Escherichia coli is an important opportunistic bacterial pathogen and one of the most frequent causes of Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs). One of the key survival strategies of E. coli is its ability to form “biofilm”, in which the bacteria are encased in extracellular polymeric substances. This makes them highly resistant to standard antibiotics treatment and also frequently lead to chronic or relapsing infections. Therefore, there is a dire need for novel alternative therapeutics to treat such bacterial infections. In my research work, I have shown that the FDA-approved antifungal drug, 5-fluorocytosine (5-FC), can effectively disarm E. coli, stripping off the virulence factors essential for its pathogenesis and hamper biofilm formation. Most importantly, I identified that when 5-FC is combined with common penicillin-like antibiotics (beta-lactams), it creates a powerful synergy that can kill even the highly protected bacteria residing within the biofilm shield. This novel "Sabotage and Strike" strategy—dismantling the bacteria's defenses and striking with antibiotics—represents a promising approach to combat persistent infections and tackle the global challenge of antibiotic resistance.

Paris postdoc seminar series