Jonathan Stefely
Credentials: Biomolecular Chemistry
Position title: Comparative metabolism in pathogenic amoeba
Email: stefely@wisc.edu
Address:
Morgridge Institute for Research
Stefely Lab – 2nd Floor Discovery Building
330 N Orchard Street
Madison, WI 53715
LAB WEBSITE:
FOCUS GROUPS:
Cellular & Molecular Metabolism; Molecular & Genome Biology of Microbes; Systems Biology
RESEARCH DESCRIPTION:
Our laboratory focuses on comparative metabolism from pathogenic amoeba to humans. The highlevel question driving our work is: how does our human metabolism differ from that of distant eukaryotic relatives such as pathogenic amoeba? Our core scientific thesis is that a systematic characterization of the unique metabolism of pathogenic amoeba that is not conserved in humans will lead to the discovery of both new fundamental biology and novel drug targets. Amoeba are ancient single-cell eukaryotic organisms found across the globe in diverse environmental niches. Amoeba can be considered evolutionary cousins to humans, sharing some biochemical pathways, but diverging in
many interesting ways – which we aim to systematically delineate. Some amoeba are human pathogens that can cause infectious blindness or fatal brain infections. Unfortunately, diagnosing amoeba infections is challenging, and current treatment options are often ineffective. The divergent biochemical features of amoeba can offer opportunities for creative new diagnostic or therapeutic targets. However, most of this unique amoeba biochemistry remains uncharacterized. To systematically discover unique features of amoeba biology and biochemistry – with a particular focus on metabolism – our scientific approach integrates large-scale multi-omics, high-throughput microscopy, and computation with mechanistic biochemistry, organelle physiology, and cell biology.
ALSO A TRAINER IN THE FOLLOWING PROGRAMS:
Integrated Program in Biochemistry (IPiB), Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP), Genetics