The E. coli strain BL21 delta ABCF was produced for the recombinant expression of outer membrane proteins. This strain is a derivative of the standard expression strain BL21(DE3), and was created by knocking out four genes that code for abundant outer membrane proteins.
My main area of interest is bacterial adhesion, focusing especially on autotransporter adhesins of Gram-negative bacteria. The long-term aim of this research is to understand three aspects of adhesion: 1) the mechanism and mechanics of the adhesion process, 2) the biogenesis of autotransporter adhesins and 3) regulation of adhesin function and gene expression. All three steps are potential sites for intervention to prevent adhesion to host tissues, and thus host colonisation and infection.