Dr Shrilakshmi Hegde

Postdoctoral Research Associate

I completed my PhD at University Vienna, Austria (Dissertation carried out at University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna.

My PhD dissertation focused on elucidating molecular and cellular mechanisms facilitating the successful infection of Mycoplasma agalctiae. During my PhD, I successfully identified new pathogenesis mechanisms like intracellular invasion, differential cell adhesion variants and cytotoxicity during M. agalactiae infection. After finishing my PhD, I joined the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, USA, as a postdoctoral fellow and worked towards characterising the microbiota dysbiosis and studied the benefits and adverse effects of use of large spectrum antibiotics in treating the colon obstruction. I also isolated and characterised a unique strain of L. reuteri that is capable of reducing visceral pain perception by stimulating opioid receptor expression in colonic nerve endings.

My current work at LSTM focuses on developing new treatments and diagnostics for human filariasis. We are researching on Wolbachia/nematode symbiosis and conducting pre-clinical testing to refine minimum effective dose regimens and understanding mode of action of new anti-wolbachial, macrofilaricide drug candidate, AWZ1066. We are also developing a novel microwave-based sensor technology to diagnose filarial infection in collaboration with engineers at LJMU.