Shahriar Mobashery

The Mobashery research program integrates computation, biochemistry, molecular biology, and the organic synthesis of medically important molecules. Bringing together these different disciplines is desirable to produce both scientific and medical advances for difficult, but critically important clinical problems. Bacterial Antibiotic Resistance, Cell Wall and Discovery of Novel Antibiotics The studies of antibiotics and antibiotic resistance are central themes in the Mobashery laboratory. Mechanisms of resistance to β-lactam antibiotics have been studied, with a focus on methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa as two nefarious human bacterial pathogens. A multidisciplinary approach is taken towards elucidating the distinct strategies that nature has devised to counter the use of antibiotics in the clinic. Significant work has also been directed towards the bacterial cell wall. The cell wall is a structure that encases the entire organism, and it is critically important for its survival. Its complex biosynthesis and recycling are subjects of study. Discovery of novel antibacterials is another large focus of attention. Diseases of the Extracellular Matrix The Mobashery laboratory is interested in diseases of the extracellular matrix (ECM). The ECM is an environment that surrounds every cell in higher organisms. There are many proteins and carbohydrates within this environment, whose homeostasis is highly regulated. When these regulatory processes break down, many disparate diseases ensue. The Mobashery lab investigates how these diseases develop and progress, and designs novel therapeutics for their intervention. The diseases of matrix of interest in the Mobashery lab include diabetes, pulmonary fibrosis, traumatic-brain injury and stroke.

Nguyen, V. T.; Birhanu, B. T.; Miguel-Ruano, V.; Kim, C.; Batuecas, M.; Yang, J. D.; El-Araby, A. M.; Jiménez-Faraco, E.; Schroeder, V. A.; Alba, A.; Rana, N.; Sader, S.; Thomas, C. A.; Feltzer, R.; Lee, M.; Fisher, J. F.; Hermoso, J. A.; Chang, M. and Mobashery, S. "Restoring Susceptibility to β-Lactam Antibiotics in Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus" 2025 Nature Chemical Biology, 21 (4), pp.482-489. DOI: 10.1038/s41589-024-01688-0. El-Araby, A. M.; Fisher, J. F. and Mobashery, S. "Bacterial Peptidoglycan as a Living Polymer" 2025 Current Opinion in Chemical Biology, 84, 102562. DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2024.102562. Kim, C.; Molina, R.; Lee, M.; Garay-Alvarez, A.; Yang, J. D.; Qian, Y. Y.; Birhanu, B. T.; Hesek, D.; Hermoso, J. A.; Chang, M. L. and Mobashery, S. "Reactions of SleC, i