Professor Christoph Tang investigating the biology of plasmids in bacteria

Professor Christoph Tang (Professorial Fellow in Cellular Pathology and Medicine) received a prestigious Wellcome Trust Investigator award of £1.9 million to investigate the biology of plasmids in bacteria. 

Work is now under way on the project with his group based at the Sir William Dunn School of Pathology at the University of Oxford. 

The group studies Shigella and pathogenic Neisseria, which survive in and are specifically adapted to humans. These important pathogens harbour plasmids, circular packages of genetic information that often confer antimicrobial resistance (AMR), as well as features that allow bacteria to thrive in their host. 

Prof Tang says: “Plasmids are selfish elements and can spread between bacteria, disseminating AMR. The award is a collaboration with groups in Denmark, Israel, and Vietnam and aims to understand how plasmids replicate successfully within bacteria and spread between them.”

Visit the Tang lab website for more information about his research and keep updated with what’s happening at the Dunn School.