Meet the Scholars

Updated: December 3, 2015

Michael J. Gebhardt

Michael J. Gebhardt

CBC Scholar: Class of 2014
PhD Candidate, Department of Microbiology, The University of Chicago
Advisor: Howard Shuman
SHUMAN LAB WEBPAGE


RESEARCH INTERESTS:

I am currently working under Howard Shuman on the gram negative bacterium, Acinetobacter baumannii.  This pathogen has recently emerged as a major threat to the public health system due to the rapid development of multiple antibiotic resistances.  In fact, many current clinical isolates are resistant to all but a few antibiotics.  Unfortunately, very little information exists about the molecular mechanisms that underlie the pathogenesis of this troublesome organism.  My work is focused on not only identifying potential virulence determinants harbored by A. baumannii, but also on identifying the regulatory networks and transcriptional pathways that drive expression of virulence genes.


PUBLICATIONS:

Gebhardt MJ, Gallagher LA, Jacobson RK, Usacheva EA, Peterson LR, Zurawski DV, Shuman HA. Joint Transcriptional Control of Virulence and Resistance to Antibiotic and Environmental Stress in Acinetobacter baumannii. MBio. 2015 Nov 10;6(6). (PubMed)

Jacobs AC, Thompson MG, Gebhardt M, Corey BW, Yildirim S, Shuman HA, Zurawski DV. Genetic Manipulation of Acinetobacter baumannii. Curr Protoc Microbiol. 2014 Nov 3;35:6G.2.1-6G.2.11. (PubMed)

Sampedro GR, DeDent AC, Becker RE, Berube BJ, Gebhardt MJ, Cao H, Bubeck Wardenburg J. Targeting Staphylococcus aureus α-Toxin as a Novel Approach to Reduce Severity of Recurrent Skin and Soft-Tissue Infections. J Infect Dis. 2014 Oct 1;210(7):1012-8. (PubMed)

Schwan WR, Dunek C, Gebhardt M, Engelbrecht K, Klett T, Monte A, Toce J, Rott M, Volk TJ, LiPuma JJ, Liu XT, McKelvey R. Screening a mushroom extract library for activity against Acinetobacter baumannii and Burkholderia cepacia and the identification of a compound with anti-Burkholderia activity. Ann Clin Microbiol Antimicrob. 2010 Jan 21;9:4. (PubMed)


AWARDS:

  • Chicago Biomedical Consortium (CBC) Scholar, 2014-2015
  • The University of Chicago Molecular & Cellular Biology Training Grant, Funded by the NIH, Trainee, September 2011 – Present