$2.1 Million NIH Grant Awarded to Molecular Biology Faculty

Josie Chandler (associate professor) was awarded a four-year, $2.1 million R35 research grant from the NIH National Institute of General Medical Sciences entitled “Quorum sensing evolution and function in mixed microbial communities.” The proposed studies seek to understand the role of bacterial communication (quorum sensing) in mixed microbial communities and how quorum sensing systems change in changing environments. These studies are fundamental to understanding bacterial community behavior and will inform efforts to manipulate quorum sensing to control infections.