# Molecular mechanisms controlling stress responses and cell adhesion in bacteria

> **NIH NIH R35** · MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $24,454

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
My group seeks to understand molecular mechanisms that underlie the ability of bacterial cells to survive in
complex, dynamic environments, including mammalian hosts. In the context of this project, we will specifically
focus on defining mechanisms by which bacteria (i) regulate their physiology to survive environmental stress,
and (ii) regulate and modify their envelope to control adhesion to surfaces and to other cells. We will utilize an
interdisciplinary set of genetic, biochemical, biophysical, and computational approaches to address these
questions on multiple scales, from the cellular/systems level to the level of molecular structure. The data that
emerge from our studies will enhance understanding of processes that allow bacteria to grow and survive in
complex environments, and will inform new concepts in gene regulation and cell envelope biology. More
specifically, this project will provide the scientific community with an integrative understanding of sensory
transduction mechanisms, from signal detection to cellular response. In addition, our investigations of bacterial
cell adhesion and envelope polysaccharide biosynthesis will lead to improved understanding of the molecular
mechanisms by which bacteria build the highly complex structure known as the envelope, which separates the
tightly controlled activities in the cytoplasm from the outside world. Importantly, both environmental regulatory
proteins and components of the bacterial cell envelope are well-defined virulence determinants in many
bacterial pathogens. Thus our work has the potential to inform new therapeutic routes to control certain
bacterial infections.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10278328
- **Project number:** 3R35GM131762-02S1
- **Recipient organization:** MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Sean Crosson
- **Activity code:** R35 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $24,454
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2019-07-01 → 2022-12-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10278328

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10278328, Molecular mechanisms controlling stress responses and cell adhesion in bacteria (3R35GM131762-02S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10278328. Licensed CC0.

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