Dr Vidya Darbari

Research in Dr Darbari's group is focussed on the structural biology of bacterial membrane-spanning molecular machines (secretion systems, mammalian cell entry lipid transporters) and bacterial effectors to decipher their molecular mechanism required for survival in hostile environments and pathogenesis. The group use a variety of structural biology techniques including X-ray Crystallography and Cryo-EM combined with biochemical, biophysical and cell biology techniques for structural and functional characterisation. One of her recent highlights, in collaboration with Dr Garnett’s group at Kings College London, reveals the structure-function correlation of an important mucolytic virulence factor secreted by certain gut pathogens causing diarrhoeal diseases, such as E. coli. Her team determined the unique and dynamic structure of SslE using an integrative structural biology approach. They showed that Ssle, in response to acidification within mature biofilms, formed a unique aggregate with amyloid-like properties. Both SslE monomers and aggregates could bind DNA in vitro and co-localise with extracellular DNA (eDNA) in mature biofilms and could possibly associate with cellulose under certain conditions.

Ongoing work from Dr Darbari investigates this important link between SslE and eDNA interaction for biofilm maturation and interaction between Ssle and mucin substrates for intestinal penetration as required to establish infection.

The image created using PyMOL and Blender shows a high-resolution CryoEM micrograph of Ssle particles as the base with a structural model of Ssle with the non-physiological glycan Tn antigen as substrate floating above.