Janet R. Donaldson Education Postdoctoral Research Contact Information |
Statement of Research Interests
Listeria monocytogenes is the causative agent of listeriosis, which is one of the leading causes of death from food-borne pathogens. It is especially harmful in pregnant women, newborns, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals. An interesting characteristic of Listeria monocytogenes is that it can survive in a wide range of stressful environments, including macrophages that produce reactive oxygen species, high salt environments, refrigerated temperatures, and the low pH of a stomach. These environments typically are harmful to microorganisms since they induce DNA damage or destroy the cell wall. The aim of my laboratory is to understand how Listeria monocytogenes is able to adapt, replicate, and infect in these extreme conditions.
Recent Publications
Bannister, LA, R Pezza, JR Donaldson, KJ Schimenti, RD Camerini-Otero, and JC Schimenti. 2007. A dominant, recombination-defective allele of Dmc1 causing male-specific sterility. PLoS Biology. 5:e105.
Donaldson, JR and J Courcelle. 2005. RuvABC is Required to Resolve Holliday Junctions that accumulate following replication on damaged templates in Escherichia coli. Journal of Biological Chemistry. 281:28811-21
Donaldson, JR, CT Courcelle, and J Courcelle. 2004. RuvAB and RecG are not essential for the recovery of DNA synthesis following UV-induced DNA damage in Escherichia coli. Genetics. 166:1631-40.
Courcelle J, JR Donaldson, KH Chow, and CT Courcelle. 2003. UV-induced replication fork regression and processing in Escherichia coli. Science. 299: 1064-7.