Program

Monday June 22, 2015

• 8:15 - 8:30 – Welcome remarks, Jim Hoch, Marta Perego
• 8:30 - 9:15 - Keynote lecture: Andrew Camilli, Boston, USA
  • The Streptococcus pneumoniae cell wall controls pneumolysin release and contributes to virulence.

Session I Signal transduction I

CHAIR: Marta Perego

• 9:15 - 9:30 – Kevin Devine, Dublin, Ireland
  • The activities of the WalR-WalK and PhoP-PhoR two-component signal transduction systems are determined by signals that emanate from cell wall metabolism in Bacillus subtilis
• 9:30 - 9:45 – Hendrik Szurmant, La Jolla. USA
  • The YycF-YycG two-component system as a regulatory feedback loop for the expression of autolysin activity and the target of antimicrobial activities by human chemokines.
• 9:45 - 10:00 – Tarek Msadek, Paris, France
  • Peptide antibiotic resistance and intramembrane kinase signaling in Staphylococcus aureus.

• 10:00 – 10:30 – COFFEE BREAK

Session II Signal transduction II

CHAIR: Kevin Devine

• 10:30 - 10:45 – Mary K. Phillips-Jones, Preston, UK
  • Characterization of ligand binding by VanS, the membrane sensor kinase of the two-component system regulating A-type vancomycin resistance in the enterococci.
• 10:45 - 11:00 – Emanuel Hanski, Jerusalem, Israel
  • Regulation of group A Streptococcus virulence by sensing of asparagines.
• 11:00 - 11:15 – Nicola Horstmann, Houston, USA
  • Regulation of dual-site phosphorylation of response regulator CovR and its impact on group A streptococcus global gene expression and virulence.
• 11:15 - 11:30 – Andrew Ulijasz, London, UK
  • A novel family of two-component like redox sensors in the Streptococci.
• 11:30 - 11:45 – Marta Perego, La Jolla, USA
  • Media-dependent regulation of Bacillus anthracis toxin gene expression by the ResD-ResE-controlled respiration pathway.
• 11:45 - 12:00 – Maria Cecilia Manilla, Rosario, Argentina
  • Proline residues of DesK as transmitting elements of cold stimulus.
• 12:00 - 12:15 – Ken-ichi Yoshida, Kobe, Japan
  • Hyperphosphorylation of DegU interferes with CcpA-dependent catabolite repression of rocG in Bacillus subtilis.

• 12:30 – 14:00 LUNCH

Parallel sessions

Session IIIA Industrial Research (Sala A)

CHAIR: Ghislain Schyns

• 14:00 - 14:45 – Keynote lecture: Sven Panke, Zürich, Switzerland
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• 14:45 - 15:00 – Abderahmane Derouiche, Gothenburg, Sweden
  • Bacillus subtilis SalA is a phosphorylation-dependent transcription factor that regulates the production of the exoprotease AprE.
• 15:00 - 15:15 –Jolanda Neef, Groningen, Netherlands
  • A novel expression platform for the production of cell wall-bound and secreted staphylococcal antigens.
• 15:15 - 15:30 – Ferro Iolanda, Potsdam, Germany
  • tRNA abundance and aminoacylation in Bacillus licheniformis.
• 15:30 - 15:45 –Birgit Voigt, Greifswald, Germany
  • The response of Bacillus pumilus to hydrogen peroxide-provoked oxidative stress.

Session IIIB Host-Pathogen Interaction (Sala B)

