The Nontuberculous Mycobacteria Basic and Translational Research Center, within the Mycobacteria Research Laboratories at Colorado State University, builds on the expertise of 13 faculty. The Mycobacteria Research Laboratories, founded in 1986, is an internationally recognized research and training center. With access to exceptional facilities and resources, the center leads fundamental and translational research to understand mycobacterial diseases and pathogens, and innovate models of disease, diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines.
Our team of experts is available to discuss your NTM research needs, whether they aim to address fundamental research questions or are related to drug and vaccine testing, diagnostics/biomarker development, or the study of mechanisms of drug susceptibility and drug resistance in NTM.
Faculty
Professor
Miriam Braunstein’s NTM research includes investigation of mycobacteriophages as a therapy to treat NTM bacteria in an intracellular environment. Dr. Braunstein's laboratory also studies the proteins secreted by NTM bacteria and the roles they play in cell wall biogenesis and in NTM survival in macrophages.
Professor
Delphi Chatterjee’ s research group focuses on biomarker discovery and validation in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients who are coinfected with NTM infection. The long-term goal is to deliver validated markers of NTM disease to the CF patient population, with applicability to all patient populations at risk for NTM disease.
Professor
Karen Dobos’ laboratory studies alternate routes of transmission of NTM, especially the role of vectors in transmission and/or environmental maintenance of NTMs (notably, M. ulcerans). They also work collaboratively to assist identification and characterization of NTM factors engaged in host-pathogen interactions, and support the global provision of NTM derived reagents through BEI.
Associate Professor
Marcela Henao-Tamayo’s NTM research focuses on vaccine testing using in vivo models of NTM infection; compound efficacy testing in vivo; and cellular and humoral immune response evaluation (ELISAS, Flow Cytometry, single cell RNA sequencing, spatial transcriptomics).
Professor
Mercedes Gonzalez-Juarrero’s NTM research focuses on in vivo models of NTM infection, including immune responses induced and imaging, and drug efficacy testing in vitro and in vivo (systemic and aerosol delivery).
Professor
Mary Jackson’s laboratory has expertise in NTM genetics and physiology, including cell envelope biochemistry, biofilms and understanding the mechanisms of susceptibility and resistance of NTM to antimicrobial compounds.
Assistant Professor
Carolina Mehaffy’s laboratory is interested in the isolation and characterization of NTM from environmental sources. Dr. Mehaffy further has extensive experience in the design of targeted and untargeted proteomics studies.
Assistant Professor
Brendan Podell is a board-certified veterinary anatomic pathologist. The Podell laboratory emphasizes the use of advanced pathology methods in mycobacterial research, including immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization, as a companion to standard histopathology interpretation.
Assistant Professor
Professor
Ric Slayden is a microbiologist specializing in treatment-resistant NTM. He leads the In Vitro Antimicrobial Activity Assessment (IVAAA) and Preclinical Models of Infectious Diseases (PCMID) programs, which support therapeutic discovery through mechanistic modeling, regimen optimization, and advanced preclinical testing. His NIH-funded work integrates direct-acting small molecules and host-directed strategies to overcome intracellular persistence and drug tolerance.
Examples of Services Offered
Vaccine evaluation in animal models (route of vaccination I.D., S.C., I.V., aerosol)
Drug efficacy testing in vitro (MIC, MBC), in cellular models and in animal models of NTM infection (aerosol delivery of liquid and dry powders formulations and systemic delivery)
Sampling for pharmacokinetics studies
Drug-drug interactions
Mechanism of action of therapeutics
Virulence and pathogenicity studies
Discovery and validation of biomarkers of NTM infection
Genomics (on in vitro-grown NTM and NTM directly recovered from infected tissues); Transcriptomics (RNAseq; RT-qPCR); Targeted and untargeted Proteomics and Metabolomics
Analyses of cell envelope lipids, proteins and (lipo)polysaccharides
Biofilm assays
Analysis of immune responses to infection and to vaccination:
- Flow Cytometry
- Cytokine and chemokine evaluation using CBA and Luminex
- Antibody evaluation by ELISA
- Single Cell mRNAseq analysis (unfixed and fixed cells)
- Spatial transcriptomics (fixed tissue)
Histopathology and immunohistochemistry:
- Tissue handling and preparation for histopathology
- Histology slide preparation and histochemical staining, including processing, embedding, H&E staining, acid-fast staining; all for formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissues or OCT-embedded tissues with cryo-sectioning
- Immunohistochemistry – standard DAB and FastRed chromogenic IHC, multiplexed fluorescent IHC with Opal chemistry; all automated on a Leica Bond RXm platform
- In situ hybridization by RNAScope – host target panels up 4 mRNA targets, or bacterial detection with rRNA targets; all automated on a Leica Bond RXm platform
- Spatial transcriptomics – performance and analysis on OCT-embedded frozen tissue
- Computational pathology data analysis including spatial statistical approaches and AI-based image analysis algorithm development and application
- Pathologist interpretation of histopathology data sets, with or without computational pathology applications
Provision of NTM-derived reagents