Gayatri Vedantam

Dr. Vedantam has a long-standing interest in how bacterial adaptations impact pathogenesis and health outcomes. During her doctoral studies at the University of Illinois, she studied how bacteria change in response to increasing levels of the sulfonamide class of antibiotics.  Subsequently, during her post-doctoral studies and junior faculty appointment at Loyola University in Chicago, her research focused on how bacteria use conjugation to transfer their antibiotic resistance properties to other bacteria. Currently, her laboratory studies the pathogenesis and spread of hospital-acquired infections, notably those caused by Clostridioides difficile. Since these infections are caused, paradoxically, by antibiotic treatment, her group explores non-antibiotic therapeutic strategies to counter C. difficile infection. She works closely with clinical colleagues, as well as veterinarians, in Arizona to monitor the various C. difficile strains in our patient populations. Dr. Vedantam is passionate about working with industry partners and investors to facilitate the translation of laboratory findings to preventive and therapeutic strategies that will have a direct impact on Arizona and beyond. When she is away from the laboratory, she loves to read and to travel.