SCS lectureship award - Complex-and-Diverse Compounds Lead to Microbiome Sparing Antibiotics
Event details
| Date | 26.03.2026 |
| Hour | 10:45 › 12:00 |
| Speaker | Prof. Paul J. Hergenrother |
| Location | |
| Category | Conferences - Seminars |
| Event Language | English |
Abstract :
We have been exploring an unbiased approach to determine structural features that facilitate compound accumulation in Gram-negative bacteria, involving the assessment of accumulation of hundreds of compounds, both natural-product-like and drug-like small molecules. The results of these experiments have led to the ‘eNTRy rules’, guidelines for predicting compound accumulation in E. coli and more recently the ‘PASsagE rules’ for P. aeruginosa. This lecture will describe the design and synthesis of these compounds, the rules, and their application toward a general blueprint for the development of antibiotics with activity against Gram-negative pathogens. Most critically, we have been working on antibacterial targets that enable selective killing of Gram-negative pathogens over commensal bacteria. Unlike most all approved antibiotics, the novel antibiotics we have discovered do not lead to gut dysbiosis in mice, and also do not allow C. difficile infection to take hold after treatment. With the many deleterious effects of antibiotic-induced gut dysbiosis now recognized, this type of “dual-selective” antibiotic – selective for Gram-negative bacteria over Gram-positive, and selective for pathogenic bacteria over commensals – could have significant benefits for patients.
Biography:
Professor Hergenrother received his B.S. in chemistry from the University of Notre Dame in 1994. He went on to the University of Texas at Austin and obtained his Ph.D. in 1999; during this time Paul was the recipient of an American Chemical Society graduate student fellowship and the Roche Award for Excellence in Organic Chemistry. After an American Cancer Society post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard University, he joined the faculty at Illinois in 2001. His research interests are in the areas of synthetic organic chemistry, chemical biology, and biochemistry.
Website:
Hergenrother Lab | Solving complex disease-driven questions | Illinois
We have been exploring an unbiased approach to determine structural features that facilitate compound accumulation in Gram-negative bacteria, involving the assessment of accumulation of hundreds of compounds, both natural-product-like and drug-like small molecules. The results of these experiments have led to the ‘eNTRy rules’, guidelines for predicting compound accumulation in E. coli and more recently the ‘PASsagE rules’ for P. aeruginosa. This lecture will describe the design and synthesis of these compounds, the rules, and their application toward a general blueprint for the development of antibiotics with activity against Gram-negative pathogens. Most critically, we have been working on antibacterial targets that enable selective killing of Gram-negative pathogens over commensal bacteria. Unlike most all approved antibiotics, the novel antibiotics we have discovered do not lead to gut dysbiosis in mice, and also do not allow C. difficile infection to take hold after treatment. With the many deleterious effects of antibiotic-induced gut dysbiosis now recognized, this type of “dual-selective” antibiotic – selective for Gram-negative bacteria over Gram-positive, and selective for pathogenic bacteria over commensals – could have significant benefits for patients.
Biography:
Professor Hergenrother received his B.S. in chemistry from the University of Notre Dame in 1994. He went on to the University of Texas at Austin and obtained his Ph.D. in 1999; during this time Paul was the recipient of an American Chemical Society graduate student fellowship and the Roche Award for Excellence in Organic Chemistry. After an American Cancer Society post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard University, he joined the faculty at Illinois in 2001. His research interests are in the areas of synthetic organic chemistry, chemical biology, and biochemistry.
Website:
Hergenrother Lab | Solving complex disease-driven questions | Illinois
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