Our primary research focus is Tuberculosis (TB) pathogenesis. TB is caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), which is one of the most devastating infectious agents in the world today.  One-third of the world’s population is exposed to TB, which kills nearly two million people annually with over 10 million new infections taking place each year. Synergy with the human immunodeficiency virus (commonly known as HIV), along with the emergence of multidrug resistant strains of Mtb has reaffirmed TB as a tremendous public health threat worldwide today.

Our research interest activities cover multiple aspects of Mtb physiology and pathogenesis and have now expanded into three main research areas:  (i) Signal transduction in mycobacteria and between Mtb and the host macrophage, (ii)  Novel approaches for drug discovery focusing on the intracellular lifestyle of Mtb and (iii) post translational modifications, phosphorylation and thiol modifications, and their role in TB pathogenesis.