Jia Mei

Jia Mei is a graduate student in the Department of Pathology, Microbiology, and Immunology. She entered the IGP program in 2022 and joined Dr. Jim Cassat's lab in 2023 to study mechanisms of antibiotic tolerance in Staphylococcus aureus, one of the most common causes of osteomyelitis, or infection of the bone. Notably, treatment failure occurs in around 20% of adult osteomyelitis cases. Although treatment failure is commonly attributed to genetic resistance in pathogens, antibiotic tolerance- the transient ability of a bacteria to survive in lethal concentrations of antibiotic-- remains an important mechanism that warrants further research. The Cassat lab has developed a robust in vivo model that recapitulates antibiotic tolerance in an osteomyelitis model. Further research aims to identify specific host niches and bacterial adaptations that promote tolerance. This work will lead to a mechanistic understanding of the microbe-host interplay in contributing to tolerance, thereby informing future efforts in combating treatment failure.

Mentor: Jim Cassat, Ph.D., M.D.