Molecular basis of niche adaptation and competition by Streptococcus pyogenes

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This NSERC Discovery grant is designed to understand how different genetic systems contribute to the ability of the bacterium Streptococcus pyogenes to survive within the nasopharynx. This bacterium is only known to live naturally in humans, and although it can cause a range of important human diseases, the 'natural' lifecycle of S. pyogenes is a state of colonization where the organism does not cause active disease. Thus, because S. pyogenes only has one natural host, it must have evolved very efficient ways to allow it to survive in this environment. The work is designed to understand how two genetic systems have evolved to contribute to the survival of S. pyogenes. The first system consists of viruses that infect bacteria (called bacteriophages) and have added their viral DNA to the DNA of S. pyogenes, and how these bacteriophages can make S. pyogenes more efficient at colonizing. The second system consists of small, anti-bacterial molecules that likely function to allow S. pyogenes to compete with other microorganisms. The application will utilize a number of genetic approaches to alter S. pyogenes and then assess the ability of these genetic systems to mobilize between bacteria or contribute to the ability of S. pyogenes to persist.