By employing a powerful in vivo and in vitro model system of eukaryotic membrane fusion, my laboratory will investigate the biochemistry of eukaryotic membrane fusion, identify and biochemically characterize bacterial effectors capable of modulating membrane fusion, and finally analyze these activities within the context of pathogenesis.

We have long studied bacterial plasmid-encoded resistance to inorganic and organic mercury compounds (the mer locus) as a model for (a) gene regulation by toxic metals, (b) microbial detoxification of

environmental hazards, and (c) the influence of toxic metals on the commensal microbiota of vertebrates.

We study two contact-dependent cell-cell signaling systems with Myxococcus xanthus.

We focus on uncharacterized niche colonization genes in plant and animal pathogens in the Burkholderia group and in lactic acid bacteria inhabiting the human digestive tract.

We use the easy genetic system of a  soil bacterium, Acinetobacter baylyi ADP1, to study diverse aspects of gene expression and chromosomal rearrangements. This research has implications for medical issues (gene amplification), environmental issues (bioremediation), biotechnology/bioenergy (conversion of lignin to biofuels), and evolution (new methods for experimental evolution).

We refer to our lab as Computational Microbiology Laboratory and our research centers on comparative analyses of microbial (mainly prokaryotic) genomes.

The sequestration and storage of metals, and the maturation and roles of metal-containing enzymes by bacterial pathogens are of keen interest.

We are interested in understanding epigenetic and chromatin-based mechanisms that contribute to eukaryotic genome function, genome organization, and genome stability.

Please visit the Lewis Lab webpage for more information about our research. 

Prior to my retirement in 2019, our research focused primarily on the cell biology and pathogenesis of Mycoplasma pneumoniae, which causes bronchitis and atypical or "walking" pneumonia in humans. Specific areas of interest included the architecture, assembly, and function of the mycoplasma terminal organelle, mycoplasma interactions with airway glycans in colonization, modeling mycoplasma infections and persistence using normal human bronchial epithelial cells in air-liquid interface culture, and development of a nanotechnology-based biosensing platform for improved mycoplasma detection in clinical samples.

Prior to my retirement in 2023, research in my laboratory focused on the genetic and biochemical characterization of gene regulation and specialized recombination systems in S. Typhimurium, E. coli, Acinetobacter baylyi, Neisseria meningitidis, N. gonorrhoeae, Moraxella lacunata, and Pseudoalteromonas atlantica.