Ann Karen C. Brassinga, Ph.D.
Associate Professor

Education
Ph.D. Microbiology and Immunology (2002)
McGill University
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Funded in part by a Formation de Chercheurs et l'Aide à la Recherche (FCAR) Ph.D. Scholarship
Government of Quebec (1998-2000)

B.Sc. (Agr.) Microbiology (1995)
Macdonald Campus, McGill University
Ste. Anne de Bellevue, Quebec, Canada

Post-Doctoral Research Training
(2004-2008)
Division of Infectious Diseases and International Health
Department of Internal Medicine
University of Virginia School of Medicine
Charlottesville, Virginia, U.S.A.

(2001-2004)
Infectious Disease Research Centre
Department of Microbiology and Immunology
Faculty of Medicine
Dalhousie University
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Funded in part by a Canadian Institute for Health Research (CIHR) Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship
Government of Canada (2003-2006)

Publications
Selected refereed papers

1. Taha, M., Kalab, M., Yi, Q.L., Landry, C., Greco-Stewart, V., Brassinga, A.K. and Ramirez-Arcos, S. (2014) Biofilm-forming skin microflora bacteria are resistant to the bactericidal action of disinfectants used during blood donation. Transfusion May 29, 2014 epub.
2. Hodgson, S.D., Greco-Stewart, V., Jimenez, C., Sifri, C. D., Brassinga, A. K. and Ramirez-Arcos, S. (2014) Enhanced pathogenicity of biofilm-negative Staphylococcus epidermidis isolated from platelet preparations. Transfusion 54:461-70.
3. Berry, C, Nandi, M., Manuel, J., Brassinga, A. K., Fernando, D., Loewen, P.C., and de Kievit, T. (2013) Characterization of the Pseudomonas sp. DF41 Quorum Sensing Locus and its Role in Fungal Antagonism. Biological Control Accepted November 20, 2013.
4. Pitre, C. A., Tanner, J. R., Patel, P. and Brassinga, A. K. (2013) Regulatory control of temporally expressed integration host factor in Legionella pneumophila. Microbiology 159:475-92.
5. Brassinga, A. K. and Sifri, C. D. (2013) The Caenorhabditis elegans model of Legionella infection. Methods Mol. Biol. 954:439-61.
6. Berry, C. L., Brassinga, A. K, Donald, L. J., Fernando, W. G., Loewen, P. C. and de Kievit, T. R. (2012) Chemical and biological characterization of sclerosin, an antifungal lipopeptide. Can J Microbiol. 58:1027-34.
7. Mathers, A. J., Cox, H. L., Kitchel, B., Bonatti, H., Brassinga, A. K. C., Carroll, J., Scheld, W., Hazen, K. C. and Sifri,  C. D. (2011) Molecular dissection of a carbapenem resistant Enterobacteriaceae outbreak reveals intergenus KPC carbapenemase transmission through a promiscuous plasmid. mBIO 2011 Nov 1;2(6):e00204-11.
8. Brassinga, A. K. C., Kinchen, J. M., Cupp, M. E., Day, S. R., Hoffman, P. S. and Sifri, C. D. Caenorhabditis is a metazoan host for Legionella. (2010) Cellular Microbiology 12(3):343-61.
9. Morash, M. G., Brassinga, A. K. C, Warthan, M., Gourabathini, P., Garduño, R. A., Goodman, S. D. and Hoffman, P. S. 2009. Reciprocal expression of integration host factor and HU in the developmental cycle and infectivity of Legionella pneumophila. Applied and Environmental Microbiology 75:1826-37.
10. Mathers, A., Cox, H., Bonatti, H., Kitchel, B. J., Brassinga, A. K. C., Wispelwey, B., Sawyer, R. G., Pruett, T. L., Hazen, K. C., Patel, J. B. and Sifri, C. D. 2009. Fatal cross infection by carbapenem resistant Klebsiella in two liver transplant recipients. Transplant Infectious Diseases. 11(3):257-65
11. Sifri, C. D., Brassinga, A. K. C., Flohr, T., Kinchen, J. M., Hazen, K. C., Sawyer, R. G., Pruett, T. L. and Bonatti, H. 2008. Moraxella osloensis bacteremia in a kidney transplant recipient. Transplant International 21:1011-3.
12. LeBlanc, J. J., Brassinga, A. K. C., Ewann, F., Davidson, R. J. and Hoffman, P. S. 2008. An ortholog of OxyR in Legionella pnemophila is expressed postexponentially and negatively regulates the alkyl hydroperoxide reductase (ahpC2D) operon. Journal of Bacteriology 190:3444-55.
13. McCallum, N., Brassinga, A. K. C., Sifri, C. D. and Berger-Bächi, B. 2007. Functional characterization of TcaA: minimal requirement for teicoplanin susceptibility and role in Caenorhabditis elegans virulence. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. 51:3836-43.
14. Brassinga, A. K. C., Croxen, M. A, Shoemaker, C. J., Morash, M. G., LeBlanc, J. J. and Hoffman, P. S. 2006. Novel use of Helicobacter pylori nitroreductase (rdxA) as a counterselectable marker in allelic vector exchange to create Legionella pneumophila Phildelphila-1 mutants. 6th International Conference on Legionella, Chicago, IL, USA, October 16-20, ASM Press.
15. Hiltz, M. F., Sisson, G. R., Brassinga, A. K. C., Garduño, E., Garduño, R. A. and Hoffman, P. S. 2004. Expression of magA in Legionella pneumophila Philadelphia-1 is developmentally regulated and a marker for MIF. Journal of Bacteriology. 186:3038-45.
16. Brassinga, A. K. C., Hiltz, M. F., Sisson, G. R., Morash, M. G., Hill, N., Garduño, E., Edelstein, P. H., Garduño, R. A. and Hoffman, P. S. 2003. A 65 kilobase pathogenicity island is unique to Philadelphia-1 strains of Legionella philadelphia. Journal of Bacteriology. 185: 4630-4637.
17. Siam, R., Brassinga, A. K. C. and Marczynski, G. T. 2003. Dual binding site for integration host factor (IHF) and response regulator (CtrA) inside the Caulobacter crescentus replication origin. Journal of Bacteriology.  185:5563-5572.
18. Brassinga, A. K. C., Siam, R., McSween, W., Wood, D. O, Winkler, H. H. and Marczynski, G. T. 2002. The a-proteobacteria Caulobacter crescentus and Rickettsia prowazekii have similar binding sites and organization in its replication origins. Journal of Bacteriology. 184:5789-99.
19. Brassinga, A. K. C. and Marczynski, G. T. 2001. Replication intermediate analysis confirms that chromosomal replication origin initiates from an unusual intergenic region in Caulobacter crescentus. Nucleic Acids Research. 29:4441-4451.
20. Brassinga, A. K. C., Siam, R. and Marczynski, G. T. 2001. Conserved gene cluster at replication origins of the a-proteobacteria Caulobacter crescentus and Rickettsia prowazekii. Journal of Bacteriology. 183:1824-1829.
21. Brassinga, A. K. C., Gorbatyuk, B., Ouimet, M.-C. and Marczynski, G. T. 2000. Selective cell cycle transcription requires membrane synthesis in Caulobacter crescentus. EMBO J. 19:702-709.