Dr Nikola Ojkic

Research

Bacterial cell size regulation, Biophysics, Antibiotic resistance, Microbiology

Interests

My group investigates biochemical and biophysical principles of bacterial cell shape and size control. We aim to understand how different core cellular components such as DNA, membranes, cell wall and ribosomes control bacterial cell shapes. We are also interested in how bacteria respond to different environmental and stress conditions and how bacteria develop resistance to antibiotics.

Our group uses multi-disciplinary approaches that combine microbiological experiments, imaging, image analysis, biophysical modelling and computer simulations. By understanding how bacterial cells transform their physiology, metabolic pathways, cell shape and size under different antibiotic perturbations, we will be able to develop new strategies for effectively killing pathogenic bacteria.

We are also interested in how bacterial cells respond to starvation while making long-lasting bacterial spores. We collaborate with sporulation expert Javier López-Garrido and his group at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology in Plön, Germany.

Grants