Three OU researchers have received $310,000 from the U.S. Department of Defense’s Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs to identify protein motifs in Cas9 essential for bacteria virulence. A 2023 seed grant for a project on developing protein sequence visualization tools has facilitated research collaboration between the Rajan and Park labs.
Rakhi Rajan, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Ji Hwan Park, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the School of Computer Science, and Carolyn Ibberson, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, will undertake research as awarded by DoD:
$310,000 — U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE, Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP)
Identifying protein motifs in Cas9 essential for bacterial virulence
Bacterial infections and antibiotic resistance are among the most serious of human health concerns. To update the antimicrobial repertoire with innovative strategies, the team led by PI Rajan will analyze Cas9 protein sequences from pathogenic bacteria to identify signature sequences that are uniquely present in pathogenic bacteria, but not in environmental bacteria. Dr. Park’s research team will use machine learning approaches employing deep learning-based sequence analysis models to complement traditional bioinformatics approaches that will be performed in the Rajan lab. Together, these approaches are expected to identify unique pockets in Cas9 protein essential for bacterial virulence. The identified pockets will be experimentally validated by genetic, biochemical, and microbiological approaches. Dr. Ibberson’s team will provide microbiology expertise to manipulate streptococcal Cas9 and to test infectivity of the new strains in human cell lines. If successful, Cas9 will enable targeted antimicrobial development in future studies, which will further elevate the biomedical potential of Cas9 that is currently used in gene editing and gene therapy applications. Data Institute for Societal Challenges (DISC) seed funding from the University of Oklahoma for Dr. Park (PI) and Dr. Rajan (collaborator) for interactive data visualization of protein sequences has facilitated a strong collaborative background between the Rajan and Park labs, which will facilitate accomplishing the DoD project goals.
Acknowledgments:
a) The U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity, 820 Chandler Street, Fort Detrick MD 21702-5014 is the awarding and administering acquisition office.
b) This work was supported by The Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs endorsed by the Department of Defense, in the amount of ($310,000), through the Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program under Award Number (HT9425-23-1-0256). Opinions, interpretations, conclusions, and recommendations contained herein are those of the author(s) and are not necessarily endorsed by the Department of Defense.
c) In conducting research using animals, the investigator(s) adhere(s) to the laws of the United States and regulations of the Department of Agriculture.
d) In the conduct of research utilizing recombinant DNA, the investigator(s) adhered to NIH Guidelines for research involving recombinant DNA molecules.
e) In the conduct of research involving hazardous organisms or toxins, the investigator(s) adhered to the CDC-NIH Guide for Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories.
