Catherine Putonti
|
Professor
Bioinformatics
Ph.D. 2006, University of Houston
Phone: 773.508.3277
Fax: 773.508.3646
E-mail: cputonti@luc.edu
|
RESEARCH INTERESTS
The areas of my current research are computational biology and microbial evolution, blending traditional bench molecular biology techniques and applied computer science. As such, the line between biology and computer science is often blurred. Specifically, I have concentrated my scientific interests on the two areas below.
1. Bacteria and phages of the bladder. Maybe you've heard that urine is sterile? Spoiler, it's not. In collaboration with the Loyola Urinary Education and Research Collaborative (LUEREC), we have been cataloging the bacteria and viruses within the healthy and symptomatic female urinary tract. Bacteriophages (viruses that infect bacteria) are the most abundant and diverse members of most ecosystems on the planet, including the urinary tract. In identifying the species present in this ecosystem, we have identified novel bacterial and phage species. The bladder enables us to ask questions of bacteria-phage interactions, ecology, and evolution with direct implications for human health.
2. Viral genetic diversity. Phages are the most abundant and diverse members of most ecosystems on the planet. Phages are routinely discovered in every nook and cranny on Earth. When these new phage isolates are sequenced, we often find that their DNA sequences bear little or no resemblance to any sequences contained within current databases -- the diversity of phages on Earth is severely under sampled. It is therefore crucial to characterize these viruses and the critical roles that they have in directly impacting microbial communities. Rather than just focus viral sequence analysis on what is know (what looks like something we've seen before), we are embracing the unknown. This work has the potential to open new avenues for exploring virus ecology and evolution from genomic data.
REPRESENTATIVE PUBLICATIONS
- Atkins H, Sabharwal B, Boger L, Stegman N, Kula A, Wolfe AJ, Banerjee S, Putonti C. Evidence of Lactobacillus strains shared between the female urinary and vaginal microbiota. Microb Genom, 2024, 10. (Open Access)
- Ene A, Banerjee S, Wolfe AJ, Putonti C. Exploring the genotypic and phenotypic differences distinguishing Lactobacillus jensenii and Lactobacillus mullieris. mSphere, 2023, 27:e0056222. (Open Access)
- Miller-Ensminger T, Johnson G, Banerjee S, Putonti C. When plaquing is not possible: Computational methods for detecting induced phages. Viruses, 2023, 15:420. (Open Access)
- Johnson G, Putonti C. Diversity of Pseudomonas aeruginosa temperate phages. mSphere, 2022, 7:e0101521. (Open Access)
- Garretto A, Miller-Ensminger T, Wolfe AJ, Putonti C. Bacteriophages of the lower urinary tract. Nat Rev Urol, 2019, 16: 422-432. (Online)
- Shapiro J, Putonti C. Gene co-occurrence networks reflect bacteriophage ecology and evolution. mBio, 2018, 9: e01870-17. (Open Access)
|
Professor
Bioinformatics
Ph.D. 2006, University of Houston
Phone: 773.508.3277
Fax: 773.508.3646
E-mail: cputonti@luc.edu
|
RESEARCH INTERESTS
The areas of my current research are computational biology and microbial evolution, blending traditional bench molecular biology techniques and applied computer science. As such, the line between biology and computer science is often blurred. Specifically, I have concentrated my scientific interests on the two areas below.
1. Bacteria and phages of the bladder. Maybe you've heard that urine is sterile? Spoiler, it's not. In collaboration with the Loyola Urinary Education and Research Collaborative (LUEREC), we have been cataloging the bacteria and viruses within the healthy and symptomatic female urinary tract. Bacteriophages (viruses that infect bacteria) are the most abundant and diverse members of most ecosystems on the planet, including the urinary tract. In identifying the species present in this ecosystem, we have identified novel bacterial and phage species. The bladder enables us to ask questions of bacteria-phage interactions, ecology, and evolution with direct implications for human health.
2. Viral genetic diversity. Phages are the most abundant and diverse members of most ecosystems on the planet. Phages are routinely discovered in every nook and cranny on Earth. When these new phage isolates are sequenced, we often find that their DNA sequences bear little or no resemblance to any sequences contained within current databases -- the diversity of phages on Earth is severely under sampled. It is therefore crucial to characterize these viruses and the critical roles that they have in directly impacting microbial communities. Rather than just focus viral sequence analysis on what is know (what looks like something we've seen before), we are embracing the unknown. This work has the potential to open new avenues for exploring virus ecology and evolution from genomic data.
REPRESENTATIVE PUBLICATIONS
- Atkins H, Sabharwal B, Boger L, Stegman N, Kula A, Wolfe AJ, Banerjee S, Putonti C. Evidence of Lactobacillus strains shared between the female urinary and vaginal microbiota. Microb Genom, 2024, 10. (Open Access)
- Ene A, Banerjee S, Wolfe AJ, Putonti C. Exploring the genotypic and phenotypic differences distinguishing Lactobacillus jensenii and Lactobacillus mullieris. mSphere, 2023, 27:e0056222. (Open Access)
- Miller-Ensminger T, Johnson G, Banerjee S, Putonti C. When plaquing is not possible: Computational methods for detecting induced phages. Viruses, 2023, 15:420. (Open Access)
- Johnson G, Putonti C. Diversity of Pseudomonas aeruginosa temperate phages. mSphere, 2022, 7:e0101521. (Open Access)
- Garretto A, Miller-Ensminger T, Wolfe AJ, Putonti C. Bacteriophages of the lower urinary tract. Nat Rev Urol, 2019, 16: 422-432. (Online)
- Shapiro J, Putonti C. Gene co-occurrence networks reflect bacteriophage ecology and evolution. mBio, 2018, 9: e01870-17. (Open Access)