CHAIR: Claire Poyart

• 14:00 - 14:15 – Nancy Freitag, Chicago, USA
  • Establishing a new niche for bacterial replication: the surface invasin InlB confers cardiotropism to subpopulations of Listeria monocytogenes.
• 14:15 - 14:30 – B. S. Hisey, Bozeman, Montana, USA
  • Role of SaeR/S in secondary Staphylococcus aureus pneumonia.
• 14:30 - 14:45 – Anthony Richardson, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
  • PPAR-γ is central to the effective host response to Staphylococcus aureus skin and soft tissue infections.
• 14:45 - 15:00 – A.P.A. Hendrickx, Utrecht, Netherlands
  • Antibiotics-driven dysbiosis mediate alternative segregation of Enterococcus faecium from the intestinal epithelium.
• 15:00 - 15:15 –Mariana Martins, Paris, France
  • Streptococcus gallolyticus Pil3 pilus is required for adhesion to colonic mucus and for colonization of mouse distal colon.
• 15:15 - 15:30 – Salai Madhumathi Parkunan, Oklahoma City, USA
  • Bacillus intraocular infection: Divergent roles of IL6 and CXCL1.
• 15:30 - 15:45 – Michelle C. Callegan, Oklahoma City, USA
  • The role of pili in Bacillus cereus intraocular infection.

• 15:45 - 16:15 - COFFEE BREAK

Session IV: Vaccines

CHAIR: Guido Grandi

• 16:15 - 16:30 – Fabio Bagnoi, Siena, Italy
  • Vaccine composition formulated with a novel TLR7-dependent adjuvant induces high and broad protection against Staphylococcus aureus.
• 16:30 - 16:45 – Olaf Schneewind, Chicago, USA
  • Protein A suppresses immune responses during Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infection in guinea pigs.
• 16:45 - 17:00 – Johannes Hübner, Munich, Germany
  • Towards a vaccine against enterococci: Reverse vaccinology and beyond.
• 17:00 - 17:15– Edmondo Campisi, Siena, Italy
  • Structural and genetic characterization of the Type IX Group B Streptococcus capsular polysaccharide and its relationship with types V and VII
• 17:15 - 17:30 – Joseph J. Zeppa, London, Ontario, Canada
  • Vaccine approaches targeting colonization by Streptococcus pyogenes.

Tuesday June 23, 2015

Parallel sessions

Session VA Sporulation (Sala A)

CHAIR: Colin Harwood

• 8:30 - 8:45 – Charles Moran, Atlanta, USA
  • Dual-specificity anti-sigma factor reinforces control of cell-type specific gene expression in Bacillus subtilis.
• 8:45 - 9:00 – Adriano Henriques, Oeiras, Portugal
  • Single cell analysis of the pathogenicity locus unravels the relationship between toxin production and spore formation in Costridium difficile.
• 9:00 - 9:15 – Adrianne Edwards, Atlanta, USA
  • A putative transcription factor containing conserved tetratricopeptide repeat domains controls sporulation, motility and toxin production in Clostridium difficile.
• 9:15 - 9:30 – James R. Walker, Austin, USA
  • Genomics of Clostridium taeniosporum, an organism which forms spores with a bundle of ribbon-like appendages.
• 9:30 - 9:45 – Leendert Hamoen, Amsterdam, Netherlands
  • Deep starvation reveals a surprisingly active Bacillus subtilis growth state.
• 9:45 - 10:00 – Didier Lereclus, Joyu-en-Josas, France
  • Division of labour and terminal differentiation in Bacillus thuringiensis.
• 10:00 - 10:15 – Nils Widderich, Marburg, Germany
  • Dysfunctional SigH prevents entry of B. subtilis into sporulation at high salinity.
• 10:15 - 10:30 – Tsutomu Sato, Tokyo, Japan
  • Developmentally-regulated prophage excisions reconstitute genes required for sporulation in spore-forming bacteria.

Session VB Antimicrobials/ Drug research (Sala B)

