Faculty: Shaun Brinsmade

Dr. Shaun Brinsmade is an Assistant Professor with the Department of Biology with a joint appointment within the Department of Microbiology and Immunology.

Summary:

• B.S. University of Connecticut-Storrs, 2001
• Ph.D. University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2007
• NIH Postdoctoral Fellow, Tufts University School of Medicine 2008-2013
• Currently have space for new PhD students
• Contact: (202) 687-6549; sb1344@georgetown.edu; https://www.brinsmadelab.com

Details

Low G+C Gram-positive bacteria like Staphylococcus aureus are metabolically versatile: they can live in and on our bodies without consequence and can cause life-threatening hospital- and community-acquired infections. Genetic switches, controlled, in part, by transcription factors that bind key intracellular metabolites, govern the reconfiguration of physiology that mediates the shift between commensal and pathogenic lifestyles. The global transcriptional regulatory protein CodY is one of these genetic switches. It controls, in part, the expression of metabolic genes and, in some Gram-positive bacteria, some of the most important virulence genes.

The Brinsmade lab is interdisciplinary in nature: we use cutting-edge and genome-wide methods to answer biological questions at the interface of metabolism and pathogenesis in Gram-positive bacteria. Currently, we are seeking to understand how Staphylococcus aureus uses CodY to prioritize gene expression relevant for infection.

We are actively seeking an enthusiastic and motivated graduate student to join our group. In fact, we invite you to see what the lab is up to by visiting our website.

Publications

• Kriel A, Brinsmade SR, Tse JL, Tehranchi AK, Bittner AN, Sonenshein AL, Wang JD. “GTP dysregulation in Bacillus subtilis cells lacking (p)ppGpp results in phenotypic amino acid auxotrophy and failure to adapt to nutrient downshift and regulate biosynthesis genes..” J Bacteriol. 196.1 (2014): 189-201.
• Brinsmade SR, Alexander EL, Livny J, Stettner AI, Segrè D, Rhee KY, Sonenshein AL. “Hierarchical expression of genes controlled by the Bacillus subtilis global regulatory protein CodY..” Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. (2014).
• Brinsmade SR, Sonenshein AL. “Dissecting complex metabolic integration provides direct genetic evidence for CodY activation by guanine nucleotides..” J Bacteriol. 193 (2011): 5637-5648.
• Lima BP, Antelmann H, Gronau K, Chi BK, Becher D, Brinsmade SR, Wolfe AJ. “Involvement of protein acetylation in glucose-induced transcription of a stress-responsive promoter..” Mol Microbiol. 81 (2011): 1190-1204.
• Brinsmade SR, Kleijn RJ, Sauer U, Sonenshein AL. “Regulation of CodY activity through modulation of intracellular branched-chain amino acid pools..” J Bacteriol. 192 (2010): 6357-6368.
• Brinsmade SR, Escalante-Semerena JC. “In vivo and in vitro analyses of single-amino acid variants of the Salmonella enterica phosphotransacetylase enzyme provide insights into the function of its N-terminal domain..” J Biol Chem. 282 (2007): 12629-12640.
• Kim YR, Brinsmade SR, Yang Z, Escalante-Semerena J, Fierer J. “Mutation of phosphotransacetylase but not isocitrate lyase reduces the virulence of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium in mice..” Infect Immun. 74 (2006): 2498-2502.
• Brinsmade SR, Paldon T, Escalante-Semerena JC. “Minimal functions and physiological conditions required for growth of salmonella enterica on ethanolamine in the absence of the metabolosome..” J Bacteriol. 187 (2005): 8039-8046.
• Brinsmade SR, Escalante-Semerena JC. “The eutD gene of Salmonella enterica encodes a protein with phosphotransacetylase enzyme activity..” J Bacteriol. 186 (2004): 1890-1892.
• Silvaggi NR, Anderson JW, Brinsmade SR, Pratt RF, Kelly JA. “The crystal structure of phosphonate-inhibited D-Ala-D-Ala peptidase reveals an analogue of a tetrahedral transition state..” Biochemistry. 42 (2003): 1199-1208.