Microbiology

The Section of Microbiology is located in the Flowers Building on the South Kensington campus of Imperial College London. The section has two major research themes centred around microbial pathogenicity and environment sensing.  Particular interests include the mechanisms underlying bacterial virulence and characterisation of the fungal pH response.

Microbiology is closely integrated with the Centre for Molecular Microbiology and Infection (CMMI, www.imperial.ac.uk/cmmi), a joint initiative with the Faculty of Natural Sciences.  The overall goals of the CMMI are to understand the biology of infectious diseases with an emphasis on bacterial infections, and to translate this information into novel strategies for preventing and treating microbial disease. The CMMI is a partner in the European Initiative of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (EIMID). The Section of Microbiology also plays a leading role in the Centre for Integrative Systems Biology and Bioinformatics(CISBIO, www.imperial.ac.uk/cisbio).

The section employs over 40 members of staff and includes over 20 research students. The Principal Investigators are currently supported by grants totalling over £20.0M, and contribute to teaching on 15 courses, organising modules on 5 of these courses. The section launched a new MRes in Microbial Pathogenesis in 2009.