In early April, the Wadsworth Center received a request from the Maine Public Health Laboratory for assistance with infectious disease testing following a fire on the roof of their facility resulting in a loss of ventilation and suspension of laboratory operations.

Dr. Thomas Bartlett, a new Principal Investigator in the Wadsworth Center’s Division of Genetics, has been awarded a New York Community Trust award for his grant proposal entitled “Finding New Gaps in the Cell Wall of Drug-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus.”

“Initiation of Translation by the Ribosome”Ribosomes are cellular machines that conduct protein synthesis (or gene translation) in both bacteria and higher organisms such as humans. The mechanism of initiation of translation is among the most fundamental and highly regulated cellular processes.  Dr. Ramakrishnan's presentation focused primarily on how translation works in eukaryotic cells. Dr.

Caleb Mallery, a fourth-year PhD candidate in the Paczkowski Lab within the Division of Genetics at the Wadsworth Center and a student in the Department of Biomedical Sciences at the University at Albany, has been awarded a prestigious F31 predoctoral fellowship from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health. His research focuses on Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a significant cause of hospital-acquired infections, particularly among individuals with cystic fibrosis and those with weakened immune systems.

In recent years, several dermatophytes within the Trichophyton interdigitale /Trichophyton mentagrophytes Species Complex have become a significant public health concern due to increasing drug resistance and rapid transmission in human populations, leading to serious and difficult-to-treat skin infections. This complex includes 28 genotypes. Notably, T. indotineae (formerly T. mentagrophytes genotype VIII) was recently recognized as a distinct species, with resistance to the first-line drug terbinafine observed in over 50% of isolates. T.

Scientists at the Wadsworth Center have developed a novel molecular assay to evaluate the risks posed by the emerging toxic cyanobacterium Aetokthonos hydrillicola. A. hydrillicola is associated with invasive aquatic plants and is capable of producing two potent toxins: aetokthonotoxin, a brominated neurotoxin, and aetokthonostatin, a cytotoxic dolastatin analog. Aetokthonotoxin has been identified as the cause of Vacuolar Myelinopathy, a fatal neurological condition linked to deaths in wildlife including eagles, waterfowl, fish, and bobcats.

Staff from the Newborn Screening Program at the Wadsworth Center participated in the annual meeting of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics, held March 10–14 in Baltimore, Maryland, where they presented research highlighting New York State’s leadership in newborn screening. Dr. Denise Kay presented “Targeting CFTR Deletions and Duplications in Cystic Fibrosis Newborn Screening: Implications for Sensitivity and Equity,” addressing strategies to improve detection and ensure equitable screening outcomes. Dr.

Ms. Deanna Luneau, a fifth-year Environmental Health Sciences PhD candidate conducting her doctoral research at the Wadsworth Center, was recently featured in a student spotlight on the University at Albany College of Integrated Health Sciences website. Working under the  mentorship of Dr. Patrick Parsons in the Trace Elements Laboratory at Wadsworth’s Biggs Laboratory, Ms.

Scientists at the Wadsworth Center have developed a new online resource to help researchers better understand Mycobacterium abscessus (MABS), an opportunistic bacterial pathogen that can cause difficult-to-treat infections.  Drs. Anil Ojha and Pallavi Ghosh of the Division of Genetics, together with Dr. Pascal Lapierre of the Bioinformatics Core, created the MABS Pangenome Explorer, an interactive, web-based tool designed for rapid exploration of the M. abscessus pangenome (https://abscessus.wadsworth.org/)

Dr. Spencer Bruce, Director of the Bioinformatics Core at Wadsworth, recently presented during the February State Public Health Bioinformatics (StaPH-B) Monthly Call. StaPH-B is a bioinformatics consortium created by subject matter experts affiliated with the Association of Public Health Laboratories. The consortium represents bioinformaticians from across the United States and internationally who are focused on addressing common barriers to bioinformatics implementation in state and public health laboratories.