Bio

The Fletcher lab uses classic bacterial genetics in combination with multi-omics approaches to analyze in vitro and in vivo models of the bacterial pathogenesis and interactions with the microbiota. We study how nutrient acquisition/utilization and microbial interactions influence bacterial physiology in the context of health and disease. Colonization of microbe-rich host environments is shaped by many processes, including the nutrients that are available in situ, competition from resident microbiota, and the host immune system. Although a complex microbiota is typically linked to colonization resistance against pathogenic bacteria, some species like Staphylococcus aureus and Fusobacterium nucleatum colonize hosts for long periods of time without causing overt disease, highlighting their dual role as commensals. How they integrate into the microbiota is not well known, nor are their contributions to the composition or function of the microbiota and metabolome over time. The long-term goal of the Fletcher lab is to uncover and characterize mechanisms that enable stable colonization. This knowledge may lead to the development of targeted strategies for or against specific members or metabolic functions of the microbiota for pathogen decolonization while avoiding the use of broad spectrum antimicrobials.

Publications

• Butyrate synergizes with glucose to promote anaerobic growth of Staphylococcus aureus via anaplerotic metabolism and stress response pathways , bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) (2026)
• Cross-feeding interactions between Fusobacterium nucleatum and the glycan forager Segatella oris , mSystems (2026)
• Commensal-derived short-chain fatty acids disrupt lipid membrane homeostasis in Staphylococcus aureus , mBio (2025)
• Cross-feeding interactions between Fusobacterium nucleatum and the glycan forager Segatella oris , bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) (2025)
• Dual oxic-anoxic co-culture enables direct study of anaerobe–host interactions at the airway epithelial interface , mBio (2025)
• Commensal-derived short-chain fatty acids disrupt lipid membrane homeostasis in Staphylococcus aureus , bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) (2024)
• Distilling Mechanistic Models From Multi-Omics Data , bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) (2023)
• High-throughput quantification of microbial-derived organic acids in mucin-rich samples via reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography , Journal of Medical Microbiology (2023)
• Staphylococcus aureus Overcomes Anaerobe-Derived Short-Chain Fatty Acid Stress via FadX and the CodY Regulon , Journal of Bacteriology (2022)
• The Stickland Reaction Precursor trans -4-Hydroxy- l -Proline Differentially Impacts the Metabolism of Clostridioides difficile and Commensal Clostridia , mSphere (2022)

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