Nitasha Menon, Ph.D. Email & Phone Number

Durham, Nc, Us

Durham, North Carolina, United States

Amritapuri Campus, Kerala, India

Studied alternative strategies to target multidrug-resistant bacteria using combinatorial approaches of bacteriophages and anti-virulence strategies in the Antimicrobial Resistance Laboratory head by Dr. Geetha Kumar. - Isolated, characterized, and sequenced genomes of novel bacteriophages that specifically target multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Klebsiella pneumoniae clinical isolates.- Identified novel mutations and expression changes in multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa from South India through molecular screening of a self-maintained 130+ Gram-negative clinical isolate bank.- Presented research at 3 international conferences and published as first author on 2 high impact journal publications.- Planned, designed, and oversaw construction of the BSL-2 Antimicrobial Resistance Laboratory at the School of Biotechnology; has had 17 researchers since its inauguration in 2019.- Managed 7 research projects by mentoring 16 students/research fellows and creating timelines, developing experimental protocols, and reviewing dissertation theses.

La Jolla, California

In the laboratory of Dr. Victor Nizet, I studied increased immune susceptibility in bacteriophage-resistant hyperpigmented Pseduomonas aeruginosa to support bacteriophage therapy for difficult-to-treat infections, generated a machine learning model of the transcriptional regulatory network in multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii, and supported research on an outer membrane vesicle (OMV) coated nanoparticle vaccine for Acinetobacter baumannii. - Studied tradeoffs between bacteriophage and antibiotic/host innate immune susceptibility using in vitro/ex vivo assays and in vivo murine models.- Planned and executed expression cloning strategy for the complementation of hmgA into Pseudomonas aeruinosa mutants using a pUC18-mini-Tn7 expression vector to validate bacterial phenotypes.- Collaborated with cross-functional groups at the Systems Biology Research Group (SBRG) and Center for Innovative Phage Applications and Therapeutics (IPATH). - Routinely executed RNA extractions for 74 RNA-seq experiments to generate machine learning model of transcriptional regulation in multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii. - Published 4 papers, 2 as first author.

Bengaluru, Karnataka, India

Developed and generated Pseudomonas aeruginosa isogenic mutants using a CRISPR-Cas9 APOBEC base editing system and communicated research progress on bacteriophages against drug-resistant pathogens with stakeholders.

La Jolla, California

While at Dr. Victor Nizet's laboratory, I studied therapeutic properties of eugenol, a major component of natural product clove bud oil, and found it has remarkable potency as a topical treatment for multidrug-resistant bacterial and fungal pathogens through syngery with host immune responses through induction of neutrophil extracellular traps.

In the Sanitation Biotechnology lab, I collaborated with a team on a project supported by the Gates Foundation’s “Reinvent the Toilet Challenge: India” initiative; developed a probiotic Bacillus spp. with enteric pathogen-specific antibacterial activity for economical deployment in sewage to lower the spread of water-borne infectious diseases.

Doctor Of Philosophy - Phd, Biotechnology

Master Of Science (M.Sc.), Biotechnology, 9.34/10 (1St Rank)

Bachelor Of Science (Bsc), Biotechnology, 9.92/10 (1St Rank)