Beth Lazazzera*
Beth Lazazzera received her Ph.D. in Bacteriology from the University of Wisconsin, Madison and was a postdoctoral fellow at MIT. She arrived at UCLA in 1999 and joined the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics (MIMG). She has participated in numerous instructional activities at UCLA and has taught the course “Introduction to Microbiology”, MIMG101, from 2001-2018. Since 2019, she has taught the introductory biology course, LS7A, “Cell and Molecular Biology”. She has been participating in workshops offered by the Center for Education Innovation and Learning in the Sciences (CEILS) since its inception and was a Scientific Teaching Fellow at the Mobile Summer Institute at UCLA. Beyond her teaching at UCLA, she concurrently spent 5 years as one of the lead instructors for the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Advanced Bacterial Genetics Course. Dr. Lazazzera is a past Vice Chair of Undergraduate Education in MIMG, past-Chair of the Academic Senate Undergraduate Council, and is current the Chair of the Life Science Education Department. Dr. Lazazzera’s laboratory studies bacterial social behavior and evolution. They have identified mechanisms by which Gram-positive bacteria are able to communication using peptide signals and mechanisms by which these bacteria can form biofilms. They are currently collaborating to determine a mechanism to disrupt biofilms that form on orthopedic devices. They are also studying how disruption of translational quality control pathways can disrupt the social behavior of bacteria. This led to the finding that problems in translation will lead to a higher mutation rate, which contributes to increased frequency of antibiotic resistance development. Future work is aimed at understanding the molecular mechanisms that underlie these bacterial behaviors.
Publications:
Juncker RB, Lazazzera BA, Billi F. Pulsed Electromagnetic Fields Disrupt Staphylococcus epidermidis Biofilms and Enhance the Antibiofilm Efficacy of Antibiotics. Microbiol Spectr. 2022 Oct 31; e0194922. view on PubMed
Juncker RB, Lazazzera BA, Billi F. The use of functionalized nanoparticles to treat Staphylococcus aureus-based surgical-site infections: a systematic review. J Appl Microbiol. 2021 Dec; 131(6):2659-2668. view on PubMed
Howitz N, Su T, Lazazzera BA. Meta-Tyrosine Induces Cytotoxic Misregulation of Metabolism in Escherichia coli. J Mol Biol. 2020 12 04; 432(24):166716. view on PubMed
Ghalayani Esfahani A, Lazazzera B, Draghi L, Farè S, Chiesa R, De Nardo L, Billi F. Bactericidal activity of gallium-doped chitosan coatings against staphylococcal infection. J Appl Microbiol. 2019 Jan; 126(1):87-101. view on PubMed
Anderson TD, Robson SA, Jiang XW, Malmirchegini GR, Fierobe HP, Lazazzera BA, Clubb RT. Retraction for Anderson et al., "Assembly of Minicellulosomes on the Surface of Bacillus subtilis". Appl Environ Microbiol. 2018 02 15; 84(4). view on PubMed
Kermgard E, Yang Z, Michel AM, Simari R, Wong J, Ibba M, Lazazzera BA. Quality Control by Isoleucyl-tRNA Synthetase of Bacillus subtilis Is Required for Efficient Sporulation. Sci Rep. 2017 01 31; 7:41763. view on PubMed
Lazazzera BA, Hughes D. Genetics: Location affects sporulation. Nature. 2015 Sep 03; 525(7567):42-3. view on PubMed
Hoover SE, Perez AJ, Tsui HC, Sinha D, Smiley DL, DiMarchi RD, Winkler ME, Lazazzera BA. A new quorum-sensing system (TprA/PhrA) for Streptococcus pneumoniae D39 that regulates a lantibiotic biosynthesis gene cluster. Mol Microbiol. 2015 Jul; 97(2):229-43. view on PubMed
Bullwinkle T, Lazazzera B, Ibba M. Quality control and infiltration of translation by amino acids outside of the genetic code. Annu Rev Genet. 2014; 48:149-66. view on PubMed
Bullwinkle TJ, Reynolds NM, Raina M, Moghal A, Matsa E, Rajkovic A, Kayadibi H, Fazlollahi F, Ryan C, Howitz N, Faull KF, Lazazzera BA, Ibba M. Oxidation of cellular amino acid pools leads to cytotoxic mistranslation of the genetic code. Elife. 2014 Jun 02; 3. view on PubMed
Terra R, Stanley-Wall NR, Cao G, Lazazzera BA. Identification of Bacillus subtilis SipW as a bifunctional signal peptidase that controls surface-adhered biofilm formation. J Bacteriol. 2012 Jun; 194(11):2781-90. view on PubMed