CHAIR: Olaf Schneewind

• 8:30 - 8:45 – Eric A. Johnson, Madison, USA
  • Characterization of a novel chimeric Botulinum neurotoxin.
• 8:45 - 9:00 – Oscar Kuipers, Groningen, Netherlands
  • Cycling with lantibiotics, and potentiating them against Gram-negative pathogens.
• 9:00 - 9:15 – A. L. Flores-Mireles, St. Louis, USA
  • A novel therapy that prevents and resolves E. faecalis catheter-associated urinary tract infections.
• 9:15 - 9:30 – Alexandra Gruss, Jouy-en-Josas, France
  • Strategies used by Staphylococcus aureus to bypass FASII-targeted antimicrobials.
• 9:30 - 9:45 – Hanne Ingmer, Frederiksberg, Denmark
  • The Staphylococcus aureus agr quorum sensing system as a target for anti-virulence therapy.
• 9:45 - 10:00 – Grace Spatafora, Middlebury, USA
  • Characterizing the SloR-DNA binding interface in S. mutans: A target for rational drug design?
• 10:00 - 10:15 – C. Gallay, Groningen, Netherlands
  • Lack of pAp phosphatase and inhibition of lipid precursors synthesis lead to mislocalization of key cell division proteins in Streptococcus pneumoniae.
• 10:15 - 10:30 – Yoann Le Breton, College Park, MD, USA
  • Using Tn-seq analyses of divergent group A streptococcal isolates for whole-genome studies of fitness and pathogenesis.

• 10:30 - 11:00 - COFFEE BREAK

Session VI: Stress

CHAIR: Indranil Biswas

• 11:00 - 11:15 – Zehava Eichenbaum, Atlanta, USA
  • Preventing the red menace: the contributions of streptococcal pefRCD operon in heme stress survival.
• 11:15 - 11:30 – Barbara Spellerberg, Ulm, Germany
  • A Streptococcal NRAMP homolog is crucial for the survival of Streptococcus agalactiae under low pH conditions.
• 11:30 - 11:45 – Agnes Fouet, Paris, France
  • PerR is necessary for full virulence of Streptococcus agalactiae.
• 11:45 - 12:00 – Melissa E. Reardon-Robinson, Houston, TX, USA
  • Oxidative folding of virulence determinants in Gram-positive bacteria.

• 12:30 – 14:00 LUNCH

Session VII: Toxins & antibiotics/ Protection & Resistance

CHAIR: Sandrine Auger

• 13:40 - 13:55 – N. Jahn, Jena, DE
  • Against the mainstream: The type I toxin BsrG from Bacillus subtilis does not disrupt membrane potential although it is recruited to the cell membrane
• 14:00 - 14:15 –Yazen Yaseen, Lille, FR
  • Comparative study of fengycin promoters using green fluorescent protein (GFP) fusion marker
• 14:20 - 14:35 –Luminita Ciolacu, KEMIN, BE
  • Lipopeptides of Bacillus subtilis PB6 - A comparison of two phenotypes
• 14:40 - 14:55—Elrike Frenzel, Groningen, NL
  • Single cell profiling of cereulide toxin producing Bacillus cereus
• 15:00 - 15:15 – Anne-Brit Kolstø, Oslo, NO
  • The secret lives of bacterial efflux transporter proteins
• 15:20 - 15:35 – Susanne Gebhard, Bath, UK
  • Need-based activation of antibiotic resistance by a flux-sensing mechanism
• 15:40 - 16:00 – COFFEE BREAK

Session VIII: Biofilm & Secretion

CHAIR: Kevin Devine

• 16:00 - 16:15 – Akos T Kovacs, University of Jena, DE
  • Rise to the surface: importance of motility and aerotaxis in pellicle biofilm development
• 16:20 - 16:35 – Cinzia Calvio, University of Pavia, IT
  • Four “y” genes in B. subtilis genome encode γ-PGA hydrolases
• 16:40 - 16:55 – Stavroula Balomenou, University of Crete, GR
  • Distinct functions of polysaccharide deacetylases in physiology, virulence and biofilm formation of Bacillus anthracis
• 17:00 - 17:15 – Rita Cruz, DSM Delft, NL
  • Impact of secretion and wall stress on protein secretion by Bacillus subtilis
• 17:20 - 17:35 – Alexandria Holland, Bath University, UK
  • Protein secretion in Bacillus thermoglucosidasius
• 17:40 - 17:55 – Sara Kesel, University of Munich, DE
  • Carbohydrate-coating reduces adhesion of biofilm forming Bacillus subtilis to gold surfaces

• 18:00 Drinks

• 19:00 Dinner