Raghunand R. Tirumalai, PhD.
Research Associate, Division of Infectious Diseases
Email: mamaji28@yahoo.com
Research Interests
A notable virulence trait of Mycobacterium tuberculosis is its innately slow growth rate. Our recognition of the molecular mechanisms governing the process of cell division is therefore crucial to developing therapeutic strategies against this pathogen. Recently, whiB2, a homologue of S. coelicolor whiB, was shown to be involved in septum formation in M. smegmatis. The WhiB-like proteins, 7 of which are present in M. tuberculosis, are exclusive to the GC rich actinomycete genera and contain 4 invariant cysteine residues and a conserved putative helix-turn-helix motif. A growing body of evidence suggests that these proteins function as redox-sensitive transcription factors and play significant roles in pathogenesis and cell division. I am currently involved in using whiB2 as a prototype to understand the physiological role of this fascinating family of proteins in the Mycobacteria.
Publications
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1. Raghunand, T. R., W. R. Bishai, and P. Chen. 2006. Towards establishing a method to screen for inhibitors of essential genes in mycobacteria: evaluation of the acetamidase promoter. Int J Antimicrob Agents 28:36-41.
2. Raghunand, T. R., and W. R. Bishai. 2006. Mycobacterium smegmatis whmD and its homologue Mycobacterium tuberculosis whiB2 are functionally equivalent. Microbiology 152:2735-47.
3. Raghunand, T. R., and W. R. Bishai. 2006. Mapping essential domains of Mycobacterium smegmatis WhmD: insights into WhiB structure and function. J Bacteriol 188:6966-76.
4. Lamichhane, G., T. R. Raghunand, N. E. Morrison, S. C. Woolwine, S. Tyagi, K. Kandavelou, and W. R. Bishai. 2006. Deletion of a Mycobacterium tuberculosis Proteasomal ATPase Homologue Gene Produces a Slow-Growing Strain That Persists in Host Tissues. J Infect Dis 194:1233-40.
5. Geiman, D. E., T. R. Raghunand, N. Agarwal, and W. R. Bishai. 2006. Differential gene expression in response to exposure to antimycobacterial agents and other stress conditions among seven Mycobacterium tuberculosis whiB-like genes. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 50:2836-41.
6. Agarwal, N., T. R. Raghunand, and W. R. Bishai. 2006. Regulation of the expression of whiB1 in Mycobacterium tuberculosis: role of cAMP receptor protein. Microbiology 152:2749-56.
7. Raghunand TR and Mahadevan S. (2004) Mutational analysis of beta-glucoside utilisation in Klebsiella aerogenes: evidence for the presence of multiple genetic systems. J. Genet. 83(3):285-289.
8. Raghunand TR and Mahadevan S. (2003) The beta-glucoside genes of Klebsiella aerogenes: conservation and divergence in relation to the cryptic bgl genes of Escherichia coli. FEMS Microbiol. Lett. 223(2):267-74.
9. Mahadevan S, Raghunand TR, Panicker S, and Struhl K (1997) Characterisation of 3’ end formation in the yeast HIS3 mRNA. Gene 190:69-76.
10. Raghunand TR. (1998) Transgene Silencing: New insights into an old puzzle. Journal of Biosciences (Indian Academy of Sciences) 23(5): 539-540.
11. Raghunand TR. (1996) Molecular clues to the control of circadian rhythms. Resonance (Indian Academy of Sciences) 1(4): 76-81.
