Cutting-edge methods in physics for studying intracellular bacterial pathogen interactions with host cells and small molecules

22-23 June 2022 
University of Surrey & via Zoom

​Organising committee from University of Surrey: 
​Dr Youngchan Kim, Professor Melanie Bailey, Dr Dany Beste, Professor Mark Chambers, Dr Suzie Hingley-Wilson
Dr Jim Huggett, Professor Johnjoe McFadden, Dr Richard Sear, Professor Graham Stewart, Dr Emma Wise 

Co-sponsored by: 

Workshop overview

This workshop funded by the UKRI Physics of Life network and the Institute of Advanced Studies at Surrey aims to address the cutting-edge methods and fundamental challenges in physics for studying host-intracellular bacterial pathogen interactions within live cells. This workshop will be held with a hybrid format of face-to-face with an option of virtual attendance.

Purpose

​Better understanding of host-intracellular pathogen interactions in living cells is vital to effectively develop diagnosis, preventive and treatment approaches against critical global infectious diseases caused by intracellular pathogens. Important global diseases caused by intracellular bacteria include brucellosis, listeriosis, chlamydia, salmonellosis and tuberculosis. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), tuberculosis alone is responsible for around 10 million new cases and 1.4 million deaths worldwide each year. Drug resistance now occurs in around 0.5 million cases of tuberculosis each year and this reduces the rate of successful treatment from 85% to 57%. Tuberculosis imposes an immense burden of human suffering, specifically for poor and vulnerable people living in low- and middle-income countries. Thus, WHO has identified the importance of “Intensified Research and Innovation” as one of the three critical pillars for a global action framework for the end of the tuberculosis epidemic. For these reasons, tuberculosis will be the primary infectious disease focus of this workshop.

Intracellular replication of pathogens requires uptake of nutrients from the host cell, but little is known about the identify of host nutrients consumed by intracellular pathogens and their uptake mechanisms. Moreover, treatment of intracellular bacterial infections relies on the use of antibiotics, but the success of such treatment is dependent on effective concentrations of the antibiotic reaching the bacteria within host cells, often within favourable intracellular niches. However, little is known about the physical processes of antibiotics transport such as diffusion across cell membranes together with biologically regulated processes such as endocytosis. A key element of this workshop, therefore, will be to explore methodologies from physics and biology to study underpinning physical processes associated with the spatiotemporal dynamics of antibiotic transport. Additionally, fundamental challenges in physics on how to model antibiotic transport inside cells and across cellular membranes of both host and pathogen cells will be explored.
​
The following key questions will be addressed in the workshop: 
• How to understand the transport of small molecules (i.e., antibiotics) inside a living cell?
• How to characterise heterogeneity in host-intracellular pathogen interactions?
• Define unmet challenges in understanding and monitoring host-intracellular pathogen interactions such as control of pathogen uptake, nutrient exchange between host and pathogen, intracellular trafficking, phagosome escape, cell death, antigen presentation and cell-to-cell spread of bacteria.
• What are the most appropriate physical methods to address the questions above and where do physical methods need further development for their study?

The workshop also features a showcase exhibition of new BioArt works by internationally renowned British artist Anna Dumitriu stemming from her artist residency at the University of Surrey and explores cutting edge scientific research being undertaken at the University, including quantum biology, carbon capture, vaccine research and tuberculosis. Dumitriu creates her artworks hands-on in the lab as well as the studio and uses the tools and techniques of science to create intricate artworks that reveal and explore strange histories and emerging futures. The residency is funded through an Institute of Advanced Studies Fellowship awarded to Professor Mark Chambers of the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences.

Who should attend?

We invite participation by academic, industrial and clinical research scientists who are interested in generating new collaborative research interactions at the physical/life science interface focused on this subject area.

Provisional programme

All timings are published in BST. 

Day One	22 June 2022
09:00	Registration
09:20	Opening remark (David Sampson, Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Research and Innovation, University of Surrey)
​Session I	Studying Intracellular Bacterial Pathogens I chaired by Graham Stewart (University of Surrey)
9.30	[Keynote] Jost Enninga (Institute Pasteur, France) - Intracellular niche formation of entero-invasive bacterial pathogens
10.30	Suzie Hingley-Wilson (University of Surrey) - Life and Death on the inside: Targeting mycobacterial survival mechanisms ​
​11:00	​Break and discussion ​
​Session II ​	Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging I chaired by Danny Beste (University of Surrey)
11.30	​Hesper Rego (Yale University, USA) - Studying mycobacterial infections, one cell at a time
12.00	Anna Dumitriu (University of Surrey) - The role of art in exploring and engaging audiences in cutting edge methods in bioscience
13.00	​Lunch, posters and BioArt exhibition​
Session III	Mass Spectrometry chaired by Melanie Bailey (University of Surrey)
14.30	Melanie Bailey (University of Surrey, UK) - Novel approaches for the spatially resolved analysis of tissues and single cells
15.00	​Yi Liu (Imperial College London, UK) - Use of mass spectrometry approaches to decipher the role of transition metals in maintaining drug tolerance in Mycobacterium abscessus
15.30	​Andy West (GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) Medicines Research Centre) - Single Live Cell Mass Spectrometry analysis in the context of drug discovery ​
16.00	Break
16.30 ​	Claire Davison (University of Surrey) - How far can we expand the boundaries of laser ablation technology for biological sample analysis? ​
16.45	Kyle Saunders (University of Surrey) - Optimisation of Single Cell Lipidomics Methods Using Mass Spectrometry
17.00	Discussion
18.00	​​​Networking Dinner at Lakeside Restaurant (for in person attendees)

Day Two	23 June 2022
09:00	​Registration
Session IV	Studying Intracellular Bacterial Pathogens II chaired by Suzie Hingley-Wilson (University of Surrey)
9.30	[Keynote] Digby Warner (Uni. of Cape Town, South Africa) - Seeing is believing: combining imaging and molecular tools to elucidate cellular and genetic function in Mycobacterium tuberculosis. ​
10.30	Fernando Martinez Estrada (University of Surrey) - Foam cells in Tuberculosis
11:00	Break​
​Session V​	Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging II chaired by Youngchan Kim (University of Surrey)
11.30​	Paul French (Imperial College London) - Multidimensional fluorescence imaging across the scales
12.00	Sumeet Mahajan (University of Southampton) - Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy for Detection of Bacterial Strains and AMR ​
12.30	Discussion
​​13:00	​Lunch ​
Session VI	Mathematical and Computational Analysis chaired by Richard Sear (University of Surrey)
14.00	​Richard Sear (University of Surrey) -  Molecular transport and drug delivery: any antibiotic molecule not touching its target is wasted
14.30	Katharina Nöh (Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Germany) - Computer age 13C metabolic flux analysis: current status and future directions
15.00	Discussion
15:30	Closing and discussion led by Mark Chambers

Registration

 In person registration for this event has now closed. If you would like to join in online please contact Youngchan Kim ([email protected]) for joining instructions. 

For the local Surrey link to this workshop, please go here: 
https://www.ias.surrey.ac.uk/event/cutting-edge-methods/