ABOUT OUR RESEARCH
My laboratory focuses on tick-borne infectious diseases, particularly Colorado tick fever (CTF) caused by the Coltivirus Colorado tick fever virus (CTFV) as well as spotted fever group Rickettsiae. We are interested in the host response in infected endothelial cells, as well as the early innate immunological response to these unique pathogens. We utilize a combination of microscopy, molecular, and cell biological approaches to address questions relating to endothelial cell pathobiology and innate immunity. Our efforts are focused on:
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Identifying the mechanism of cell death induced by CTFV in human endothelial cells.
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Examining autophagy during CTFV infection.​​
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Epidemiology of tick-borne infections and the pathogens carried in our local tick population.
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Our lab has also been funded by the National Institutes of Health (3 year R15 grant), to examine the physiological and relational bases of posttraumatic stress in Latinx immigrant youth. We studied the cytokine response in children with the help of Dr. Amanda Venta at the University of Houston.
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My lab has also been funded by the USDA to find and examine antibiotic soil producing bacteria that inhibit the rice pathogens Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae and Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzicola.
Colorado tick fever virus infected cell @ 20,000x
(C) Jeremy Bechelli
Adult female Lone Star tick - Amblyomma americium
(C) Jeremy Bechelli
OTHER RESEARCH INTERESTS AND FUNDED PROJECTS
Nanoparticles for treatment of infectious diseases
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We are currently working with Dr. Tarek Trad in the Department of Chemistry at SHSU to investigate his novel ferric and cobalt nanoparticles against human bacterial pathogens.
The impact of stress on immune function
I worked with Dr. Amanda Venta at the University of Houston to study The Physiological and Relational Bases of Posttraumatic Stress in Latino Immigrant Youth.