My main research interest lies in how bacteria regulate events within their lifestyles, with a particular interest in how this is done through the use of non-coding RNAs. Bacillus subtilis expresses over 1500 ncRNAs (Nicolas et al., 2012), which are often condition dependent and lie in different categories (independent segments, antisenses and untranslated regions). The challenge lies in determining how these ncRNAs function (i.e. what are they regulating) and the manner in which they are doing it. My work will focus on the model organism B. subtilis as it is one of the few Gram-positive species that is highly genetically manipulable. However, it will be expanded to other Gram-positive species where ncRNAs will be identified, the conditions determined under which they are expressed and systems developed to determine their targets. I also plan to continue developing my interest in how bacteriocins kill their bacterial target species.
I graduated from the University of Leicester with a BSc in Genetics. Having discovered a passion for microbiology in the year I spent at the University of the Algarve, Portugal in the lab of Leonor Faleiro, investigating autolysins in Helicobacter pylori, I moved to the then Institute for Animal Health, Compton, UK. Under the supervision of Jamie Leigh (now at the Nottingham Vet School) and Phil Ward (now at Oxford) I completed my PhD, investigating the lipoprotein processing enzymes in Streptococcus uberis. After completion of my PhD I moved to the lab of Jan Maarten van Dijl, University Medical Center Groningen, the Netherlands for my post-doctoral period. I switched bacterial species again, studying the Gram-positive model organism Bacillus subtilis and the pathogen Staphylococcus aureus. I was involved in several EU consortia, including BaSysBio and BaSynthec and became interested in all levels of regulation. Through studying B. subtilis gene expression in real time using Live Cell Array technology, Time-lapse microscopy and Tiling arrays, I identified several novel aspects of genetic regulation. I also developed an interest in the mechanisms bacteriocins use to kill their target organisms. In May 2013 I joined the Division of Microbiology and Infection, Warwick Medical School as an Assistant Professor of Molecular Bacteriology.
- Kouwen, T. R. H. M., Nielsen, A. K., Denham, Emma, Dubois, J. -Y. F., Dorenbos, R., Rasmussen, M. D., Quax, W. J., Freudl, R., van Dijl, J. M., 2020. Contributions of the pre- and pro-regions of a staphylococcus hyicus lipase to secretion of a heterologous protein by bacillus subtilis. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 76 (3), pp. 659-669
- Ploss, Tina N., Reilman, Ewoud, Monteferrante, Carmine G., Denham, Emma, Piersma, Sjouke, Lingner, Anja, Vehmaanperä, Jari, Lorenz, Patrick, van Dijl, Jan Maarten, 2016. Homogeneity and heterogeneity in amylase production by Bacillus subtilis under different growth conditions. Microbial Cell Factories, 15 (1)
- Mars, Ruben A. T., Mendonça, Karoline, Denham, Emma, van Dijl, Jan Maarten, 2015. The reduction in small ribosomal subunit abundance in ethanol-stressed cells of Bacillus subtilis is mediated by a SigB-dependent antisense RNA. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Molecular Cell Research, 1853 (10), pp. 2553-2559
- Mars, Ruben A. T., Nicolas, Pierre, Ciccolini, Mariano, Reilman, Ewoud, Reder, Alexander, Schaffer, Marc, Mäder, Ulrike, Völker, Uwe, Dijl, Jan Maarten van, Denham, Emma, 2015. Small regulatory RNA-induced growth rate heterogeneity of Bacillus subtilis. PLoS Genetics, 11 (3), pp. 1-27
- Reilman, E., Mars, R. A. T., van Dijl, J. M., Denham, Emma, 2014. The multidrug ABC transporter BmrC/BmrD of Bacillus subtilis is regulated via a ribosome-mediated transcriptional attenuation mechanism. Nucleic Acids Research, 42 (18), pp. 11393-11407
