Thomas Scott Murray, MD, PhD

Associate Research Scientist, Pediatrics

Mentor

Barbara Kazmierczak, MD, PhD

Background

Dr. Murray is an Associate Research Scientist in Pediatrics.  He received his combined Medical Degree and PhD in Molecular Biophysics and Biochecmistry from the University of Connecticut.  He completed his residency in Pediatrics at Yale University as well as a fellowship in pediatric infectious diseases.  He was also a Winchester Fellow in Clinical Microbiology at Yale University.  Dr. Murray is preparing for a career as a physician-scientist and anticipates establishing an independent research program and running a research laboratory much like the one in which he currently trains.  

Project Summary

Dr. Murray’s project, The regulation of surface colonization by Psedomonas aeruginos, uses his preliminary evidencethat certain regulatory proteins produced by P. aeruginosa each controls multiple factors important for colonization.  In patients with cystic fibrosis (CF), chronic colonization of the lungs with Pseudomonas aeruginosa results in frequent hospitalizations and in premature mortality. The goals of the project are to determine the components required for surface colonization co-regulated by these proteins, to quantitate the colonization of surfaces by these strains in a CF tissue culture model of infection, and to correlate in vitro surface colonization defects with abnormal chronic colonization in vivo.