Northwestern University · Microbiology & ImmunologyBacterial Toxin Pathogenesis Unit
Karla J F Satchell · Evanston, Illinois
Research Focus
Dr. Karla J. F. Satchell's lab at Northwestern University studies how certain bacterial toxins influence the infection process. Specifically, they focus on MARTX toxins from Vibrio bacteria, which deliver several effector proteins at once to manipulate host cell signaling and enhance bacterial virulence. By understanding the interactions between these effector proteins, the lab aims to uncover new strategies that might help combat infections caused by these harmful bacteria.
MARTX toxinsVibrio choleraeVibrio vulnificuspathogenesiscell signaling
Research Aims
4AIM 01Investigate how MARTX toxin effectors work together to enhance virulence.
AIM 02Explore the context-dependent differences in effector activities across different bacterial isolates.
AIM 03Determine the mechanisms by which actin-crosslinking effectors modify host signaling pathways.
AIM 04Study the impact of horizontal gene transfer on the pathogenic potential of Vibrio species.
Skills the Lab Values
cell culturemolecular cloningprotein purificationWestern blotgene knockout techniquesCRISPR-Cas9microscopybiochemical assays
Output against the department
Publications300top 16% of dept.80th of 486
this lab
most publishedleast published
Citations5.4kbottom 40% of dept.293rd of 486
this lab
most citedleast cited
Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.