Anderson TD, Robson SA, Jiang XW, Malmirchegini GR, Fierobe HP, Lazazzera BA, Clubb RT. Assembly of minicellulosomes on the surface of Bacillus subtilis. Appl Environ Microbiol. 2011 Jul; 77(14):4849-58. view on PubMed
Reynolds NM, Lazazzera BA, Ibba M. Cellular mechanisms that control mistranslation. Nat Rev Microbiol. 2010 Dec; 8(12):849-56. view on PubMed
Lazazzera BA. The phosphoenolpyruvate phosphotransferase system: as important for biofilm formation by Vibrio cholerae as it is for metabolism in Escherichia coli. J Bacteriol. 2010 Aug; 192(16):4083-5. view on PubMed
Lanigan-Gerdes S, Briceno G, Dooley AN, Faull KF, Lazazzera BA. Identification of residues important for cleavage of the extracellular signaling peptide CSF of Bacillus subtilis from its precursor protein. J Bacteriol. 2008 Oct; 190(20):6668-75. view on PubMed
Pottathil M, Jung A, Lazazzera BA. CSF, a species-specific extracellular signaling peptide for communication among strains of Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus mojavensis. J Bacteriol. 2008 Jun; 190(11):4095-9. view on PubMed
Lanigan-Gerdes S, Dooley AN, Faull KF, Lazazzera BA. Identification of subtilisin, Epr and Vpr as enzymes that produce CSF, an extracellular signalling peptide of Bacillus subtilis. Mol Microbiol. 2007 Sep; 65(5):1321-33. view on PubMed
Stanley NR, Lazazzera BA. Defining the genetic differences between wild and domestic strains of Bacillus subtilis that affect poly-gamma-dl-glutamic acid production and biofilm formation. Mol Microbiol. 2005 Aug; 57(4):1143-58. view on PubMed
Lazazzera BA. Lessons from DNA microarray analysis: the gene expression profile of biofilms. Curr Opin Microbiol. 2005 Apr; 8(2):222-7. view on PubMed
Stanley NR, Lazazzera BA. Environmental signals and regulatory pathways that influence biofilm formation. Mol Microbiol. 2004 May; 52(4):917-24. view on PubMed
Hamon MA, Stanley NR, Britton RA, Grossman AD, Lazazzera BA. Identification of AbrB-regulated genes involved in biofilm formation by Bacillus subtilis. Mol Microbiol. 2004 May; 52(3):847-60. view on PubMed
Stanley NR, Britton RA, Grossman AD, Lazazzera BA. Identification of catabolite repression as a physiological regulator of biofilm formation by Bacillus subtilis by use of DNA microarrays. J Bacteriol. 2003 Mar; 185(6):1951-7. view on PubMed
Pottathil M, Lazazzera BA. The extracellular Phr peptide-Rap phosphatase signaling circuit of Bacillus subtilis. Front Biosci. 2003 Jan 01; 8:d32-45. view on PubMed
Hamon MA, Lazazzera BA. The sporulation transcription factor Spo0A is required for biofilm development in Bacillus subtilis. Mol Microbiol. 2001 Dec; 42(5):1199-209. view on PubMed
Lazazzera BA. The intracellular function of extracellular signaling peptides. Peptides. 2001 Oct; 22(10):1519-27. view on PubMed
Lazazzera BA. Quorum sensing and starvation: signals for entry into stationary phase. Curr Opin Microbiol. 2000 Apr; 3(2):177-82. view on PubMed
Lazazzera BA, Kurtser IG, McQuade RS, Grossman AD. An autoregulatory circuit affecting peptide signaling in Bacillus subtilis. J Bacteriol. 1999 Sep; 181(17):5193-200. view on PubMed
Lazazzera BA, Grossman AD. The ins and outs of peptide signaling. Trends Microbiol. 1998 Jul; 6(7):288-94. view on PubMed
Lazazzera BA, Solomon JM, Grossman AD. An exported peptide functions intracellularly to contribute to cell density signaling in B. subtilis. Cell. 1997 Jun 13; 89(6):917-25. view on PubMed
Lazazzera BA, Grossman AD. A regulatory switch involving a Clp ATPase. Bioessays. 1997 Jun; 19(6):455-8. view on PubMed
Solomon JM, Lazazzera BA, Grossman AD. Purification and characterization of an extracellular peptide factor that affects two different developmental pathways in Bacillus subtilis. Genes Dev. 1996 Aug 15; 10(16):2014-24. view on PubMed
Bates DM, Lazazzera BA, Kiley PJ. Characterization of FNR* mutant proteins indicates two distinct mechanisms for altering oxygen regulation of the Escherichia coli transcription factor FNR. J Bacteriol. 1995 Jul; 177(14):3972-8. view on PubMed
Lazazzera BA, Bates DM, Kiley PJ. The activity of the Escherichia coli transcription factor FNR is regulated by a change in oligomeric state. Genes Dev. 1993 Oct; 7(10):1993-2005. view on PubMed
