Collins Lab
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About
The intestinal microbiota is influenced by various factors, including nutrient availability, environmental conditions, competitors, predators, and host genetics. Nutrient availability in the intestinal tract is closely linked to diet, which has significantly changed over the past century. The industrialization of food processing has led to increased consumption of simple carbohydrates and the introduction of novel sugars, non-calorific sweeteners, oils, and emulsifiers. Despite safety testing in animals, the effects of these nutrients on the microbiota remain largely unknown.
The Collins Lab focuses on hospital-associated pathogens such as Clostridioides difficile (formerly Clostridium difficile) and Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococci (VRE). We investigate how dietary components influence the infectivity, selection, spread, and virulence of these pathogens, aiming to leverage this knowledge to combat bacterial infections.
Team
- James Collins, D. Phil, Principal Investigator; University of Oxford, 2010
- Michelle Chua, Ph. D, Research Scientist
- Michelle Hallenbeck, MS, M&I PhD Candidate, 2020
- Dan Erickson, MS, M&I PhD Candidate, 2021
- Lily Hernandez, M&I PREP Student, 2024
- C. difficile pathogenesis
- Novel treatment strategies for VRE
- Control of enteric pathogens with microbially derived metabolites
Chua M, Collins J. Mice colonized with the defined microbial community OMM19.1 are susceptible to C. difficile infection without prior antibiotic treatment. bioRxiv [Preprint]. 2024 Aug 27:2024.08.27.609948. doi: 10.1101/2024.08.27.609948. PMID: 39253461; PMCID: PMC11383274.
Hallenbeck M, Chua M, Collins J. The role of the universal sugar transport system components PtsI (EI) and PtsH (HPr) in Enterococcus faecium. FEMS Microbes. 2024 Jun 3;5:xtae018. doi: 10.1093/femsmc/xtae018. PMID: 38988831; PMCID: PMC11234649.
Ghosh S, Erickson D, Chua MJ, Collins J, Jala VR. The microbial metabolite urolithin A reduces Clostridioides difficile toxin expression and toxin-induced epithelial damage. mSystems. 2024 Feb 20;9(2):e0125523. doi: 10.1128/msystems.01255-23. Epub 2024 Jan 9. PMID: 38193707; PMCID: PMC10878087.
Chua MJ, Collins J. Rapid, Efficient, and Cost-Effective Gene Editing of Enterococcus faecium with CRISPR-Cas12a. Microbiol Spectr. 2022 Feb 23;10(1):e0242721. doi: 10.1128/spectrum.02427-21. Epub 2022 Feb 2. PMID: 35107356; PMCID: PMC8809335.
Yacyshyn MB, Collins J, Chua M, Siegwald A, Yacyshyn S, Briones-Pryor V, Yacyshyn B. Feasibility study of Bismuth Subsalicylate (BSS) as an addition to standard of care for COVID-19 therapy. Curr Ther Res Clin Exp. 2022;96:100667. doi: 10.1016/j.curtheres.2022.100667. Epub 2022 Mar 30. PMID: 35370296; PMCID: PMC8964506.
Midani FS, Collins J, Britton RA. AMiGA: Software for Automated Analysis of Microbial Growth Assays. mSystems. 2021 Aug 31;6(4):e0050821. doi: 10.1128/mSystems.00508-21. Epub 2021 Jul 13. PMID: 34254821; PMCID: PMC8409736.
Auchtung JM, Preisner EC, Collins J, Lerma AI, Britton RA. Identification of Simplified Microbial Communities That Inhibit Clostridioides difficile Infection through Dilution/Extinction. mSphere. 2020 Jul 29;5(4):e00387-20. doi: 10.1128/mSphere.00387-20. PMID: 32727857; PMCID: PMC7392540.
A full list of Collins Lab publications may be found at-
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/myncbi/1p5tYEGCondkj/bibliography/public/