- Goosens, Vivianne J., Mars, Ruben A. T., Akeroyd, Michiel, Vente, Andre, Dreisbach, Annette, Denham, Emma, Kouwen, Thijs R. H. M., van Rij, Tjeerd, Olsthoorn, Maurien, Dijl, Jan Maarten van, 2013. Is proteomics a reliable tool to probe the oxidative folding of bacterial membrane proteins?. Antioxidants & Redox Signaling, 18 (10), pp. 1159-1164
- Piersma, Sjouke, Denham, Emma, Drulhe, Samuel, Tonk, Rudi H. J., Schwikowski, Benno, Dijl, Jan Maarten van, 2013. TLM-Quant : an open-source pipeline for visualization and quantification of gene expression heterogeneity in growing microbial cells. PLoS One, 8 (7)
- Tsompanidou, E., Denham, Emma, Becher, D., de Jong, A., Buist, G., van Oosten, M., Manson, W. L., Back, J. W., van Dijl, J. M., Dreisbach, A., 2013. Distinct roles of phenol-soluble modulins in spreading of staphylococcus aureus on wet surfaces. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 79 (3), pp. 886-895
- Tsompanidou, Eleni, Denham, Emma, Dijl, Jan Maarten van, 2013. Phenol-soluble modulins, hellhounds from the staphylococcal virulence-factor pandemonium. Trends in Microbiology, 21 (7), pp. 313-315
- Tsompanidou, Eleni, Denham, Emma, Sibbald, Mark J. J. B., Yang, Xiao-mei, Seinen, Jolien, Friedrich, Alexander W., Buist, Girbe, Dijl, Jan Maarten van, 2012. The sortase A substrates FnbpA, FnbpB, ClfA and ClfB antagonize colony spreading of staphylococcus aureus. PLoS One, 7 (9)
- Buescher, J. M., Liebermeister, W., Jules, M., Uhr, M., Muntel, J., Botella, E., Hessling, B., Kleijn, R. J., Le Chat, L., Lecointe, F., Mader, U., Nicolas, P., Piersma, S., Rugheimer, F., Becher, D., Bessieres, P., Bidnenko, E., Denham, Emma, Dervyn, E., Devine, K. M. et al (Select to open full list), 2012. Global network reorganization during dynamic adaptations of bacillus subtilis metabolism. Science, 335 (6072), pp. 1099-1103
- Nicolas, Pierre, Mäder, Ulrike, Dervyn, E., Rochat, T., Leduc, A., Pigeonneau, N., Bidnenko, E., Marchadier, E., Hoebeke, M., Aymerich, S., Becher, D., Bisicchia, P., Botella, E., Delumeau, O., Doherty, G., Denham, Emma, Fogg, M. J., Fromion, V., Goelzer, A., Hansen, A. et al (Select to open full list), 2012. Condition-dependent transcriptome reveals high-level regulatory architecture in bacillus subtilis. Science, 335 (6072), pp. 1103-1106
- Zweers, Jessica C., Nicolas, Pierre, Wiegert, Thomas, Dijl, Jan Maarten van, Denham, Emma, 2012. Definition of the sW regulon of Bacillus subtilis in the absence of stress. PLoS One, 7 (11)
- Tsompanidou, E., Sibbald, M. J. J. B., Chlebowicz, M. A., Dreisbach, A., Back, J. W., van Dijl, J. M., Buist, G., Denham, Emma, 2011. Requirement of the agr locus for colony spreading of staphylococcus aureus. Journal of Bacteriology, 193 (5), pp. 1267-1272
- van der Ploeg, René, Mäder, Ulrike, Homuth, Georg, Schaffer, Marc, Denham, Emma, Monteferrante, Carmine G., Miethke, Marcus, Marahiel, Mohamed A., Harwood, Colin R., Winter, Theresa, Hecker, Michael, Antelmann, Haike, Dijl, Jan Maarten van, 2011. Environmental salinity determines the specificity and need for tat-dependent secretion of the YwbN protein in bacillus subtilis. PLoS One, 6 (3)
- Kouwen, Thijs R. H. M., Antelmann, Haike, van der Ploeg, René, Denham, Emma, Hecker, Michael, Dijl, Jan Maarten van, 2009. MscL of bacillus subtilis prevents selective release of cytoplasmic proteins in a hypotonic environment. Proteomics, 9 (4), pp. 1033-1043
- Kouwen, T. R. H. M., Trip, E. N., Denham, Emma, Sibbald, M. J. J. B., Dubois, J. -Y. F., van Dijl, J. M., 2009. The large mechanosensitive channel MscL determines bacterial susceptibility to the bacteriocin sublancin 168. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, 53 (11), pp. 4702-4711
Title | Funder | Award start | Award end |
---|---|---|---|
Understanding the Role of Small Regulatory RNAs in the Gram-Positive Model Organism Bacillus Subtilis | BBSRC | 01 Jul 2014 | 31 Jan 2018 |
Noreen Murray Award: Understanding the function and dynamicsof bacterial non-coding RNAs | University of Warwick (Donation) | 01 Mar 2014 | 30 Jun 2015 |