Abstract:

"Elaborate Mechanisms of Natural Product Antibiotics"

There is an urgent need to discover unprecedented antibacterial mechanisms effective against multi-resistant bacterial pathogens. Secondary metabolites produced by bacteria and other microorganisms (‘natural products’) are a valuable source of new and inspiring antibacterial mechanisms, which are often multi-layered. Natural products produced by commensals from the human microbiome bear potential as decolonizing agents as they evolve on human surfaces and can have antibacterial activities. Also, uptake routes of antibacterial agents across the bacterial cell envelope are important, as they may or may not be prone to resistance development. The talk will showcase selected examples of antibacterial natural products with elaborate mechanisms.

Heike Brötz-Oesterhelt is professor for Microbiology at the University of Tübingen, heading the Department of Microbial Bioactive Compounds. She is co-speaker of the Cluster of Excellence “Controlling Microbes to Fight Infection”, and deputy speaker of the partner site Tübingen within the German Center of Infection Research (DZIF). Her main research interest lies in molecular mechanisms of new antibiotic agents and operation modes of novel antibacterial targets.