[bioundgrd] FW: Microbiology Hybrid Thesis Defense: Christopher Doering (Laub lab) 7/10/25 2 PM, 68-181

[Joshua Stone]

From: Jacquie Carota <jcarota at mit.edu>
Subject: Microbiology Hybrid Thesis Defense: Christopher Doering (Laub lab) 7/10/25 2 PM, 68-181
The Microbiology Ph.D. Program is proud to announce the following Hybrid Thesis Defense:

Ph.D. Candidate: Christopher Doering

Research Advisor: Prof. Mike Laub (Biology, HHMI)

Thesis Defense Committee: Prof. Alan Grossman, Prof. Gene-Wei Li, and Prof Sophie Helaine (Harvard)

Date: Thursday, July 10, 2025

Time: 2:00 – 3:00 PM

Location: MIT Building 68, Room 181, 31 Ames Street, Cambridge, MA 012139

Zoom: https://mit.zoom.us/j/98391949213?pwd=g3qVqq3x78EePD49LPER97Z9uemIhH.1
Password: phage


Title: Anti-phage defense as a driver of molecular innovation

Abstract:
Bacteriophages, or phages for short, pose a near-constant threat to the bacteria they infect. Billions of years of conflict has been a catalyzing force for the creation of bacterial defenses systems and corresponding phage evasion strategies. To counter phage predation, bacteria have developed a vast diversity of enzyme chemistries and molecular sensing mechanisms whose study has produced new biotechnological tools and insights into our own immune systems. For my thesis, I have investigated anti-phage defense mechanisms at multiple scales. I characterized the mechanism of action of the anti-phage defense system CmdTAC, a toxin-antitoxin-chaperone system that recognizes a viral structural protein to activate a novel mRNA ADP-ribosyltransferase, thereby halting infection. Next, I examined the diversity and distribution of anti-phage mechanisms encoded by E. coli lysogenic phages – phages capable of integrating into and lying dormant within their bacterial hosts. This analysis uncovered overlooked classes of lysogenic phages harboring novel candidate defense systems, including one newly validated system with no detectable homology to previously known mechanisms. Together, this work broadens our understanding of bacterial immune systems, expands the pool of known enzyme chemistries, and highlights areas where continued study can reveal additional mechanisms of anti-phage defense.


Jacquie Carota (CA-ROT-AH) she/her
Academic Administrator
MIT Computational & Systems Biology PhD Program
MIT Microbiology PhD Program
Room 68-120C
77 Massachusetts Ave.
Cambridge, MA 02139
617-324-4144
In office Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays 9AM-5PM
Remote: Mondays & Wednesdays 9AM-5PM

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