UTA research targets drug-resistant bacteria
Researchers at The University of Texas at Arlington have received more than $4.6 million in federal funding to study how harmful bacteria become resistant to antibiotics and how they interact with the body during infection. By understanding how bacteria adapt under stress, the findings could lead to improved treatments and better protection against dangerous infections.
Qing Tang, assistant professor of biology and head of the Tang lab, recently secured two major federal grants:
- A five-year, $2.05 million grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences for a project titled “Bacterial stress responses mediated by c-di-AMP.”
- A five-year, $2.65 million grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases for a project titled “Bacterial modulation of host metabolism and immunity during infection.”
“Our lab studies two important human pathogens, Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus. We are interested in how these bacteria respond to stress during infection and during antibiotic treatment,” Dr. Tang said. “My belief is that fundamental research can lead to therapies that help patients in the long term.”
The pathogens studied in Tang’s lab can cause serious illnesses, including meningitis and listeriosis from Listeria monocytogenes and chronic lung infections in people with cystic fibrosis from Staphylococcus aureus. The research comes as antibiotic-resistant infections become increasingly difficult to treat. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drug-resistant bacteria pose an “urgent threat” to public health.
Understanding how bacteria survive the body’s immune defenses and antibiotic treatment, and identifying new ways to stop them, is a driving force behind Tang’s research.
“What drives me is that scientists can focus on specific questions and discover new pathways and mechanisms that may later become drug targets or lead to new treatments for disease,” Tang said. “I also like training students and young scientists because it takes generations of scientists working together to understand how diseases occur and how to treat them. Passing that knowledge on is important for improving public health.”
Tang added that UTA is a “great place” to conduct research, noting the University has held R1 status from the Carnegie Classifications of Institutions of Higher Education since 2015. She also highlighted opportunities to collaborate with colleagues in the Department of Biology and College of Science.
“The support from everyone here at UTA really makes a difference,” Tang said.
About The University of Texas at Arlington (UTA)
The University of Texas at Arlington is a growing public research university in the heart of Dallas-Fort Worth. With a student body of over 42,700, UTA is the second-largest institution in the University of Texas System, offering more than 180 undergraduate and graduate degree programs. Recognized as a Carnegie R-1 university, UTA stands among the nation’s top 5% of institutions for research activity. UTA and its 300,000 alumni generate an annual economic impact of $28.8 billion for the state. The University has received the Innovation and Economic Prosperity designation from the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities and has earned recognition for its focus on student access and success, considered key drivers to economic growth and social progress for North Texas and beyond.