials that can kill streptococci.

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