Welcome!

Welcome to the personal website of the Carabetta lab at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University (CMSRU).

The Carabetta lab uses traditional bacterial genetics, in vitro biochemistry and mass-spectrometry based proteomics to tackle difficult biological questions. The overarching theme of the lab is combatting antimicrobial resistance in bacteria. With an alarming rise in multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria, the need to develop novel therapeutic strategies is of paramount importance. There are three active areas of ongoing research in the Carabetta lab, which approach this problem from different angles:

In Bacillus subtilis, we are exploring the role of lysine acetylation of the histone-like proteins on sporulation, cell growth, biofilm formation and drug tolerance. In addition, we are characterizing the enzymatic mechanisms of acetylation. The ultimate goal of this work is to identify exciting novel drug targets and assessing their possibility to become new therapeutic agents.
We are actively searching for new, combinatorial therapeutic strategies to combat multidrug (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) Acinetobacter baumannii, in collaboration with Cooper University Hospital physicians. A. baumannii is an opportunistic nosocomial pathogen, that is especially problematic in intensive care units and infections are particularly difficult to treat and eliminate from surfaces. We are working with newly approved antibiotics, bacteriophage and standard of care drugs to determine effective combinatorial therapies as new treatment options. In addition, we are studying the contribution of antiseptic tolerance to outbreaks and the underlying mechanisms for the rapid evolution of these bacteria.
In collaboration with Rowan Biomedical Engineering, we are exploring the use of combinations of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) tethered to hydrogels to combat biofilm formation of Staphylococcal species. The long-term goal is to design a novel coating with superior antimicrobial properties that can be used on surgically implanted medical devices to prevent biofilm-associated infections. Infections of medical devices leads to device failure and problematic recurring infections. With an aging population and increased usage of implanted medical devices, this remains a significant healthcare burden.